CONSTRUCTION has begun on what will be the biggest airport in the world.
King Salman International Airport in Saudi Arabia is set to open in 2030, and will be the size of 14,000 football fields.
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The mega-sized airport will be built around the existing King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh.
The extension was was first announced in November 2022 and when finished the huge airport will be 57 square kilometers.
Of that, 12 square kilometers will be reserved for shopping.
Currently, the King Khalid International Airport has two parallel runways.
With the new extension, this will be increased to six and will see 120 million passengers by 2030.
By 2050, the amount of passengers will increase to 185 million.
With the opening of the airport, the number of aircraft takeoffs and landings in Saudi Arabia will go from 211,000 per year to over one million.
The estimated cost of the project currently stands at $30 billion (£22.5 billion).
In January 2025, the terminal overhaul at King Khalid International Airport was completed – bringing the extension closer to completion.
The revamped terminal features new facilities, including 38 check-in counters, 10 self-service kiosks, 26 passport control counters, and 10 automated gates.
Terminal 1 now also has 24 boarding gates, 40 passport control counters in the arrivals area, and 11 self-service gates.
The airport is being designed by the British architecture firm Foster + Partners.
The company is behind other projects like Battersea Roof Gardens, Wembley Stadium, and will be designing the national memorial to Queen Elizabeth II.
In May of this year, two US based firms, Bechtel and Parsons were awarded key contracts for the expansion, according to ENR.
It will have plenty of seating, indoor and outside places with lots of greenery and huge glass windows for plane watching.
The airport design has been specially-made to create a “seamless customer journey”, revealed in a statement from the Saudi Press Agency.
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Currently, Brits can fly directly from London to Riyadh Airport with an average flight time being six hours and 42 minutes.
It wouldn’t be surprising if these continue, or even if the number of flights increase to the city as a result of the new airport opening.
The airport expansion forms part of the Saudi Vision 2030 plan to transform the country.
Qiddiya, an entertainment city, is also in the plans and it is currently scheduled to open later this year.
It will have a Six Flags theme park, and enormous waterpark with submersible cars and four record-breaking rides – including the world’s tallest water coaster.
For thrill-seekers, it will have the largest drop body slide, the tallest water slide and the longest mat racer too.
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