The new Jorge Chávez International Airport, which requires an investment of US$2 billion, is preparing to serve 30 million passengers annually, according to the concessionaria responsible for this infrastructure.
"This airport will be the most modern in Latin America. The investment is US$2 billion for the entire airport site," said Juan José Salomón, general manager of Lima Airport Partners (LAP), the company responsible for the terminal.
"We have a building capacity for 30 million passengers a year, but we aim for 40 million by 2025" with new buildings and the attraction of new airlines, he added during a tour with foreign press correspondents in Peru.
The Jorge Chávez Airport City, as it is called, will use state-of-the-art technology to screen passengers.
The new airport will be located next to the current Jorge Chávez Airport, whose facilities are over six decades old.
It will have 46 passenger boarding bridges and construction began in late 2020 on an area of 935 hectares.
"It will be the only airport in South America (...) with a seismic isolation system," Bill Fullerton, head of the airport expansion program, told AFP.
The opening is planned for December 18. About 8,000 workers and specialists are involved in the work.
"We want to position Peru not only as an air hub, but as a service center for the region," said Salomón.
One of the most striking features of the new airport is its design, which is inspired by the ancient Nazca culture of southern Peru and will have a structure resembling a hummingbird.
"The hummingbird is a symbol of the Nasca culture that inspired the design," Fullerton explained.
During construction, approximately 10,000 ceramic fragments from pre-Columbian cultures were found. Of these chance finds, 59 pieces were restored and declared part of the nation's cultural heritage.
