The future ticket counter in the new JFK terminal 1.
Leslie Josephs/CNBC
It is far from finishing, but the new $ 9.5 billion terminal at the John F. Kennedy International Airport is taking shape. Its first phase is scheduled to open in mid -2026.
It will replace the current terminal, which opened in 1998.
The terminal, which will be JFK's largest, is now an internal route. Structures of the winding luggage conveyor tape have been installed, and you can obtain future tickets, where carriers of carriers such as Turkish Airlines, Air New Zealand, Etihad Airways, Air China, Taiwan's China Airlines and others will establish their luggage and show their passports to ticket agents.
The new JFK terminal 1 under construction.
Leslie Josephs/CNBC
The terminal, which has more or less the size of the two new terminals of the Laguardia airport that opened in the last decade combined, will be dedicated exclusively to international travelers, which developers said it is key to design.
“From the first pen to paper … we had the international client in mind,” said Jennifer Agra, CEO of the new terminal, the company that develops the project, at a press conference at the airport last month.
The new luggage transport system in the new JFK terminal 1.
Leslie Josephs/CNBC
CNBC and other media took a look at the progress of construction, directed by Increase, in early July as part of what the company said it will probably be among the latest hardhat tours of the facilities before the opening day.
The project is part of the New York Port Authority and the JFK review of $ 19 billion of New Jersey. In addition to terminal 1, the current terminal 7, currently home Alaska airlines And Aer Lingus of Ireland, will be shot down for a new 6 -terminal, whose first doors will open next year. The renewal of the Laguardia airport, compared, was approximately $ 8 billion.
As air traffic grows, airports throughout the country are running to replace aging infrastructure.
The US airports need at least $ 173.9 billion for infrastructure improvements from this year to 2029, according to a report earlier this year by the International-North America Airport.
“These investments, with an average of almost $ 35 billion annually, are essential to accommodate airlines and passengers, improve operational efficiency, raise the quality of service and customer experience, and meet the resilience needs of the airport,” he said.
The future luggage claim area in the new JFK Terminal 1.
Leslie Josephs/CNBC
The new 1 JFK terminal will open around the start of the 2026 World Cup, when some games will be held at the Metlife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, about 30 miles away.
More than half of the airlines in JFK are changing terminals in the coming years due to construction, said Agra.
One thing he pointed out with the new design: “a flooded terminal of light.” That means there are no basement customs lines.
The new output room of JFK terminal 1 under construction.
Leslie Josephs/CNBC
The exits, security and customs lanes will be at the same level as the three -story terminal, which presents a wall of inclined windows. Its design is assumed, directed by the Gensler architecture firm, evokes the image of a butterfly, with the body dividing the terminal into the middle.
The Aircrain, which connects the terminals and parking lots of the airport with train stations in Queens, is already running through the construction site and will stop at the terminal when the installation is opened.
JFK's review also includes improvements on the road around the airport, where traffic has tracked in the largest center in the region for years.
The future JFK terminal under construction
Leslie Josephs/CNBC
The MID-2026 Open of Terminal 1 will include the output and arrival areas and the first 14 doors, all capable of receiving wide body planes that are used for long distance flights, and will have a capacity for 14 million passengers per year.
There will be 23 doors, 22 wide body doors and a narrow body door, for airplanes such as an Airbus A320 or a Boeing 737s, when the rest of the project is complete, currently scheduled for 2030.
The final version of Terminal 1 will also have more than 300,000 square feet of restaurants, stores, living room and recreational space, with more than half, 180,000 square feet, only for retail and dining room trade.
The future entry of the new JFK Terminal 1.
Leslie Josephs/CNBC
Increase said the airport will be the only one in the United States with tax -free purchases in cash and transport. In general, customers will make tax -free purchases that are then returned before boarding their flights, but in this format, they can take them immediately.
The new terminal will also have its own micro -red [of the terminal’s] Operations in case of power interruptions “.
