dailynewsnblog
In May 2024, Spokane International Airport (GEG) announced the completion of the Concourse C West Terminal Expansion project. This marked reaching the halfway point in the first phase of the Terminal Renovation and Expansion (TREX) program, an ongoing multi-year project to enhance and expand the Airport’s terminal facility and increase its efficiency, helping it to cope with rising passenger traffic.
The newly constructed west expansion of Concourse C is planned to accommodate the operations of 
Alaska Airlines and 
American Airlines, and, according to the announcement, will soon include many state-of-the-art features. Let’s take a closer look at Spokane International and the TREX program, investigating some of the features and technologies used to increase the efficiency of operations at the airport.
Why Was The Update Needed?
According to GEG TREX, the website detailing the plans for and progress of the TREX project, the airport terminal facility at Spokane International is outdated, and as a result, the terminal lacks the ability to add capacity to its existing gates. Passenger numbers at the airport have continued to increase, making the need for an update apparent. Between 2017 and 2019, the airport set records for passenger traffic in each consecutive year.
Today, the airport is nearing levels of total passenger traffic numbers that were seen in 2018.
Since the COVID drop off in passenger numbers, which caused the entire commercial aviation industry to grind to a halt, passenger numbers have swiftly risen, recovering to match the pre-pandemic levels of over 4 million passengers per year. By 2030, the airport anticipates that it will serve 6.2 million passengers each year. These same figures were referenced by Ezra Eckhardt, Spokane Airport’s Board Chair:
“We’re not just opening a new section of the terminal. We’re creating new economic opportunities for the Spokane community. By 2030, more than 6.2 million passengers are expected to pass through our gates, and this project simultaneously increases our region’s capacity to accommodate this exponential growth while better positioning our team to attract, retain and expand air service that connect Spokane to the global economy.”
New Features At Concourse C
As seen in the sketch above, the airport renovation of Spokane International’s Concourse C has been broken up into separate sub-projects, the highlighted areas showing the expanded and new areas. The footprint of Concourse C has expanded by 144,000 square feet, costing $150 million so far. Three new gates have also been added to the west side of the concourse, and the existing upper-level gates will be upgraded. On the ground level, the boarding gates will be replaced with three passenger loading bridges on the east side.
The ticket counter area in Concourse C will also be extended to include six additional counter locations for airlines. New exit lane technology is also set to be installed, improving security and providing a speedy journey through the airport. A 2024 press release also highlighted several new state-of-the-art features that will enhance the experience of travelers passing through the airport, as detailed in the table below.
|
Feature |
Description |
|
Expanded accessibility for passengers with disabilities |
Includes in-floor hearing loops at gates, multi-use information displays, and companion care rooms with showers and changing stations. |
|
Regionally sourced fixtures and finishes |
Includes Montanan basalt tiles, mother-of-pearl terrazzo floors, and custom-designed mosaics of local landmarks, to inspire a unique sense of place for passengers. |
|
A 315-square-foot nursing mother’s room |
Features a spa-like ambiance, private suites, and a dedicated lounge area. |
|
Electrochromic smart windows |
Windows leverage green technology and software to manage the daylight, glare, and energy use in the terminal and maximize passenger comfort throughout day and night. |
|
Expertly designed restrooms |
Featuring contemporary vanities, larger stalls, and outward-swinging doors to increase functionality and accessibility. |
|
An open-air plaza |
The plaza has been thoughtfully designed to enhance the departure and arrival experience for passengers and airport visitors. |
Many infrastructure improvements have also been planned, including mechanical, electrical, and plumbing upgrades. The baggage handling systems will also receive an upgrade, as will the restrooms, escalators, and elevators. In order to manage lighting, heat, and glare, windows will receive glazing and curtain wall systems upgrades, and lighting systems will be reworked. When completed, the changes will not only provide a better atmosphere within the airport but also increase its efficiency.
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Will New Technologies Be Used At Spokane International?
One of the technologies quoted as being new at Spokane International, and aimed at increasing the flow of plane traffic through the airport, is referred to as gate hold technology. As described by My Airline Flight, Gate Hold is a slang term for the formal FAA procedures issued under the Airspace Flow Program (AFP), Ground Delay Program (GDP), and/or Ground Stop (GS). If announced, passengers might become aware of a gate hold after boarding, but before takeoff, or at the gate before boarding.
Essentially, gate hold is the procedure by which a plane might be held before takeoff to match other factors, and which factor will determine which procedure is being followed. Gate holds can result in the issuing of a later Expected Departure Clearance Time (EDCT) for a given flight, also known as a ‘wheels up time’, and helps keep airplane traffic running smoothly.
|
Gate Hold Procedure |
Explanation |
|
AFP |
This helps with en-route traffic management. For instance, in the case of severe weather along the planned flight path. |
|
GDP |
This helps with airport traffic management. Holding allows the plane to better match the available capacity at the destination airport. |
|
GS |
This helps prevent prolonged airborne waiting. It helps air control sectors from reaching unsafe saturation levels and stops airports from becoming gridlocked. |
As the gate hold technology was announced by the airport to be getting a revamp, automation will likely be used to help manage traffic, matching the ground movement of flights with the traffic at their destinations and factoring in weather data. Today, air traffic management and analytics firms, such as Meegle, can provide technological solutions for making plane traffic smoother, using predictive analytics to analyze traffic and weather.
The Expansion Will Boost The Local Economy
It was also highlighted that the new expansion will work wonders for the local Spokane economy, creating nearly 1,200 new jobs and generating an additional $87 million in household revenue across the region. In the state of Washington, the terminal addition is projected to add around $313 million in economic activity. The space will also bring new businesses to the airport, raising the potential revenue.
Funding for the TREX project did not come from the local taxpayers’ pocket, according to GEG TREX. This is because it was fully funded through a variety of sources, including bonds, CARES federal funds, Passenger Facility Charge funds, and an $11,000,000 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Airport Terminals Program grant awarded by the Federal Aviation Administration in July 2022.
The construction itself also provided work for local designers and construction firms, as the new terminal was designed by the Minneapolis-based architecture firm, Alliiance Co. Meanwhile, construction is being done through a joint venture between an airport construction firm called Q&D Construction and Spokane-based Garco Construction. As Spokane International has a rich aviation history, it is good to see the local area enriched by the airport’s business.
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What’s The Plan For The Future?
Interestingly, the GEG TREX website features a title tagline indicating that GEG stands for ‘Generating Economic Growth’. This suggests that increasing economic health in and around the airport is a major aim of the TREX project. The full economic benefits of the expansion will then be seen following completion.
The Spokesman Review, a local publication, covered the unveiling of the completed Concourse C in 2024, highlighting the three new gates, the six new ticketing counters, and the many chairs and outlets. These are numerous enough to satisfy even the most tech-oriented travelers, as shown in the video below.
Speakers at the unveiling included County Commissioner Al French, Spokane Mayor Lisa Brown, and US Sen. Maria Cantwell, the latter of whom was instrumental in securing more than $59 million in federal funding for the project. According to The Spokesman-Review, the total cost of the TREX project amounted to roughly $150 million, but Brown was optimistic that the final result would be well worth the cost, and was quoted as saying that:
“You are in for a treat when you see the finishings and you see some of the special amenities that are here for the traveling public.”
Sustainable Growth
According to airport CEO Larry Krauter, the final vision includes a plaza with landscaped flower beds, along with mother-of-pearl terrazzo floors, basalt tiles lining the wall, and spruce panels attached to the curved ceiling. It all promises to be very aesthetically pleasing to the weary traveler. The redesign makes the most of the building’s footprint, as the new baggage system is underground, leaving more space for optimizing passenger paths through the building.
In another move towards environmental efficiency, all raw materials used in the project came from within a 500-mile radius of the airport. Spokane International Airport Board Chair Ezra Eckhardt said about the decision to source materials locally that “a decision was made not only to support the regional businesses but to help minimize shipping emissions.”
The airport was one of the fastest to recover post-pandemic among small to midsize airports across the US, so the upcoming completion of this project could not have come at a more opportune time. The increase in the number of gates and optimization of routes into and out of the new Concourse C will go a long way towards putting Spokane on the map for more business and leisure travel.
