On the morning of November 20, the groundbreaking ceremony for the main project of the Terminal Area in the Phase IV Expansion of Shanghai Pudong International Airport was held at the construction site.
[The accompanying images in this article are provided by Shanghai Airport Authority]
The reporter from The Paper (www.thepaper.cn) learned from Shanghai Airport Authority that the Pudong Airport Phase IV Expansion Project has been listed as a key project in the national “14th Five-Year Plan”, a project within the world-class airport cluster in the Yangtze River Delta region, and a major project in Shanghai.
On January 4, 2022, the Phase IV project officially commenced and is expected to be completed in 2028. Upon completion, Pudong Airport will have three terminal buildings, one standalone satellite hall, and four runways, with a total terminal area exceeding 1.7 million square meters. This will better serve the interconnection and interoperability within the Yangtze River Delta region, facilitate high-quality public travel, and meet the medium and long-term development and hub operation needs of base airlines.
The Phase IV project includes the underground transportation hub supporting project and aboveground project in the T3 terminal area, as well as six other projects: the airfield project, the cargo area project, municipal supporting projects, a 220kV substation, an express vehicle base, and other supporting facilities, collectively referred to as “2+6” projects. With the commencement of the main terminal area project, the Phase IV project has entered a new stage of comprehensive construction.
[Aerial view of the overall planning of Pudong Airport]
As the core project in the Pudong Airport Phase IV Expansion, the T3 terminal is located to the south of the T1, T2 terminals, and the satellite hall, with a design capacity of 50 million passengers. The architectural form of the T3 terminal features undulating streamline shapes, presenting a “flying” posture that echoes the “spreading wings” and “ascending” architectural forms of the T1 and T2 terminals, vividly showcasing the image of Shanghai Airport as a hub and gateway in the new era.
The T3 terminal adopts a “dual main building integrated configuration” design, consisting of a southern main building for international and Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan flights, a northern main building for domestic flights, and a transportation center located in the center of the dual main buildings. The design of the dual main buildings and X-shaped connecting corridors minimizes the need for passengers to change floors, with the longest walking distance after security check being 650 meters (about 8.5 minutes) to boarding gates for international and Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan flights, and 450 meters (about 6 minutes) to boarding gates for domestic flights.
[Rendering of Pudong Airport T3 Terminal]
The T3 terminal fully considers the operational needs and functional positioning of base airlines, featuring 90 close-in parking positions, including 31 convertible positions, both of which are the largest in domestic airports. The terminal meets the “360” operational goals of “100% close-in parking positions, 100% connecting flights, 100% automated baggage sorting, and a 60-minute transfer time,” providing efficient and high-quality services to passengers and helping base airlines become super carriers.
In terms of creating green and smart travel, the T3 terminal leverages digital technology to empower passenger travel scenarios. After arriving at the terminal, passengers can experience personalized custom inquiry services at smart inquiry terminals and enjoy full-process self-service check-in, baggage check, security check, and boarding. Domestic passengers can complete customs clearance with facial recognition. Passengers who have completed remote check-in and baggage check at Shanghai Airport city terminals in the Yangtze River Delta region, such as Suzhou and Kunshan, do not need to go through check-in procedures again upon arriving at T3. The T3 terminal is the first in the country to set an example for “green, low-carbon, and healthy airports,” designed to meet the dual certification standards of “Green Three-Star” and “Healthy Airport.” The natural lighting, shading, ventilation, and noise reduction of indoor spaces have been meticulously designed to provide passengers with a soft light and fresh, comfortable travel environment in different areas of the terminal. Additionally, it is the first in the country to feature a “courtyard garden terminal,” creating roof greenery and overhead corridors on the parking lot roof enclosed between the dual main buildings, providing passengers with immersive natural leisure spaces.
[The transfer hall in the transportation center of Pudong Airport T3 Terminal adopts natural lighting through a glass dome]
Shanghai Airport Authority explained that due to the enormous scale of the Phase IV project and the interconnected construction nodes, they have established a comprehensive, process-level, layered digital construction system for super projects, achieving integrated management throughout the entire construction cycle from survey, design, construction, to delivery and operation. Shanghai Construction Group, a participating unit, fully utilizes new technologies in industrialized, intelligent, and green construction to strive to make the Phase IV project a new benchmark for airport construction projects. Both parties have also jointly explored innovative practices in grassroots governance led by party building, creating a “246,000-square-meter Airport Builders’ Town” that integrates functions such as residential living, party building services, healthcare, convenient commercial services, and cultural and sports projects. During the peak construction period, the town will accommodate over 10,000 people. By providing more meticulous community management and more humanized public services to the builders, it better inspires their enthusiasm for participating in the construction of the international aviation hub, allowing the “city of the people” to better benefit the general public.