This document discusses contrarian approaches to airport terminal design that focus on improving the passenger experience. It outlines how past terminal designs have evolved incrementally without questioning assumptions. The document advocates rethinking all aspects of the terminal to improve wayfinding, uplift passengers, and optimize operations instead of focusing on retail or civic pride. Examples discussed include inverting the terminal layout to simplify arrivals routing and moving from lower to higher spaces for departures. The goal is to design every touchpoint to enhance perceptions and turn aircraft efficiently.

1. FLIPPING THE
TERMINAL EXPERIENCE
...AND OTHER CONTRARIAN LOGIC
presented by
M. Arthur Gensler, FAIA
Founder, Gensler

2. The Beginning

3. 1919

4. 1958
Gatwick

5. 1962
Washington Dulles

6. 1979
SFO Terminal 2

9. The Arrival Experience

14. The evolution of airport terminal design
has been a series of small steps over the
past decades, often catching up to new
demands of the air carriers or the airport.

15. What happens if we take a different
approach to many of the “givens?”

16. Do we end up with a significantly different—and
potentially better—end result for the passenger?

17. Do airports and air carriers get better
facilities than they otherwise might?

18. Rethinking what the
terminal can be requires:
1. Asking the most basic questions—
the ones we think have already
been answered
2. Thinking about what remains
tiresome to the passenger
3. Avoiding preconceived solutions

19. Remember that we have been wrong before.

20. “Low cost passengers won’t come early
to airports and won’t buy anything…”

21. Actually they do, and most airports have seen enormous
changes in passenger behavior and spending.

22. Detroit Metropolitan Airport – North Terminal

23. “I want to make a gateway
terminal, for civic pride…”

24. JFK T5 (JetBlue)

25. Actually, we should not confuse the city hall with the airport.
Gateways are only evident to the arriving passenger,
not departing…and we often don’t do much for the
arriving passenger to “announce” where they are.

26. “Passengers need lots of signs for wayfinding...”

27. Actually they don’t, and the building should help
passengers find their way, not the signs.
Fewer signs = more effective wayfinding.

28. John Wayne Airport

29. “Terminals used to be about feeling
good about flying, but not any more…”

30. Terminals should be memorable for lifting us up,
not for demoralizing the travel experience.

31. SFO Terminal 2

32. Common Wisdom vs. Contrarian Approaches

33. Departures Up vs. Departures Down

34. Departures:
Why do people spend the least amount
of time in the grandest space?

35. Departures:
Isn’t it more uplifting to move from
a lower space to a higher space?

36. Why presume that people want to dwell in the most stressful
part of the terminal—from curb, through ticketing to security?

37. Arrivals Up vs. Arrivals Down

38. Arrivals:
Is this the most optimal approach?

39. Arrivals:
Can wayfinding be simplified by
staying on one level straight to curb?

40. If you accept the potential advantage
of the inverted terminal,
what do you get…?

41. Routing feeds to bag claim are easier.

42. The departures sequence and arrivals sequence
require different spaces in terminals. They don’t
neatly stack. We see an opportunity to avoid
overbuilding by re-thinking the alignment.

43. Gateway terminal arrivals
work better in a space where
you can see the outside.

44. Decentralized Retail
Centralized Concessions vs.
and Food and Beverage

45. Does lumping these areas together really equal
critical mass for sales, or simply create inconvenience?

46. JFK T5 (JetBlue)

47. SFO Terminal 2

48. Is service closer to the
gate a better indicator
of a quality terminal?

49. Is the terminal of the future about the “experience?”

50. SFO Terminal 2 (Virgin America)

54. Every touch point of the terminal
reinforces a perception.

57. Is it about the “operations?”

58. JFK T5 (JetBlue)

60. Every aspect of the design is
dedicated to turning the aircraft.

62. It’s about rethinking every aspect of the terminal,
inside and out.

63. Denver International Airport,
South Terminal Redevelopment

66. presented by
M. Arthur Gensler, FAIA
Founder, Gensler