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DFW International Airport to get new Panda Express, more duty-free stores

Travelers at DFW International Airport will have some new places to eat, drink and shop next year, with airport officials giving the green light on several new concessions contracts Tuesday.
First up is a new Panda Express that will take over a space formerly occupied by Genghis Grill in Terminal E near Gate E33. In addition to the chain’s American Chinese menu, visitors will also be able to purchase a drink at a bar that’s planned for the space.
It will be the airport’s second Panda Express, joining an existing location in Terminal B.
The new Panda Express will be joining the airport’s first ever Whataburger, planned to open next year, as new dining options in Terminal E.
Airport officials also signed off on two new duty-free stores in Terminal A and Terminal C, where American Airlines has begun operating some international flights outside of the main international gateway in Terminal D.
The Terminal A duty-free shop will take over a space near Gate A25 that was formerly occupied by Swarovski, while the duty-free shop near Terminal C’s Gate C10 will replace a news and gift store.
Both will be operated by TRG Duty Free Joint Venture (the joint-venture led by DFASS and Texas retailer CBI Retail Ventures), which also operates duty-free space in Terminal D. The company opened the country’s largest duty-free store covering 17,400 square feet in Terminal D last year.
Airport officials said the new duty-free stores are expected to be open by April ,1.
Both the Panda Express and duty-free stores were approved by airport board of director committees Tuesday. The full board is scheduled to vote on the items Thursday.

Source: The Dallas Monrning News

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Indonesian operator seeks to manage Philippines airport

State-owned airport operator PT Angkasa Pura II (AP II) is eyeing to manage the Clark International Airport in Manila part of its plans to expand internationally.

“We are invited [to take part in a tender] along with AirAsia,” AP II finance director Andra Y Agusalam said in Jakarta on Wednesday.

AP II had submitted a document of the tender that was also followed by operators of Zurich International Airport in Switzerland and the Changi International Airport in Singapore, Andra said.

He added that AP II president director Muhammad Awaluddin would go to Manila for the tender process.

The cost to manage the airport, which was a former United States airbase, is reported to be about Rp 350 billion (US$23.91 million).

“Our calculation is that 35 percent of the consortium is Rp 350 billion,” he added.

AP II currently operates dozens of airports in Indonesia, including the Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Tangerang, Banten, the largest airport in the country.

Source: The Jakarta Post

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Namibia: Government approves N$245m for Hosea Kutako International Airport upgrade

Government has approved a N$245 million upgrade for the Hosea Kutako International Airport, Namibia Airports Company (NAC) board chairperson, Leake Hangala announced on Wednesday.
Speaking at a media briefing, Hangala said of the total amount, N$95,2 million will be from the NAC’s resources, while the remaining N$149,8 million will come from Government as the main stakeholder.
Hangala said the upgrade will include the revamping and modernising of the check-in and departure halls, security screening points, arrival halls and luggage handling areas, as well as ventilation systems.
Further upgrades will be made on the installation of a closed-circuit television system, intrusion detection systems, introduction of the latest technology and software systems related to self check-in and screening machines for passengers and luggage.
“The airport has reached its limit concerning capacity and therefore requires urgent expansion and upgrading to meet the demands of increasing aircraft and passenger numbers, as well as more stringent international security and safety requirements,” he said.
Hangala said the Hosea Kutako International Airport was constructed in 1985 to handle 250 000 passengers per year, however, at present the airport deals with nearly one million travellers per annum as the popularity of Namibia as a tourist and business destination continues to rise.
Hangala further noted that a local company, Kerry McNamara Architects was appointed to design the project for the airport upgrade, adding that a contractor on site is anticipated by March 2019 and full completion by October next year.

Source: Namibian Broadcasting Corporation

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City reveals shortlist of architects vying to design $8.5B O’Hare expansion

After receiving bids from twelve groups that included some of the planet’s top architectural talent, Chicago has narrowed its search down to five teams hoping to design a $8.5 billion terminal expansion of O’Hare International Airport.

The bid shortlist is headlined by local giant Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM), Chicago-based Studio Gang, Spanish-born starchitect Santiago Calatrava, London’s Foster + Partners, and Colorado-based Fentress Architects. The Foster bid is supplemented by additional Chicago talent from Epstein and JGMA while the Studio Gang-headed effort partners with designers at Corgan Associates, STL Architects, and Solomon Cordwell Buenz.

Perhaps equally impressive is the number of architectural heavyweights comprising the seven bids that did not make the cut. Notable names left off the shortlist include Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG), Perkins+Will, HOK, Gensler, Grimshaw Architects, Studio Fuksas, FGP Atelier, Goettsch Partners, and Rafael Viñoly.

Arguably most surprising is the exclusion of Chicago’s own Helmut Jahn, whose eponymous firm designed O’Hare’s iconic two-concourse Terminal 1. Passing over a local team with such close ties to the existing airport suggests officials have a desire to take O’Hare in a “new architectural direction,” wrote Chicago Tribune columnist Blair Kamin.

The remaining architects will compete to design the O’Hare Global Terminal, a massive complex that will replace the aging Terminal 2. The new facility is part of the City of Chicago’s ambitious O’Hare 21 initiative which represents the airport’s first major overhaul in 25 years. It will join a planned expansion of Terminal 5 and renovations to Terminals 1 and 3.

The city hopes to complete the massive, multiphase project by 2026.

Source: Curbed Chicago