Warsaw's new airport underfire from airlines which have been kept in dark

Airlines are seriously concerned whether the new Warsaw Okęcie terminal will meet their needs, with Polish Airlines LOT even offering to co-finance the investment in order to ensure this is the case. The airlines are complaining about being kept in the dark by Polish Airports (PPL) about the structure and organization of the new terminal, which is due to be completed in the spring of 2006 at a cost of $198 million. They have not been consulted on the design of the new terminal, something that even PPL admits. "Cooperation between airlines and PPL is worse than tragic," says KLM’s Magdalena Gąsowska. LOT fears that the design of the airport will not allow very short interconnection times of around 25 minutes, which are necessary if Warsaw Okęcie is to play the role of a LOT hub. (Gazeta Wyborcza, p.16) T.J.