Work began to build the new Sky Line station between Terminal 1 and the Sheraton Hotel just a few minutes’ walk from the regional and long-distance train stations. The supports were installed, followed soon afterward by construction of the main body of the station and the connections between it, the terminals, the train stations, and the hotel. After arriving at the airport by train, passengers heading for Terminal 3 will proceed there.
After the cornerstone of Terminal 3 was ceremonially laid in April 2019, the main building rose steadily from the construction pits. The schedule called for the shells of all of the below-ground levels to be completed by the fall of 2020. While work continued on the upper levels, plumbing was already being installed down below. For the main building alone, this involved a total of about 290 kilometers of pipes for the HVAC, sanitary, and fire extinguishing systems: nearly the distance between Frankfurt and Munich as the crow flies.
While work on the carcass of the main terminal building approached completion, the next milestone got underway: the roof of the check-in hall. This is roughly the size of two and a half soccer fields and therefore had to be shoved onto the top of the building from one side as a series of hinged elongated sections similar to those of a roller shutter (but much larger). First, however, the construction site was prepared for the heavy equipment required for this task. The auxiliary structures for connecting the sections were installed during the following summer. In the fall, heavy-duty cranes would go into action to lift the sections onto the roof and push them into their final positions.
To make sure that passengers would also have a pleasant travel experience in Pier G, work on the larger installations, exterior walls, and interior systems got underway.
Construction of a new parking structure began next to Terminal 3. It would have room for 8,500 vehicle, with 2,200 parking spaces already available for use after the completion of Pier G.
To ensure regular service by the 12 trains of the new Sky Line line, work on a new maintenance building began east of Terminal 2. The preparations began in February 2020, followed by construction work that continued through the summer of 2021.
The foundation work at the Terminal 3 construction site neared its grand finale: concrete was poured into the last water-filled pit while work on the underground levels of the main building had already begun nearby. As soon as the underwater concrete was dry, the water was pumped out. After excavating 670,000 cubic meters of earth and pouring 40,000 cubic meters of underwater concrete, the foundation work was completed so that construction of the main terminal building could begin.
Fraport is building a new Sky Line train to make sure that everyone can get to and from Terminal 3 without hassles, including passengers changing planes at Frankfurt Airport and those who come by rail to Terminal 1. Besides the tracks, a large maintenance building and a new station will be built at Terminal 1, with all of the work being done in tight conditions between other facilities without interrupting operations―a major engineering and logistical challenge!
In addition to the preparatory work on the new Sky Line station at Terminal 1, the first bored pile work for the route was started in July 2019.
Passenger cars and taxis will be able to use an access ramp to drive straight up to a drive-by platform measuring 550 by 30 meters in front of the departure hall. Another ramp leads back down on the other side.
But it will take a while before vehicles can roll over the asphalt. First the main load-bearing system of the 14.5-meter-high structure has to be built. A stable foundation for the drive-by table is ensured by 13-meter-long large bored piles and 28 transversely aligned reinforcing steel frames resting on V-shaped supports.
Cornerstone ceremony for the main terminal building
Work to build the main terminal building kicked off with a cornerstone ceremony on April 29, 2019. The building is the heart of Terminal 3 where many passengers begin and/or end their journeys. The spacious departure hall features an 18-meter-high ceiling and a surrounding glazed exterior. Travelers can conveniently check in here and drop off their luggage. And after clearing the security check, they can relax and enjoy themselves in a lounge area spanning 6,200 square meters plus a large marketplace filled with numerous shops, restaurants and cafés.
