Charles de Gaulle International Airport

Charles de Gaulle International Airport {{Airport codes|CDG|LFPG}} (French: Aéroport de Roissy-Charles de Gaulle), also known as Roissy Airport (or just Roissy in French), serving Paris, is one of Europe's principal aviation centres, as well as France's main international airport. It is named after Charles de Gaulle (1890-1970), a French general and former president. It is located near Roissy, 25 km to the north-east of Paris.

History

After seven years of planning and construction, CDG began service on March 8, 1974. Terminal one was built to an avant-garde design consisting of a ten-floor high circular building surrounded by seven satellite buildings each with four gates. The main architect was Paul Andreu, who was also in charge of the extensions during the following decades.

Related Topics:
March 8 - 1974 - Avant-garde - Paul Andreu

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On 3 March 1974, Turkish Airlines Flight 981 crashed immediately after take off from Charles de Gaulle, killing all its passengers.

Related Topics:
3 March - 1974 - Turkish Airlines Flight 981

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On 26 August 1988, one Merhan Karimi Nasseri found himself held at Charles de Gaulle airport by immigration. He claimed he was a refugee, but had had his refugee papers stolen. After years of bureaucratic wrangling, it was concluded that Nasseri had entered the airport legally and could not be expelled from its walls; but since he had no papers, there was no country to deport him to either, leaving him in residential limbo. Nasseri has continued to live within the confines of the airport to this day, even though French authorities have since made it possible for him to leave if he so chooses.

Related Topics:
26 August - 1988 - Merhan Karimi Nasseri

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On 19 September 1989, UTA Flight 772 exploded over the Sahara Desert while on the second leg of the Brazzaville-Ndjamena-Paris route, killing all on board.

Related Topics:
19 September - 1989 - UTA Flight 772 - Sahara Desert - Brazzaville - Ndjamena

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On 24 December, 1994, Air France Flight 8969 was hijacked shortly after it took off from Algiers to Paris. It was flown to Marseille, where hijackers wanted it to be refuelled in order to run it into the Eiffel Tower. French commandos intervened and shot all four hijackers dead.

Related Topics:
24 December - 1994 - Air France Flight 8969 - Algiers - Marseille - Eiffel Tower

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On 17 July, 1996, TWA Flight 800, which was bound for Charles de Gaulle International Airport from John F. Kennedy International Airport in Jamaica, Queens, New York, New York, exploded near Long Island.

Related Topics:
17 July - 1996 - TWA Flight 800 - John F. Kennedy International Airport - Jamaica - Queens - New York, New York - Long Island

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On 25 July 2000, an Air France Flight 4590, a Concorde bound from Charles de Gaulle Airport for John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City crashed in nearby Gonesse after coming in contact with material that had been left by another plane on the runway. The Concorde was on a German charter flight for a tour company. Everyone on board died, as did four people on the ground. This was the only time a Concorde had crashed.

Related Topics:
25 July - 2000 - Air France Flight 4590 - Concorde - John F. Kennedy International Airport - New York City - Gonesse - German

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On 22 December, 2001, an Al-Qaeda terrorist named Richard Reid tried to ignite explosives hidden in his shoes onboard American Airlines Flight 63, which was headed from Charles de Gaulle to Miami International Airport in Miami, Florida. He was subdued after a passenger smelled sulfur.

Related Topics:
22 December - 2001 - Al-Qaeda - Richard Reid - American Airlines - Flight 63 - Miami International Airport - Miami, Florida

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The collapse of Terminal 2E

Terminal 2E, with a daring design and wide open spaces, was CDG's newest addition. However, on 23 May, 2004, not long after its inauguration, a portion of Terminal 2E's ceiling collapsed early in the day, near Gate E50, killing four people http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/3743081.stm. Terminal 2E had been inaugurated in 2003 after some delays in construction and was also designed by Paul Andreu. Administrative and judicial enquiries were started. Coincidentally, Andreu had also designed Terminal 3 at Dubai International Airport, which collapsed while under construction on September 28, 2004.

Related Topics:
23 May - 2004 - Dubai International Airport - September 28

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Before this accident, ADP had been planning for a public stock offering in 2005 with the new terminal as a major attraction for investors. The partial collapse and indefinite closing of the terminal just before the beginning of summer could seriously hurt the airport's business plan.

Related Topics:
Public stock offering - 2005 - Summer

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In February 2005, the results from the administrative enquiry were published. The experts pointed out that the there existed no single fault, but rather a multiplicity of causes to the collapse, in a design that had little margins of safety. According to them, the concrete vaulted roof was not resilient enough and had been pierced by metallic pillars; and some openings weakened the structure. Sources close to the enquiry also disclosed that the whole building chain had worked as close to the limits as possible, so as to reduce costs. Paul Andreu denounced the building companies for having not correctly prepared the reinforced concrete.

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On March 17, 2005, ADP decided to tear down and rebuild the whole part of Terminal 2E (the "jetty") of which a section had collapsed, at a cost of approximately ?100 million http://news.tf1.fr/news/france/0,,3208103,00.html.

Related Topics:
March 17 - 2005

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External links

• Official report of the administrative enquiry commission (in French)