OREANDA-NEWS. Fraport AG, the owner and operator of Frankfurt Airport (FRA), today received the building permit from the City of Frankfurt for the planned Terminal 3 (T3). The construction of the new terminal, which will rise on the southern side of Frankfurt Airport, is an integral part of Fraport's Airport Expansion Program as approved in the official zoning procedure. The new terminal has been designed as a modular construction concept to be implemented in phases. The first construction phase will include the central terminal building and two piers to serve up to 14 million passengers per year.

Commenting on Fraport's successful application for the T3 building permit, Fraport AG's executive board chairman Dr. Stefan Schulte said: "We are pleased that the City of Frankfurt has now issued the building permit for our new Terminal 3. In particular, I would like to extend special thanks to Fraport's construction planning experts for their excellent job and to the City of Frankfurt's building supervisory authority, which once again has demonstrated its expertise and professionalism in dealing with highly complex construction projects."

Fraport expects Frankfurt Airport will need additional capacity - which will be available after the completion of the first T3 construction phase - by no later than 2021. In the aviation industry, business planning must take a long-term view. Current forecasts confirm that Frankfurt Airport will experience sustainable growth in the future. For example, the long-term traffic forecast issued by the German Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure expects passenger figures to grow by an annual average of 2.5 percent by 2030. Thus, aviation is Germany's fastest-growing mode of transportation. Frankfurt Airport has already exceeded this value, posting average passenger growth of three percent in recent years - due to FRA's significant international hub function. The current trend shows that passenger figures will continue to rise, with growth reaching two to three percent by the end of 2014.

On the basis of this future traffic growth, the capacity of Terminals 1 and 2 is expected to be exhausted by 2020. Schulte explained the next steps: "We will now examine this estimate further, using detailed forecasts. On this basis, we will be able to assess requirements for future terminal capacity. The deciding factor is that we will continue to be able to provide our passengers with the necessary capacity and a wide range of flight connections with the best possible services and processes. German companies are very successful on the global market, which secures and creates jobs and prosperity in Germany. Prerequisites for this success are direct, fast and reliable flight connections to the rest of the world. This is the role of Frankfurt Airport for the region, the State of Hesse and Germany as a whole. Thus, demand-driven expansion of capacities - as already provided for in the earlier zoning decision - is essential."

In the first construction phase, Terminal 3 will feature a total of 24 terminal docking positions at the two piers. When fully completed, Terminal 3 will provide a total of 50 aircraft docking positions. Overall, planning for the passenger terminal focuses on highly efficient energy standards. The design of the building's technical systems, for example, will completely eliminate the need for external heating.

Terminal 3 will be linked to the existing Terminals 1 and 2, as well as the airport train stations, by expanding FRA's baggage conveyor and Sky Line people-mover systems.