Much-Anticipated New Phoenix Airport Terminal Won’t See Construction for at Least Another Eight Years, Say Officials

Plans have now been announced for what could best be described as the long-range construction of a new terminal that will serve the growing Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport.

In a statement, Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego took note of the airport’s ongoing rate of growth, saying it was the principal reason why “we’ll soon need a new terminal.”

The Mayor added that, working with the Phoenix City Council, she was looking forward to the day when she could see the building of what she described as a “cutting edge terminal at the airport’s west end.”

That west end is where Terminals 1 and 2 were once located before being demolished to make way for the new facility.

The project will not be done overnight. Partly due to an environmental review process to be undertaken by the Federal Aviation Administration, among other matters, work on the terminal is not expected to launch until at least 2032.

During a presentation before the Phoenix City Council, Sky Harbor aviation director Chad Makovsky noted the number of increased flights out of Phoenix to other countries, remarking: “What we intend to do is really look at an international facility in the new terminal.”

According to plans, the terminal will be spacious enough to accommodate the kind of wide body planes used for extensive international flights and will also feature its own customs entrance.

Plans for the new Sky Harbor terminal are part of a dynamic mix seeing the airport building and upgrading in a variety of different directions. 

Earlier this year, the FAA announced it was awarding Sky Harbor some $36 million in funding for upgrades at the airport’s 30-year-old Central Utility Plant. The airport is additionally upgrading its existing Terminal 4, a process enhancing the efficiency of its baggage handling systems, elevators, escalators, and people movers.

Opened in 1928 and shortly lauded by aviation hero Charles Lindbergh on a quick visit, the Sky Harbor airport is today one of the top ten busiest airports in the country. Last year it served more than 49 million passengers.

​By Garry Boulard

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