Construction of Istanbul’s third airport continues at full throttle despite concerns

ISTANBUL – Anadolu Agency

The new airport is expected to host 150 million passengers each year. AA Photo

Construction of Istanbul’s third airport is continuing, in a bid to establish in Turkey’s largest city what the government hopes will be the most important center of world air traffic.

The Cengiz-Kolin-Limak-Mapa-Kalyon Consortium, a joint venture of Turkish companies, is continuing ground works with the grant holder of the site Istanbul Grand Airport (IGA). Company officials say the operations are ongoing on 76.5 square kilometers of land.

The controversial facility, promoted by the government to showcase development, will become not only Istanbul’s largest airport but also one of the world’s major hubs. Its construction in one of the city’s most precious natural areas, however, has drawn criticism from activists denouncing a culture of plunder and destruction. 

There are currently two different lawsuits opened by the Chamber of Environmental Engineers against the contracting of the airport construction, but there has been no development in the cases in the last two years. The Northern Forest Defense, an environmental group that has long been advocating against the third airport and bridge, has launched an online campaign under the hashtag “Resist the third airport.”

With local and foreign experts overseeing the work, a total of 780 geological surveys have been conducted since the beginning of works in March 2014, along with 1,020 soil sample tests and 9,000 Cone Penetrometer Tests (CPT), according to the project’s geotechnical reports.

The Turkish Aviation Organization and Administration, which is under the authority of the General Directorate of State Airports, is following the coordination and management of the project’s progress. The airport is planned to be opened in 2017.