Construction Begins on € 420 Million Terminal Expansion at Vienna Airport

Passengers await a diversified shopping and restaurant offering with 30 new retail and food
and beverage outlets spanning an area of 10,000 m² and renowned, high-quality Austrian and international premium brands. Accordingly, the airport will expand its shopping and
restaurant space by 50% to more than 30,000 m² and thus a significantly expanded offering
for travellers.
In particular, Vienna Airport will rely on its acquired, high level of competence in leveraging
digitalisation and Building Information Modelling (BIM) in planning and project management, thus ensuring a high degree of certainty in adhering to the timeline and budgeted costs. Very complex construction management is involved because work will be carried out against the backdrop of ongoing airport and terminal operations. The “ARGE Porr/Elin/Ortner” consortium won the tender and will now carry out the construction work.
The Vienna Airport construction operations were completely reorganised in 2012. Since then, it has successfully implemented numerous large projects (e.g., Office Park 4, Austria’s largest photovoltaic plant, Terminal 2 modernisation and others).
Project budget of € 420 million will be completely financed from the expected cash flows.
Preparation work on the “Southern Terminal Expansion” construction project has been underway since July 2023. Now the airport is really getting things going. Today, on 14 February 2024, Johanna Mikl-Leitner, Governor of Lower Austria, Michael Ludwig, Mayor and Governor of Vienna along with Julian Jäger and Günther Ofner, the two members of the Management Board of the airport operating company Flughafen Wien AG, launched the intensive construction phase of the terminal extension with a budget of € 420 million.
“Our airport is growing, passenger volume is increasing, and we are continuously among the best globally in terms of our service quality. Now we are also upgrading our terminal infrastructure to be topnotch internationally! Thanks to the new Southern Expansion project, we are laying the groundwork for Vienna Airport to join the ranks of the top airports and achieve 5-Star status. In the future, our passengers will experience a substantial improvement of the quality of their stay in a new terminal environment thanks to a considerable enlargement of the shopping and restaurant offering featuring renowned Austrian and international premium brands. There will be new and exclusive lounges, large and comfortable leisure areas, new centralised and state-of-the-art security controls, and better transfer connections for transfer passengers between all terminal areas. And all of this will take place in an exclusive and high-quality terminal environment making Austrian and Viennese elegance perceptible and palpable in a charming way. The Southern Expansion enables us to set new benchmarks in quality and ensure a comfortable stay. This project is yet another airport development milestone following the record results achieved in 2019 and the second highest passenger volume in the airport’s history in 2023,” states Julian Jäger, joint Member of the Management Board of Flughafen Wien AG.
“The Southern Expansion is a key project within the context of our quality and investment drive over the coming years. After extensive preparation work, the intensive construction phase for the € 420 million project will now begin. It will be fully financed from our future cash flows, without the need for any loans. Our construction management was completely reorganised in 2012. Since then, it has successfully demonstrated its construction competence within the context of numerous large projects, all of which were finished on time and on budget. When it comes to planning and project management, we rely on
our high level of competence in leveraging digitalisation and Building Information Modelling (BIM). In this way we can not only monitor the construction process on a daily basis, but also ensure adherence to costs and the planned timetable. Completion is scheduled for 2027,” says Günther Ofner, joint Member of the Management Board of Flughafen Wien AG, the board member responsible for overseeing construction.
“Vienna International Airport is on a growth path. With this project, it is taking important steps to ensure the future development of the airport hub and the entire region. The airport is not only a crucial transport hub for Austria but also the largest employer in the Eastern Region and an essential flagship company for the entire federal state of Lower Austria. Thanks to investments in its terminal infrastructure, Vienna International Airport in Schwechat is strengthening its role as the gateway to the world for the Lower Austrian business, tourism and cultural landscape,” explains Johanna Mikl-Leitner, Governor of Lower Austria.
“Vienna is one of the most popular tourism destinations in the world, and 2023 turned out to be the second-best year for tourism with new record revenues from overnight stays. Many of our guests come by plane, and thus Vienna Airport is an important calling card for the city. For this reason, I welcome the further development and expansion of the terminal infrastructure. I am pleased to see that stylistic elements of our beautiful city along with its tradition and culture will be integrated into the future terminal design,” says Michael Ludwig, Mayor and Governor of Vienna. 

Southern terminal expansion will serve as the basis for Vienna Airport’s 5-Star ranking and entry into the top league of international airports Vienna Airport, which was already awarded the Skytrax 4-Star Airport Rating, will take a major leap into the top ranks of international airports and will be put on track for a Skytrax 5-Star Airport Rating. In the future, travellers will experience an enhanced quality of their airport stay - in a league of its own. New shopping and restaurant space will arise spanning 70,000 m² or an area of ten football fields, along with large and exclusive lounges covering 6,000 m², spacious and comfortable areas, convenient transfer connections between the F, G, C and D gates as well as 18 new bus gates. All of this will be accessible via a new and large, centralised security checkpoint, equipped with the state-of-the-art technologies. 30 new shopping and restaurant outlets with national and international brands.
The new shopping and restaurant offering in the Southern Expansion will be particularly attractive for travellers. More than 30 new outlets covering an area of 10,000 m² of floor space featuring renowned, top Austrian brands and international premium brands will create an extensive and diversified retail, food and beverage offering for passengers. Tenant acquisition efforts are already in full swing and are being implemented with digital support. In a virtual 3D tour, interested parties can explore the building’s interior areas and possible commercial space, take a closer look at passenger flows and leisure areas, and thus get a realistic impression of the entire terminal environment. On balance, Vienna Airport’s Southern Expansion will enlarge its shopping and retail space by 50% to a total of 30,000 m²
and thus significantly enhance its offering for the benefit of its passengers. Relaxed stay in an elegant atmosphere: 6,000 m² of new and exclusive lounges. The Southern Expansion will make new and exclusive lounges available to passengers for a relaxed stay in an elegant atmosphere. Alongside the new Austrian Airlines Lounge with 4,000 m², a new Vienna
Airport lounge featuring an additional 2,000 m² will be created, mainly oriented to the interior design of the very popular “Vienna Lounge”. The already identifiable design world characterised by elements, colours and textures of the Viennese Art Nouveau and the flair of Austrian and Viennese elegance will also be perceptible and palpable in the new airport lounge and the entire Southern Expansion.
Accordingly, local and international passengers will not be confronted with a sterile terminal building but a modern, high-quality and exclusive terminal environment with charm and a local flavour linking passengers to the destination of Vienna.
New and improved transfer routes for transfer passengers between the F, G, C and D gates
In the future, access for passengers to the new terminal building will be available after leaving the check-in area of Terminal 3. The new building will also create a convenient transfer connection for transfer passengers between the F, G, C and D gates. Furthermore, 18 new bus gates will be added to the Southern Expansion, namely ten for Schengen departures and eight bus gates for non-Schengen departures.
Implementing the southern extension of the terminal: Intensive construction phase is now
commencing.
Preparation work for the construction project has been underway since July 2023. The construction site was cleared, the outer facade of Terminal 3 in the connection area was demolished, cable trays were laid, and shaft structures were built. Now the intensive construction phase is beginning. At present civil engineering work is in full swing using more than 900 bored piles and the foundation is being built.
Subsequently construction of the six-storey building will commence, followed by the interior fittings and installation of the building technology system.
Digital twin: the Southern Expansion is already completely virtually accessible.
Construction of the new terminal building will take place in accordance with the most modern standards and based on the use of digital technologies. The entire building has been fully digitally recorded and virtually mapped out in the Building Information Modelling (BIM) system to reflect construction plans.
There is, so to speak, a “digital twin.” The entire building can be virtually entered. With just a click of the mouse, it is possible to wander through all rooms, floors and areas of the future terminal building. Not only are the walls, stairways, elevator shafts and other structural aspects presented, but also all the wiring and connections required in the future for the energy supply, building services and IT in the building. The advantage is that the actual state of construction work will be recorded in real time. Thus, all fittings and installations will also be available to the operational management. Sustainability is a top priority, also for the new Southern Expansion Sustainability is also playing an important role in the new Southern Expansion project. State-of-the-art building technology solutions will be integrated alongside optimised thermal insulation and a highly insulating façade. The intelligent building control system will also include highly efficient ventilation facilities with free cooling. Vienna Airport has already gained experience in constructing climate-friendly buildings. Office Park 4 with its geothermal heating/cooling supply, wind-optimised façade and sustainable construction has been seen as one of Austria’s most environmentally compatible office buildings up until today. The electricity supply will be partly derived from the airport’s own photovoltaic
facilities, which will provide about 50 million kilowatt hours of electricity annually starting in 2024.