After seven years of design and planning work, the new North Terminal at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport has opened.
The 35-gate, $1 billion terminal’s architectural form is an homage to the gentle curves of the Mississippi River and immerses visitors in the culture, geography, and history of New Orleans. Natural light streams into the terminal via skylights that are meant to evoke the city’s tree-shaded urban markets. The terminal’s three-story central atrium includes a jazz garden that will feature live music and a large glass-sealed image of oak trees in the morning fog taken by a local photographer is adjacent to the main elevator.
Designed for the maximum convenience of passengers, a single security checkpoint serves both foreign and domestic flights and adapts to accommodate large tourist crowds during special events like Jazz Fest and Mardi Gras. The terminal is easily navigable thanks to its layered, open feeling with prominent views of the airport. A unique concession program celebrates the city’s culinary, music, and arts heritage.
Extensive wind-tunnel modeling and on-site testing resulted in a glass curtain wall that is able to withstand hurricane-force winds and a spherical roof shape allows long spans while accommodating heavy rainfall.
See Also: COX Architecture and Zaha Hadid Architects will design the Western Sydney Airport
The terminal will accommodate the rapidly growing airport, which is now the fifth fastest growing airport in the U.S. The terminal’s design was developed and completed by the Crescent City Aviation Team (CCAT), a joint venture of Atkins and LEO A DALY. CCAT led the design of the airport terminal, its three concourses, concession program, two parking garages, aviation radar and electrical facilities, pump station, airside aprons, and landside roadway systems. The terminal design was based on an initial concept by Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects.
Related Stories
Metals | Jan 19, 2016
6 ways to use metal screens and mesh for best effect
From airy façades to wire mesh ceilings to screening walls, these projects show off the design possibilities with metal.
| Jan 14, 2016
How to succeed with EIFS: exterior insulation and finish systems
This AIA CES Discovery course discusses the six elements of an EIFS wall assembly; common EIFS failures and how to prevent them; and EIFS and sustainability.
Airports | Dec 13, 2015
Skybridge connects a terminal and airport on each side of the U.S.-Mexico border
Cross Border Xpress is the first phase of a larger development that will include hotels and offices.
Airports | Dec 4, 2015
National Fire Protection Association drops ban on glass boarding bridges
U.S. airports can now use more aesthetically pleasing building-to-plane links.
Airports | Oct 30, 2015
HOK designs new terminal for Salt Lake City International Airport
The $1.8 billion building will have floor-to-ceiling windows, a spacious central "Canyon," and energy-efficient systems. It will open in 2020.
Airports | Oct 5, 2015
Perkins+Will selected to design Istanbul’s 'Airport City'
The mixed-use development will be adjacent to the Istanbul New Airport, which is currently under construction.
Airports | Sep 30, 2015
Takeoff! 5 ways high-flyin' airports are designing for rapid growth
Nimble designs, and technology that humanizes the passenger experience, are letting airports concentrate on providing service and generating revenue.
Airports | Sep 23, 2015
JFK Airport's dormant TWA terminal will be reborn as a hotel
After 15 years of disuse, the Googie architecture-inspired TWA Flight Center at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport will be transformed into a hotel. Gizmodo reports that the city’s Port Authority chose a renovation proposal from Jet Blue this week.
Giants 400 | Sep 17, 2015
AIRPORT SECTOR GIANTS: KPF, Hensel Phelps, Jacobs top rankings of nation's largest airport terminal sector AEC firms
BD+C's rankings of the nation's largest airport terminal sector design and construction firms, as reported in the 2015 Giants 300 Report.
Airports | Aug 31, 2015
Surveys gauge users’ satisfaction with airports
Several surveys gauge passenger satisfaction with airports, as flyers and airlines weigh in on technology, security, and renovations.