New Terminal One at JFK Airport

The $9.5 billion New Terminal One opens its first arrivals and departures halls in June 2026 — Phase A of a 2.4-million-square-foot international terminal that will replace JFK’s aging Terminals 1, 2, and 3 footprint with a single consolidated facility. At full buildout in 2030, it will be the largest international terminal in the United States.

Project Scope

NTO is structured as a long-term lease and concession with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. The consortium is led by Ferrovial, with Carlyle, JLC Infrastructure, and Ullico as co-investors. AECOM Tishman is construction manager; Gensler is the lead designer.

Phase A includes:

• New arrivals hall (Concourse A) facing the central terminal area
• New departures hall, ticketing, and security
• 14 new international gates with associated apron and taxiway work
• 300,000+ square feet of retail, dining, and lounge space
• A centralized all-electric ground support equipment fleet — the first of its kind at a major U.S. airport

Later phases will deliver an additional 9 gates (23 total), additional concourse, and a connection to the AirTrain JFK station, bringing total terminal area to 2.4 million square feet.

Civil and airside work is being delivered through staged road, taxiway, and utility shutdowns coordinated with the Port Authority and the FAA’s air traffic control facility, which sits adjacent to the construction footprint.

Current Status

Phase A is in commissioning. Public opening is scheduled for June 2026, ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup matches at MetLife Stadium that will drive heavy international arrivals through JFK. Phase B foundations are progressing in parallel.

Why It Matters

JFK has been the single most consistent source of negative U.S. airport experience scores for over a decade. NTO is the third-largest single capital project ever undertaken in New York City — behind only the World Trade Center rebuild and the East Side Access program. For the construction sector, three things stand out:

• Long-tenor private financing for a U.S. airport: NTO is structured under a 35-year concession with the Port Authority. It is the largest such PPP for a U.S. terminal — and one of the cleanest tests of whether the model can scale. The financing involved roughly $6.6 billion in private capital and $2.9 billion in public financing.
• Construction during operations: AECOM Tishman is delivering one of the most schedule-constrained programs in the country. Phase A construction has run alongside continuous operations at Terminals 4, 5, 7, and 8, and adjacent demolition of the former Terminal 1 facility.
• All-electric ground support: The centralized GSE fleet and supporting infrastructure represent a working test of airfield electrification at scale. The project’s electrical infrastructure was sized with a 25-year demand horizon, including future eVTOL operations.

Key Stakeholders

• Owner / Landlord: Port Authority of New York and New Jersey
• Concessionaire: New Terminal One — Ferrovial (lead), Carlyle, JLC Infrastructure, Ullico
• Construction Manager: AECOM Tishman
• Lead Architect: Gensler
• Engineering: Arup, WSP
• Anchor Carriers: Air France, Korean Air, Lufthansa, KLM, Etihad, and others

The terminal is the keystone of the broader JFK Airport redevelopment program, which also includes parallel work at Terminals 4, 6, and 8.