Berlin voters will have an extra choice in tomorrow's national election: a referendum on keeping Tegel Airport open even after the years-delayed new Berlin Brandenberg Airport opens.
The new airport, which is six years behind schedule and won't open until at least late next year, if then, has become a running joke. It has also become inadequate before opening, since Berlin's two existing airports, Tegel and Schoenefeld, already handle 33 million passengers a year. The new airport has a capacity of 26 million, and a dream-world expansion plan.
The original deal to build the new airport required that all other airports be closed when the new one opens. Downtown Tempelhof Airport was closed in 2008 just as construction started.
Over 200,000 Berliners signed petitions that put the referendum on the ballot. Aside from the capacity issues, and skepticism the new airport will ever open, many Berliners would like to keep close-in Tegel, northwest of the city as well as Berlin Brandenburg and Schoenefeld, which are both far to the southeast.
The referendum also has strong backing from airlines, especially from Ryanair, which sees Berlin as a big growth market that might even need a third airport in the next 30 years. On the other hand, some residents in northern parts of Berlin still want the planes overhead to go away.
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