Passengers can look forward to ease and comfort on departure
ONLY TWO LEVEL CHANGES TO MAKE TRIP TO GATE AS EFFICIENT AS POSSIBLE
A view inside the impressive new Terminal 2 at Dublin Airport.
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PASSENGERS flying out of Dublin Airport's T2 can look forward to as direct and comfortable a departure as possible. The check-in area is located on the ground floor, facing the entrance doors, where 56 check-in desks are located, 28 at either end of the area. The desks are located in a ' shoreline' design, meaning they are against the back wall, offering more space, with Aer Lingus taking up one half of the floor and Etihad and other US carriers taking up the other.
Once check-in is completed, passengers move up two floors, taking a range of escalators and lifts, by-passing the arrivals floor located in the centre of the building.
' When the designers were designing the building, they had the option of the least number of level changes on either the departure route, or in-bound arrival routes,' DAA communications manager, Siobhan Moore, explained.
' After long deliberations, it was felt that the in-bound one would be the best one with the least level changes. So there are two level changes going up to the departure level.' Located in the centre of the building on the top floor, the passenger screening area again offers plenty of space and its bright flooring and hooked fabric screening exude modern design.
The floor is positioned on the ' bridge' between the check-in and departures/ arrivals sections of the building, going over the roadway below and offering views of T1 from one side and Howth on the other.
Security staff will inspect boarding cards at a new desk area, before passengers make their way into the security screening area, the components of which have been suspended from the walls and ceilings.
' The area has been designed that it can be moved if it has to be reconfigured in any way and also if body scanners have to be brought in,' Ms Moore continued. ' We have to be mindful that we have to allow for that.
' When everybody goes through they'll all be going in one direction around to the retail area. That's a huge factor in keeping airport charges low.
Most of the stores in the 9,000 sqm retail and catering space are currently being fitted out, with the airport's ' Loop' shopping offering again in place and the likes of Swatch, Jo Malone and WH Smith have already been confirmed.
All of the retails units have been taken, while five to six food and drink outlets will also be opening, where passengers will be treated to magnificent views of the airfield.
Lifts and the longest freestanding escalator in Ireland bring passengers from the top of the building to the bottom and onto the departure gates, with the basement level housing a designated area for American flights.
- Robin KIELY
