From January 15, 60- summer Terminal 2 at John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) will cease to function. On January 10, the airport began winding down operations at the facility, phasing out outbound flights.
Incoming flights will also no longer be parked at Terminal 2. The last one will arrive on January 14, and there is no word yet on which flight it will be.
The demolition of Terminal 2 will make room for the “new Terminal 1” , which replaces the existing areas of the existing Terminals 1 and 2. It will also take the place of Terminal 3, known as Pan Am's home harbor.
Construction of New Terminal One began in September. Its area will be a whopping 223,000 square meters, which is equivalent to two new terminals of LaGuardia Airport (LGA). Construction is expected to be fully completed in 2030.
The $9.5 billion New Terminal One will be JFK's flagship international terminal. Twenty-two of its 23 gates will be able to accommodate wide-body long-haul aircraft.
Terminal 2 first opened on November 18, 1962, and was jointly operated by three now-defunct airlines: Braniff, Northwest, and Northeast.
Throughout its history, Terminal 2 has been left with 10 gates, not very well adapted to serve wide-body aircraft. It is now the oldest operating terminal at Kennedy Airport, one of the original parts of what was called “Terminal City”.
In the early 1960s, Kennedy Airport (then named Idlewild Airport) grew so rapidly that airport planners decided to allocate a separate space for each major airline operating at the time. Major carriers such as TWA and Eastern Airlines received their own facilities, while Braniff, Northwest and Northeast shared Terminal 2.
In addition to the construction of New Terminal One and the expansion of Terminal 4, a brand new Terminal 6. In November 2022, the Port Authority finally announced that it had found the necessary funding to move forward with construction.
The new Terminal 6, covering an area of 111,000 square meters, will be located on the north side of the airport between the existing Terminals 5 and 7. It will be equipped with 10 gates, 9 of which will be capable of serving wide-body aircraft.
The first is expected the queue will open in 2026, with full completion scheduled for 2028. Active construction will begin in the next few weeks.
When Terminal 6 is completed, the existing Terminal 7 will be demolished.
The first part of the JFK Vision plan was already implemented at the end of last year: the expanded Terminal 8 American Airlines has completed a $400 million upgrade that includes new gates, three new premium lounges and a refurbished check-in area.
British Airways and Iberia have moved into Terminal 8, while Japan Airlines is expected , will join its Oneworld alliance partners later this year.
Until all construction work at Kennedy Airport is completed, departing passengers are advised to check their flight status to ensure they don't miss any possible changes not only to the boarding gate, but also the terminal.