The long-running train-wreck that is the story of Berlin's attempt to build a new airport—originally meant to open a decade ago—may finally be coming to an end, but keep your fingers crossed.
The project, which has been halted by bad design, construction accidents, fraud and theft and defective materials as well as floods and fires, promises to hit the finish line in late October. Or very nearly the finish line. Once the airport opens, flights will move to it in stages from the existing Tegel Airport north of the city and from Schoenefeld in the south; Schoenefeld actually shares runways with the new airport.
City and airport officials say that all of the permit and inspection functions have been successfully signed off, including previously-troubled safety and security equipment
However, the airport, because of its long delays, will open short of sufficient capacity to handle Berlin's growing air traffic, and the Schoenefeld terminals will continue in use until at least 2026. Many Berliners, especially north of the city, want to keep Tegel operating, and voted to do so in a non-binding city referendum. But the closing date of November 8 is frim, and due to the virus shutdowns, it may close permanently even sooner.
History note: The ongoing saga of the new airport is the most-covered single topic in TravelGumbo News; we've covered it nearly two dozen times in the past few years.
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