The sky has always been a source of fascination. One of the first adventurers intent on making their dream of flying come true was Abbas Ibn Firnás, a ninth-century Andalusian scientist who lived in what we now know as Malaga. He designed several suits incorporating pleats that—according to his calculations—would give him the power to glide. Following several unsuccessful attempts, his plan came to fruition, albeit with a few landing issues.
Other stars of the history of flying are more well-known. Leonardo da Vinci designed a machine intended for bird-like flight, while the Wright brothers—Wilbur and Orville—managed to get their Flyer One machine to take off from a long stretch of beach in North Carolina in December 1903.
These pioneers paved the way for the next chapter in the history of flying: airports. These vast infrastructures have evolved in parallel to airplanes, becoming the spaces we know today.
Putting the first airports on the map
The first ever airport was named College Parker Airport, and was constructed in the state of Maryland near Washington. It was somewhat primitive compared to today’s vast aerodromes, serving in its early years as a training ground for the Wright brothers and military pilots.
“In fact, it wasn’t really an airport as we know it. It had no terminal, nor any of the facilities airports have today. It was simply a very small dirt track. It’s still in use today, providing services to general aviation operations”, explains Víctor Vicente, Asset Management Manager at Ferrovial Aeropuertos.
The first airport to have a commercial terminal was built on the other side of the world in Sydney, Australia. But in spite of having this infrastructure behind them, the Australian people weren’t first to fly passengers. It was the Americans.
“The flight took off in 1914, from St. Petersburg and Tampa (two cities in Florida), with just one passenger and a pilot on board. The flight was only 23 minutes long, covering 30 kilometers”, adds Vicente.
From fingers to Duty Free: decades of architectural shifts
From the foundations of the first aerodromes until now, airports’ architecture, structure and operations have changed dramatically. One thing that transformed the aviation industry forever was the introduction of security controls in boarding areas. Passenger security controls were introduced in the 70s, but they upped their game following the 9/11 attacks.
Another shift that had a major impact on the airport experience (as well as their design) was the introduction of fingers—the walkways taking passengers straight to the airplane. According to Vicente, their introduction was linked to a certain loss of romance, and the passenger-terminal-plane connection (a permanent fixture of boarding a flight until then) was gone.
But according to the Asset Management Manager at Ferrovial Aeropuertos, the largest transformation of these infrastructures has happened inside. “You could say that the opening of the first Duty Free stores was one of the biggest airport changes. The first to open was at Shannon airport in Ireland in 1947”, he explains. From then on, the commercial model took off, and was exported worldwide, adapted by airports over time to become what we see today.
Ferrovial leaves its mark on airport management
Ferrovial manages several airports. This gargantuan task encompasses a multitude of operations and departments, influencing the experiences of endless people from workers to passengers. And Ferrovial goes beyond efficiency and security, aiming to ensure its infrastructures have a positive social and environmental impact.
“We’re working hard to innovate, making technology available that can improve the passenger experience, protect wildlife and attempt to reduce carbon emissions”, explains Laura López Sotomayor, financial director of Ferrovial Aeropuertos.
The construction of the new Terminal 1 at JFK in New York is one project putting these objectives under the spotlight. “Several environmental highlights deserve a mention”, says Ismael Ordoñez, Head of Asset Management of the United States at Ferrovial Aeropuertos. “The terminal is contractually obliged to achieve LEED Silver certification, but our ambition is to go for LEED Gold. Meanwhile, the terminal will harness solar power via photovoltaic panels combined with a microgrid, ensuring renewable energies can meet the terminal’s electrical needs”.
Dalaman airport in Turkey is another location in which Ferrovial is working hard to improve environmental sustainability. Solar panels have been installed in the airport’s two terminals, and the company is seeking green certification to prove its fully renewable energy credentials. “The solar panels will generate a total of 11,000 MWh of electricity per year for the airport, making it one of the first—and biggest—airports in Turkey to implement solar panels of this kind”, explains Ordóñez.
Ferrovial has one objective front and center: to guarantee social and environmental sustainability. The new Terminal 1 project at JFK, for example, aims to involve the communities on which it will have an impact. The key objectives are for at least 10% of activities to be carried out by local companies, and involve minority groups. And so far, it’s smashing its goal.
The future of airports
In 1992, French anthropologist Marc Augé defined airports as ‘non-places’: empty, lifeless spaces lacking an identity. But several professionals and companies are working on making them the opposite, with a very different idea as to their future.
“In my view, the future of airports is for them to become major commercial hubs; spaces that are about more than taking flights. Places where you can enjoy leisure activities, with restaurants and even hotels in terminals”, says Vicente. “I think we’re going to see them as more embedded in our daily lives, rather than a distant place where we go to take flights from time to time. They’ll be a part of our lives, becoming much more integrated into society”.
Other theories are linked to us using less polluting fuels, stopping pollution and halting the pace of climate change. Others point to changes in their form and construction. “The airports of the future will be adapted to withstand earthquakes, floods and dramatic changes between winter and summer conditions. In terms of the construction, these terminals will have a very robust infrastructure”, says López.
“The geometry of the airport may change”, adds Ordóñez. “In any case, I think the airport is a pretty resilient infrastructure. Their form has remained pretty similar for a number of decades, with changes linked mostly to passenger service improvements”.
Because, what even is an airport? Of course there’s a dictionary definition, but the answer to the question is as varied as the opinions of its users. It’s for arrivals and departures. It’s where people start or end a journey. And it’s a space where land and air transport systems come together. Ultimately, it’s a place that gives us the gift of reaching anywhere in the world, connecting with people along the way.
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