New international concourse opens at Melbourne

A new passenger concourse at Melbourne Airport’s international terminal was officially opened on December 2, marking the first stage of the airport’s terminal expansion project.

The 7000m² concourse expansion was opened by Victorian Minister for Industry and Trade Martin Pakula and allows Terminal Two to handle a further three aircraft parking bays including two gates with dual-level aerobridges to accommodate the A380. The second stage of the $330 million terminal redevelopment project will add more than 5000m² of new passenger lounges, cafes, duty free shops and other retail space in the terminal, and is due for completion by the end of 2011.

Melbourne has seen a major increase in international services recently, with V Australia launching services to Los Angeles on December 1 and Phuket on December 3, while Qatar Airways’s first service from Doha will arrive on December 7, followed by Viva Macau’s first service from Macau on December 10.