The first phase of Istanbul’s third airport, with capacity for 90 million passengers a year, is expected to be completed in February 2018. So far, 25% of the airport has been built.
Construction completed to date has cost €1.8 billion. A total of 15,153 people, including 1,500 administrative and office staff, have worked on it, and more than 3,000 construction vehicles have been used on one of the world’s largest construction sites. The workforce is expected to rise to 30,000 at the peak of construction.
The airport’s main terminal, covering 1.3 million square meters, is expected to be completed by the end of this year.
Airport management places particular importance on using local products in construction. This includes the interior architecture, floor tiles, staff counters, metal ceiling materials and wooden components.
The airport will offer a broad range of public transport, including high-speed trains, metro services and buses. The first phase will include parking for 25,000 cars.
When complete, the airport is planned to handle 1,500 aircraft arrivals and departures a day, serve 200 million passengers annually, offer flights to 350 international destinations, and provide hundreds of thousands of jobs.