UAL Flight Arrives At New Col. H. Weir Cook Terminal
The $1.1 billion 're-imaging' of the Indianapolis International
Airport was officially christened Tuesday, with a formal ribbon
cutting followed hours later by the arrival of the first passenger
airline flight.
Given the high level of planning for the Veterans Day ceremony,
however, not everything went according to plan... a metaphor for
commercial airports if ever there was one.
The Indianapolis Star reports a scheduled arrival at the new
Col. H. Weir Cook Terminal by a plane carrying returning soldiers
fell through due to logistical issues, while a planned flyover by
Indiana National Guard F-16s was scrubbed due to rain. And speaking
of those showers, Mother Nature also forced the ribbon cutting
ceremony indoors.
Those snags aside, the mood was upbeat among the reported crowd
of "several hundred" onlookers, as airport authority board
president Randall Tobias joined dozens of local officials, airport
executives and airport vendors in cutting the 1,000-foot-long red
ribbon wrapped around the terminal's massive Civic Plaza center
gathering area.
"As of now, this is an airport ... a real airport," Tobias
said.
United Airlines Flight 7622 arrived from Chicago arrived at the
new terminal just before 8 pm Tuesday night. The first outbound
flights are scheduled to depart from the new terminal Wednesday
morning, marking the first full day of operations at the new
facility... while it's the end of an era for the airport's old
terminal, which opened in 1957.
As ANN reported in March, the expensive revamp
of IND -- pushed forward by city leaders despite protests from
several airlines -- is aimed at bringing Indianapolis into the big
time. It's the largest civil project ever in the history of the
midwestern city... and is but one step in a larger campaign to make
the Indiana state capital a force to be reckoned with on the global
stage.
"The decision to move forward with this terminal was a
complicated one," said Indianapolis Mayor Stephen Goldsmith. "It
was a bold step for the city at the time. The airlines were against
this at the time because of the cost. But obviously in retrospect,
it was a wonderful decision."
The new 1.2 million square-foot Cook Terminal is composed of
steel and glass, with a swooping roofline intended to invoke images
of flight. The new terminal features two concourses with 20 gates
each -- six more than the old terminal had with four concourses --
and is expandable to as many as 100 gates if demand warrants.
In an effort to make the airport feel more accessible, even in
an age of heightened security, the Civic Plaza is open to both
passengers and visitors alike. A five-story window wall offers
views of downtown Indianapolis; additional retail space offers more
room for high-end shops, and fine dining options. Airport officials
reduced parking rates, in hopes of luring the general public to
shop and eat in the new building.
The new terminal -- named after the famed World War I aviator --
is located across the airfield from the old IND terminal, in
between the existing airfield's pair of parallel runways. City
leaders bill the airport as the first new commercial airport built
since 9/11.
The terminal also features an advanced $25.6 million
luggage-sorting system, that uses RFID technology to track bags in
hopes of eliminating lost and misrouted luggage. The field also
sports a new, modern control tower.