
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SATURDAY, March 16, 1991                   TAG: 9103160165
SECTION: BUSINESS                    PAGE: A-8   EDITION: STATE 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: LONDON                                LENGTH: Short

LONDON TO GET THIRD AIRPORT

The British government on Tuesday opens London's third international airport with a terminal that replaces facilities built by the U.S. Air Force in World War II.

The new Stansted airport, 30 miles northeast of London, is a $744 million facility being touted for its passenger-friendly design. It is London's first new major airport since Gatwick was rebuilt in 1958.

It is not expected to unseat Heathrow as Britain's most popular airport, mainly due to its wealth of connecting flights. Heathrow's 70 scheduled airlines handled 41.6 million passengers the past year.

The new main terminal at Stansted is a soaring, tent-like steel and glass building with a vast polished granite floor. Designed by the renowned British architect Sir Norman Foster, it is simple and clutter-free, airy and filled with natural light.

Stansted can handle 8 million people a year, a goal it expects to reach later before 2000, and it can be expanded to handle 15 million passengers annually.

Gatwick, 27 miles south of London, handles 21 million passengers a year, 40 percent of them on charters. The airport is operating at three-quarters of its capacity.

by CNB