As the main gateway to Israel, Ben Gurion International Airport is designed as a sequence of spaces characterized by a profusion of natural daylight, with ceremonial arrival halls, dramatic communal gathering areas and lush feature gardens. The Airport brings together a land-side terminal accommodating ticketing, customs, immigration, and baggage claim; an air-side complex including a ramping connector linking the landside facilities; and a spacious rotunda accommodating dining and retail facilities. Concourses radiate from the rotunda to the gates.

Careful consideration was given to the reduction of level changes for both arriving and departing passengers. The ramped connector negotiates the necessary level changes without requiring passengers to utilize escalators or elevators, and also creates a dramatic gateway to the country with arriving and departing passengers sharing the space. Departing passengers check in and descend through the connector into the rotunda and down the concourses to their gates. Arriving passengers ascend through bridges at the gates to a mezzanine level overlooking the concourses and the rotunda, then descend towards passport control through the connector.

• Collaborators

  Adjacent Landside Complex: a joint venture between Skidmore, Owings and Merrill, Karmi Architects, and Lissar Eldar Architects
  Parking Facilities: Parsons Brinckerhoff Int. Inc. and Feitelson Shilo Architects
  Consulting Structural and HVAC Engineers: Ove Arup and Partners
  Structural Engineering: Muller Yaron Maller Group
  Mechanical Engineers: Dani Hahn Consulting Eng.
  Electrical: D. Bar-Akiva Consulting Eng .
  Plumbing: Abraham Schwartz Eng.
  Communication: Lean Engineering, Y. Leshem Shachak
  Landscape: Shlomo Aronson Architects
  Civil Engineers: Decker Building & Engineering
  Aviation Consultant: TPS
  Lighting Consultant: Horton Lees Brogden Lighting Design
  Safety Consultant: Eidan Safety Eng. Ltd.

• Clients

  Israel Airport Authority

• Cost

  US $250,000,000