TERMINAL 5 may not be due for opening at London Heathrow until Spring 2008, but the first part of the terminal”s infrastructure has become operational some four years ahead of the opening date. Four new parking stands at London”s principal international gateway came into use this past week alongside an accompanying 600 metre length of new taxiway. The formal handover of the four new stands is an amazing eleven months ahead of the initial BAA regulatory commitments and will be followed by a further six new stands by the end of the year. The new stands will support the airport”s continued development and will provide additional capacity while upgrade work is completed at Terminal 3 to accommodate preparatory work for the arrival of the ultra-large Airbus A380 super-jumbo at the airport from 2006. The new stands are located at the eastern edge of the Terminal 5 site and will initially be used for remote aircraft parking for airlines whose aircraft are on the ground for more than four and a half hours. Although the stands will be fully serviced including fixed electrical ground power that will not be used by passengers, although there are already plans to bus passengers to and from the terminal early next year, once new roads are built connecting the apron with the central terminal area.
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