TEL AVIV —Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion International Airport will undergo upgrades and expansions in order to accommodate an expected 50 percent increase in passenger turnover in the next five years, the Israeli media reported. Costs estimate is $1.43 billion (€1.19 billion).
The Israel Airport Authority announced the plans on Monday, saying the upgrades are necessary to accommodate an expected 50 percent increase in passenger turnover in the next five years, business daily newspaper Calcalist reported.
Earlier this week, the airport welcomed 2017’s 20 millionth passenger, according to economic daily Calcalist.
Among the scheduled upgrades: 86 additional check-in stations, more stations for self check-in, plus six more luggage-screening machines.
The airport also will add eight passenger boarding bridges and two additional shuttle gates.
Construction of a new Terminal 2 is scheduled to absorb domestic flights after the closure of Tel Aviv’s Sde Dov airport, business daily Globes reported.
Located at the outskirts of Tel Aviv, the Ben Gurion airport is Israel’s main international gateway. According to the Authority’s data, since the beginning of the year the airport saw an 18% increase in international passenger turnover. The passenger turnover for 2016 was 17.3 million. According to the Authority’s forecast, in the next five years the airport is expected to see 30 million annual passengers through its gates.
The busiest airport in the world is the Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport in Georgia, U.S., which saw over 104 million passengers in 2016. In second place is Beijing Capital International Airport, with 94.3 million passengers in 2016, and third is Dubai International Airport, with 83.6 million.