Berlin says goodbye to Tegel Airport

After years of delays, the new Berlin-Brandenburg Airport will open at the end of the month

The decades-long saga of the Berlin-Brandenburg Airport is about to reach its conclusion – after years of delays, the venue is about to open on 31 October. For reference, the airport was first supposed to open in 2011, but numerous scandals and problems postponed the opening for nearly a decade.

Goodbye Tegel

Up until now, travellers eager to visit Berlin have been landing at the Berlin-Tegel airport – a venue that is not at all designed to harbour the massive influx of people venturing to the German capital. With such considerations in mind, authorities launched construction efforts of the Berlin-Brandenburg airport in 2006.

During the pandemic, the drop in airline passengers forced Tegel to shut down for a period of two months in order to limit expenses and to eventually live to fight another day. There were fears that the airport might never reopen, but that has not come to pass, as Tegel is slated to send off its last flight on 8 November before heading off into the sunset for a deserved retirement.

The special flight is meant as a gesture of thanks to the airport. As explained by Airport manager Engelbert Lütke Daldrup “Tegel has done Berlin a great service. It is therefore important to us - despite the restrictions caused by the corona pandemic - to give everyone who would like the opportunity to say thank you and say goodbye.”

Meanwhile, at the new Berlin-Brandenburg, travellers will be able to make use of both of its terminals as early as summer 2021. While Terminal 2 is already finished, it is doubtful that it will be of much use while the pandemic situation persists. Thus, it will remain closed for the time being, effectively saving managing authorities some half a million euros per month.