This improved aircraft manoeuvrability on the ramp and reduced the average walking distance for passengers, while offering larger gate lounges.īOAC's section boasted three 747 capable gates, with boarding bridges connecting to both the port side and the starboard side of the aircraft, a unique feature only to be found at a few airports and terminals at the time. The two piers were scrapped and replaced by a wrap-around pier, with six gates on the western and northern sides for BOAC and three gates for Air Canada’s on the eastern side. With the 747 expected to feature prominently on the LHR-JFK route, BOAC was forced to ask the designers to rethink the gate layout. However, that year BOAC placed its first order for six Boeing 747-136 aircraft (later increased to twelve aircraft). The total investment for the terminal was estimated at USD 19.6 million.Ĭonstruction was scheduled to start in January 1966. If needed, a second pier featuring five gates for BOAC could be added in the future.Ī unique feature was the rooftop heliport, from where passengers could connect to and from Manhattan with helicopter service operated by New York Airways. In the initial design, the 300,000-ft2 (27,870-m2) terminal featured a pier which could accommodate six BOAC VC-10s.Īir Canada's three gates were directly attached to the main building. The terminal featured a flat overhanging roof and inward sloping walls. GMW designed a functional three-level structure of reinforced concrete and tinted glass, in the style of Brutalism, which was popular in Europe at the time. This resulted in the decision to provide a building with two operational levels outbound passengers use the upper level and inbound the lower. A restaurant, bars, first class and VIP lounges and administrative offices were located within the mezzanine floor which would ‘span’ across the rear of the main concourse. The prime considerations for the design were minimal and direct travel routes for passengers, together with ease and flexibility of administration, baggage handling and services. By 1975, this number was expected to grow to 2 million. Thus, they required a modern facility that could accommodate growth well into the future. In 1965, the four airlines that would use the new terminal carried 570,000 passengers to and from Kennedy Airport.
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