its pretty interesting, they run the systems at above the normal operating speeds for 24 hours straight or so to check for issues, like jams or bags falling off somewhere.
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Hmm. I feel like they could have tried harder to test a wider variety of bag types. Maybe there are some different bags not pictured, but too many of those are the same. One type of hard-side and two sizes of soft-side luggage? Where’s the duffel bag, the golf clubs, the car baby seat, etc.?
its a temporary configuration. its all part of the staging plan to build without interfering with operations
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CNBC has some photos of their own too. It’s looking great.
I also found a site that seems to have a collection of renders showing the relatively recent design alterations of T1.
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I swear I remember the pick up area looking way nicer than that, unless I’m misremembering
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this looks so mid 
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The fundamental problems at JFK aren’t going to be solved with these upgrades unfortunately. No one seat public transit access to the airport. It’s still going to be time consuming to transfer from terminal to terminal as there’s no airside connections with the exception of T5 and T6. And absolutely nothing is being done about the runway configuration. Nevertheless something is better than nothing.
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A lot of preliminary stuff for T1 showed an air-side connector to T4. It’s been a toss-up now since there’s no confirmation of it existing at this point and the latest renders do not include it. I wouldn’t be surprised that in the typical Port Authority fashion that they deleted it to “save costs” or for some other colorful excuse.
One reason I’d heard for eliminating the air-side connector, was that T1 is to be an international terminal only. As such, all arrivals need to have their luggage to clear Customs, so they would need to re-clear security anyway for a connecting flight which, if domestic, would be in a neighboring terminal; may as well use the AirTrain to get there.
The only scenario where an air-side connector might be useful is when transferring from a domestic to an international flight. But again, I understand that international connections, or for that matter any connections between different carriers, typically require you to re-check your luggage with the second airline, thus necessitating another security screening. (There might be an exception with a single-ticket connection on an airline that does both domestic and international, like Delta. But do any of T1’s prospective tenants even have domestic routes?)
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To streamline truck operations at JFK, they announced a new truck plaza that adds additional parking spaces and conveniences such as concessions and restrooms.
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Things are looking good at T6, with the completion of departures-level steel erection for the roadway. I guess this leaves one more real challenge for this portion: the start of the roadway by the TWA Hotel. I’ll be at JFK later today so I’ll try and see what’s going on over there.
In other news, Qatar will be leaving T8 to join up with Terminal One, where they’ll open their first ever U.S. lounge! With QR and CX leaving T8, the dream of a OneWorld consolidation seems to be properly dead at this point.
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To be fair, even after all the renovations, Terminal 8 is very mid. Good on Qatar.
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T8 does look quite dated. Unfortunately the renovations that were done primarily to accommodate British Airways does little to help.
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T8’s almost a decade old and unlike the rest of the airport, it has not gone under extensive renovations. The recent “expansion” was a dud and the additional renovations didn’t do much to make it any nicer. While T4 is just as old, Delta is pouring considerable money into it to make it have a better passenger experience.
Also, here’s an interview with the T1 CEO with discussion on T1 design elements and how it is designed to be a “neutral ground” for all the airlines and their alliances with an emphasis on connectivity and passenger experience. There’s also confirmation that T1 will open in 2026.
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Very true with regards to T8; it needs much more work than what’s being done right now. I can’t see JAL or China Southern staying long with all their long-haul luxury contemporaries moving out to better facilities.
Made my visit to JFK this evening, and have some observations to report. I found that the current T5 garage toll area is in the way of T6 roadway construction, specifically in that area where the road will begin to ascend from grade to the departures approach, curving around the garage.
I managed to catch a glimpse of the new toll gates, which look like they’re nearly ready to open. Not sure where the new exit gates will wind up, since their current location seems to be where the arrivals roadways will run, but I’ll keep an eye out for some news. The other roadway confusion I saw was the rerouted T5 departures roadway. It doesn’t seem much visible progress has been made toward connecting the new bridge to the existing roadway, so I’ll keep an eye on this matter as well. Still, much progress has been made on the main guideway. I made a visit to T7, and the new T6 roadway absolutely dominates the area.
JRF is right that there’s still lots of work to be done, but the team seems to be navigating it in a delicately choreographed dance, much like that reflected in the design itself, that I’m still optimistic will get them to opening by next summer at the latest.
T1 continues to progress, with extensive work being done on their massive canopy system. Most notably, installation has begun on the departures level canopies, which have a rather distinct profile to them. The garage is coming along nicely as well, with the elevator shafts beginning to take shape and more prefabricated concrete modules awaiting installation.
I’ll end with a few more shots I took around the airport. The weather was gorgeous today and made for some nice photos.
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Egyptair has announced a partnership with JFK T1 with daily nonstop flights being offered to Cairo. The airline joins Air France, KLM, Etihad, LOT Polish Airlines, Korean Air, EVA Air, Air Serbia, SAS, Neos, Philippine Airlines, Turkish Airlines, Air New Zealand, Royal Air Maroc, Air China, China Airlines, Gulf Air, and Qatar Airways who will all move into T1 when it opens.
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