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Abstract
This report delves into John Fitzgerald Kennedy Airport (JFK). It provides a brief history as well as the old and new structure of the airport. As well, it gives a panoramic view of the old and the new structural features of the Airport for the future needs.
John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) Airport: An Introduction
JFK is run by the Port Authority of New York as well as New Jersey, under a charter ratified in 1947. It is amongst the leading passenger-volume airports all over the USA, as well as the busiest international air passenger entrance, managing more air traffic from overseas than any other North American airport (US Department of Transportation, 2006).
JFK is situated in the Queens County, New York City. It is about 15 miles by road from the Manhattan City. It comprises of about of about 5000 acres. The airport has over 30 miles of highway and is 12.7 feet above the sea-level.
Investment
About US $150 million was spent on the original construction of the JFK Airport. The Port Authority has expended over US $3 billion in the airport.
Economic Impact
There are about 40,000 people employed at the JFK Airport. It facilitates nearly US $20 billion in economic activities to the NYC and New Jersey region, creating nearly 208, 000 jobs and US $7 billion in wages and salaries.
History
The construction of JFK started in April 1942, when the New York City. It was initially planned for 1,000 acres, thereafter the airport increased to five times that size. The first commercial flights started on 1st July, 1948. The airport was formally dedicated as New York International Airport on July 31, 1948. It was re-named on 24th December, 1963 as John F. Kennedy International Airport, after the passing of the resolution of the Commissioners of the Port Authority.
Approximately US $60 million was invested in building of the airport. The present estimates envisage that JFK international offers approximately US $7 billion of economic activities and 207,000 jobs in the New York City. The building of the airport started in 1942 with modest goals. Just about 1,000 acres of land were allocated for the site.
New York's significance as a global business center implied there was an all-time need for the increasing capacity of the airport. Around 4,000 acres and 8 terminals were eventually incorporated to the original airport. Soon a number of well-known US airlines made JFK a major airline hub.
As many as 8 "Unit Terminals" were built from 1958 to 1971, and were planned by one of the airport's major airlines. The Terminal 3 was launched in 1962. It had a large, oval roof suspended by 32 sets of radial posts and wires. The roof developed far beyond the base of the terminal and encompassed the passenger embarkation section. It was one of the first airline terminals all over the world to have Jetways that linked to the terminal and that could be shifted to offer an easy causeway for passengers from the terminal to a stationed aircraft, instead of having to embark the plane externally through airstairs. The Terminal 5 was also launched in 1962. It is thought to be one of the most architecturally illustrious airport terminal designs throughout the world.
JFK is now utilized by JetBlue and is famous as Terminal 6. With the increasing growth of Air Traffic in New York, both Terminal 5 and Terminal 3 were renovated in the 1970s to have adequate space for new Boeing 747s.
The Concorde airplane jointly run by Air France and British Airways, offered regular trans-Atlantic Concorde service to JFK from 1977 till 2003, when the place was retired by both the airlines. JFK had the distinction to have most Concorde operations yearly of any airport all over the world.
In the mid-1980s, JFK had surpassed Newark International Airport to become NYC's busiest airport. In 1998, JFK started the building of the AirTrain JFK fast transit system. The project was completed in December 2003. This rapid rail system connects each airport terminal to NYC subways and regional commuter train service.
On March 19, 2007, JFK Airport became the first airport in the USA to acquire the Airbus A380 with passengers aboard. The flight carried over 500 passengers was run jointly by Lufthansa and Airbus and reached Terminal 1.
Following the 9/11, 2001 events, JFK was one of the first airports in the USA to be temporarily shut down.
Ground Transportation
Rail
JFK Airport is linked to NYC subway and commuter rail system through the AirTrain. The AirTrain stops at all the major terminals, car leasing lot, and two subway places. It is free of charge in the airport area. The travel time between JFK and Manhattan is just about 45 minutes through AirTrain and the Long Island Rail Road at Jamaica Station; or nearly 75 minutes through AirTrain and the NYC Subway.
Bus
Many city bus lines connect JFK to the NYC Subway and Long Island Rail Road, with free of cost movements offered for subway links. The buses are used by handicapped people. Moreover, there are also a lot of private bus lines running bus services to Manhattan and other cities.
Taxi
NYC's yellow taxis run by the NYC Taxi & Limousine Commission, presents a fixed rate service of US $45 from JFK airport to Manhattan. Since 30th November, 2006, this rate fare has been related to travel from Manhattan to JFK too. Conditional on the time of day, the taxi travel from JFK to Manhattan can be as fast as about 35 minutes. NY Taxi's have 4 passengers except for vans which house 5 passengers.
JFK Taxi Fare Structure
At JFK Airport, the passengers pay a fixed rate for a tour of Manhattan, and a fare to other places of interest. In Atlanta (Chick, 2007), Dallas, and Los Angeles, the passengers also pay a fixed rate. In Chicago and Las Vegas, the passengers pay a fixed fare to any place of interest. In Newark, the passengers pay a fixed rate for the majority of destinations, comprising of particular regions of Manhattan, and a peak-hour extra charges for visits to New York. In accordance to Lukic (2007), income from this surcharge provides the JFK airport with a grant method for airport operations and compensate for the taxi dispatching expenditures. Passengers traveling by taxi from NYC to Newark do pay a US $15 fee as well as two-way tax.
Nevertheless, taxi customers pay fees directly to the drivers at the conclusion of their visits. Cities may permit passengers to pre-pay for their visit; nevertheless, down payment can only be applied where the expenditures of all trips is a fixed rate.
JFK Redevelopment Program
The redevelopment project at JFK Airport comprise of different major programs carried by the Port Authority and its airline and airport collaborators. The Terminal 1 has been completed at the place of the erstwhile Eastern Airlines service; and Terminal 4, on the location of the ex- International Arrivals Building. Major ongoing projects at the JKF Airport are the development and upgrading of Terminal 7 by British Airways; the building of a new huge Terminal by American Airlines; a light rail commuter system that will like the airport passengers to NY mass transit; and new and advanced highway systems and services.
Central Terminal Area (CTA)
The CTA comprises of 9 airline passenger terminals bounded by a dual ring of tangential taxiways. Presently, it comprises of 650 acres, the CAT was expanded to 880 acres by repositioning of the taxiways to offer space required for the growth of the passenger terminals. To further facilitate the travelers, a color coding system are applied on all roadway signs causing each terminal-from the gateways to the JFK airport for parking near each terminal.
JFK Terminals
In 1994, a syndicate of airlines namely Air France, Japan Airlines, Korean Air, and Lufthansa- led the era of remarkable new terminals with the building of Terminal 1. The new Terminal 1, commissioned in May 1998, comprised of 634,000 sq-feet, 11 airplane gates, retail shops, restaurants, and a dual level front.
Delta Airlines is headquartered in Terminals 2 and 3, constructed in 1962 and 1960 respectively. The airline has accomplished its $150 million project to upgrade and develop the two terminals with redesigned first-class and business-class passenger lounges, building of new ticket counters, modern shops, new lighting and flooring, in addition to jet bridges, new luggage services, supplementary gates, as well as new food courts. On May 1997, a long-term charter was ratified with JFK International Air Terminal to run and renew the Terminal 4. In 2001, the new Terminal 4, with a modern design for passenger comfort was launched. The remarkable $1.4 billion terminal significantly enhances passenger service by means of the use of independent segments for departing and arriving passengers; improved ticketing and baggage services; advanced customs services, duty free shops, and many eatery points. Terminal 5 was launched in 1962 and is at present temporarily shut down.
Terminal 6 was launched in 1969. JetBlue and the Port Authority have invested over US $12 million to include wider roads, modern ticket counters and renovated toilets, modern baggage systems, and better shops and restaurants.
Terminal 7 was launched in 1970. In April 1997, the British Airways, along with the Port Authority, spent US $100 million in the project, which comprised of a supplementary building development with new retail stores, modern connecting roads and better parking services. The building of this project started in 1998. The development of this project, until now, has incorporated 140,000 sq-feet to the original space, and the terminal at present comprise of 350,000 sq-feet with a total of 12 wide body gates. Considerable advancements were made to both the departure and arrivals roads and the terminal fronts. The parking area facing the terminal was also developed considerably as a result of the building of a new floor over the present space. The United Airlines is a joint leaseholder, holding 6 gates in Terminal 7.
Terminal 8 was launched in 1960 and lodges American Airlines' intercontinental flights. It was built in 1959 and offers American's domestic flights as well. American Airlines started building this terminal in November 1999 of a new US $1.4 billion terminal complex to substitute Terminals 8 and 9. The project will help both domestic and international passengers with more than 200 check-in counters, 3 concourses and 56 gates with covered jet bridges for domestic jets. The terminal is large enough to accommodate Giants Football Stadium, this project will also comprise of a customs and immigration service that can provide service to more than 2000 passengers per hour, a 10,000 square-foot for retail outlets, and a new short term 2,500 parking lots facing the building. The project will be built in four phases to make an allowance for continuous passenger service. The new 2.2 million sq-foot terminal will be the biggest at JFK Airport.
Parking
JFK’s parking, comprised of more than 11,000 public spaces that included a 1,400 space parking lot and a supplementary 3,200 spaces in the Central Terminal Area. As a result of the increased need for parking created by the rise in airline passengers, a new three-level parking structure introduced in May 1998. A new parking area across the Terminal 7 was launched in November 2000, which added more than 750 parking spaces at the JFK airport. A supplementary parking shed is under construction, as part of the Terminals 8 and 9 building project. By the conclusion of 2002, parking will be more convenient at JFK Airport with the initiation of the EZPass parking payment system presently being set up at JFK's parking lot.
Taxiways
The JFK Taxiways total more than twenty five miles in length. They have centerline lights and are normally of asphaltic concrete structure of 15 to 18 inches thick. A lightning sign system offers directional data for taxiing airplane.
Modern JFK Airport
The modern JFK Airport is just about 20 kilometers Southeast of Manhattan. In accordance to some statistics, it has rated to be the busiest international airport in the USA in 2011 and even has handled more air traffic in contrast to shipments. It has maintained a strong management too, since the airport had managed over 40 million passengers at a time and the airport was termed as the 17th busiest airport all over the world as well as the 6th busiest in the USA. For the last couple of years, various advancements have been at the airport comprising of the terminals, inter-terminal and road transportation.
JFK airport is entering a new jet era that, is one without many of the iconic terminals that characterized the earlier one and created the unruffled, hyper-modern appearance of flying for generations of air travelers. In this regard, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANYNJ) declared an accord with the Delta Airlines for a US $1.2 billion development of Terminal 4 that will bring about the consequent devastation of Terminal 3. The original Terminal 3 of JFK was thought to be innovative when it was launched, however, it soon became obsolete as a result of bigger airplanes and a subsequent development damaged much of its beauty.
The first terminal was launched for the air passengers in 1998, which was some five decades after the establishment of JFK. Presently, there are 8 terminals which appear pretty much remarkable. There are eleven gates of the terminal 1 and Airbus 380 plane is handled in this terminal. The passengers can easily go wherever they want to since there are signboards all over the place which can guide them a lot. If the passengers are novice then they can also be assisted by the agents. The passengers can also order emergency air tickets which can be offered to the prospective passengers at the shortest possible time, however, they have to pay extra for such tickets. In case the weather is unpleasant and as a result of which the flight has been delayed, then the passengers can also relax in the waiting room where the people are waiting for their friends and acquaintances arriving from various countries or are waiting for their flights to depart. The passengers can also have a cafeteria at the airport. Moreover, there are other modern services available at the JFK airport; if the flight had landed at the airport, then the passengers can have a taxi, in case they are alone, in a short time as the drivers outside JFK airport wait desperately for the incoming passengers. The management at JFK is pretty much smart and is friendly with the passengers as well.
Modern Renovation & Redevelopment
Over the last few decades, a major focus has been put on renovation and redevelopment of the passenger terminals to meet the present requirements of airlines and passengers. Terminal 1 project was finished in 1998; Terminal 2 project was finished in 1994, Terminal 4 was built in 2002, Terminal 5 was rejuvenated in 2009, Terminal 7 was built in 2003, and in 2007 the second stage of the new Terminal 8 (combined Terminal 8 and 9) was finished. As a result of these upgrading and modernizing programs, the airlines have gained a lot by being able to increase their operations and passengers have gained through more resourceful and travel experiences.
Terminal 3 at JFK Airport, constructed in 1960, offer a major international entry for the Delta Airlines and has several aircraft gates. As a result of the asymmetrical shape of the building and site faults, attempts to renovate and renew Terminal 3 have been limited within its walls. Hence, the terminal does not fulfill modern airline needs and does not offer the airline passengers the facilities they have come to expect at the airports. Delta Airlines and its cohorts fully engage Terminals 2 and 3, and use three gates at Terminal 4. Terminal 3 of JFK is linked to Terminal 2 through a safe causeway with moving stairs, though no safe link connects Terminal 3 to Terminal 4. The airline passengers linking between Terminal 4 and the other terminals are needed to leave the building and move through security before boarding their next flight. This is difficult for the passengers and increases the requirement for shuttle bus service between the terminals.
Expansion of Terminal 4
Terminal 4 would be developed by 9 additional gates and the 16 Delta Air Lines airplane gates at Terminal 3 would be repositioned to Terminal 4. The 16 gates would be a grouping of the nine recently built gates, the 3 Delta Air Lines gates at Terminal 4, and Delta Air Lines using four Terminal 4 gates are presently inhabited by other airlines. The other airlines presently using the 4 gates that Delta Air Lines would inhabit with the Proposed Action would be repositioned to Terminal 8.
The Proposed Action would raise the square footage of the Terminal 4 passenger processing service from about 1.5 million sq feet to more than 2 million sq feet. This rise in space is vital to substitute the outmoded gates from Terminal 3 and offer the essential space for modern ticketing and baggage systems. The developed Terminal 4 passenger processing center would be analogous in design to the present facilities with various levels for accommodating the different passenger operations. The present Terminal 4 curb front would be restructured to have improved passenger pick-up and drop-off services.
The Proposed Action is also comprised of the development of a pedestrian causeway from Terminal 2 to Terminal 4. This 1,465-foot long causeway would have moving stairs and would help the passengers using Delta services in either Terminal 2 or 4 to tour between the terminals for link flights or other use. This pedestrian link between Terminals 2 and 4 would help the passengers to shuttle between the two terminals without exiting to the outdoors and moving through another security checkpoint.
Conclusion
This report delved into JFK Airport. It provided a brief history as well as the old and new structure of the airport. Moreover, it gave a good panoramic view of the old and the new structural features of the Airport for the future needs.
Works Cited
BTS02-03: US International Travel and Transportation Trends. Bureau of Transportation Statistics, US Department of Transportation, 2006. Print.
Chick, Laura N. Audit of the City's Contract with Authorized Taxicab Supervision, Inc. City of Los Angeles Office of the Controller, 2007. Print.
Lukic, Evan A. Review of the Taxicab Dispatch Operations - Aviation Department. Office of the County Auditor, Broward County, FL, 2007. Print.
