SCHÖNEFELD (dpa-AFX) – Great interest in the new capital city airport BER on the first day after the opening of the main terminal: Hundreds of visitors took the opportunity to see the inside of the new building on Sunday. Especially in front of the ticket counter for the visitor terrace, from which one has a view of the apron and parts of the runways, there was a long queue. Due to the corona restrictions, there was only room for 400 visitors at a time.
However, only a few passengers were to be found in the security area in front of the gates. Early in the morning the first passengers for the first official BER flight to London Gatwick had been bid farewell. A total of 23 take-offs and landings are scheduled for Sunday at the main terminal, said an airport spokeswoman. In total, only around 3000 passengers traveled via BER on the first day, the airport announced in the afternoon.
It is therefore a slow start for the 100 shops and 11 restaurants in the security sector. Due to the restrictions in the corona crisis, the restaurants and bars there have to lock their seating from Monday. They are still allowed to pour, but only to take away. Some of them had therefore not yet decided on Sunday whether they would even open.
On Sunday, November 1, 2020, regular operations began at Terminal 1 of Berlin Brandenburg Willy Brandt Airport (BER) with the first commercial flights. The terminal went into operation the day before with the landing of the first two easyJet and Lufthansa aircraft.
“In a few days, all air traffic in Berlin and Brandenburg will be concentrated at the new airport,” said airport manager Engelbert Lütke Daldrup on Sunday. “BER offers a modern infrastructure with international standards and is therefore equipped for new connections to all continents once the Corona crisis is over.” / Bf / maa / DP / mis