History
Planning took place in 2003 and construction began in 2006 and after a series of delays, the first two phases and a part of the third phase are scheduled to open mid-2013. while the third and final phase is scheduled for 2015. The airport is built over 22 square kilometers, half of which is on reclaimed land.
HIA was designed primarily to deal with the growing volume of traffic at the airport. The airport will be able to handle 29 million annual passengers at its opening, three times the current airport capacity. In comparison with other major airports around the world, it will be one of the largest in the world. Upon completion, it will be able to handle 50 million passengers per year, although some estimates suggest the airport could handle up to 93 million per year, making it the second largest capacity holder in the region after Dubai. It is also expected to handle 320,000 aircraft movements and 2 million tonnes of cargo annually. The check-in and retail areas are expected to be 12 times larger than at the current airport (making HIA two-thirds the size of Doha). Moving walkways will be installed.
The airport has an oasis theme. Many of the buildings will have a water motif, with wave-styled roofs and desert plants growing in recycled water.
The Steering Committee awarded the contract to develop the airport to Bechtel. The contract includes the design, construction management and project management of the new facilities. The terminal and concourses were designed by the architecture firm Hellmuth, Obata and Kassabaum. Engineering, Procurement and Construction contract for Phase I and II were undertaken by Turkish TAV Construction and Japanese Taisei Corporation.
Read more about this topic: OTHH
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