1989 to 2001: Political changes boost development
When the Berlin wall came down, Dresden Airport enjoyed a period of rapid development. Flughafen Dresden GmbH was founded in October 1990.
A large number of domestic connections were established during the following years, but the traditional routes to Budapest, Moscow and St Petersburg were also continued. New international destinations such as Amsterdam, London, Paris and Zurich linked Dresden to the western world. Charter airlines established connections to major tourist destinations around the Mediterranean and the Atlantic.
Passenger figures at Dresden Airport rose more than sevenfold between 1990 and 1994.
A symbolic moment was reached in December 1992: The one-millionth passenger of the year was welcomed at the airport – a figure that made Dresden Airport a truly international airport.
In 1994, 1.5 million and in 1997 no less than 1.7 million passengers travelled via Dresden Airport.
A growing demand for passenger and cargo traffic required the capacity of the airport facilities to be expanded. New clearance equipment, parking spaces and access roads were built.
Today, the area of the airport premises measures about 700 acres.
Next to the rebuilt »Hansa House«, which then accommodated Terminal 1, a second terminal was built in 1992 and extended in 1995 through the reconstruction and incorporation of Hall 212.
In addition to these extensions to the clearance facilities, substantial improvements were made with regard to the technical equipment and the protection of the environment. In January 1996, for example, the airport was equipped with the installations required for all-weather operation (CAT III b), which allowed take-offs and landings even in conditions of extremely limited visibility.
A new, spacious cargo centre was also opened at Dresden Airport in January 1996.
Several months later, the reorganisation of the Fire Brigade vehicle fleet was completed when a special truck for technical aid and accidents involving hazardous materials was handed over to the team.
Because the passenger figures continued to rise, it was decided in 1997 that Hall 219 – a hangar formerly used for aircraft production – was to be reconstructed to form the new Dresden Airport Terminal.
Based on the Airport 2000 project, construction work began soon after.
The new Dresden Airport Terminal was planned to have a total area of 55,000 m². In addition to up-to-date handling facilities with an annual capacity of up to 3.5 million passengers, there are the Airport Arcades (1,850 m²), bars and restaurants (550 m²) and a large visitor platform (2,000 m²).
The new Dresden Airport Terminal was ceremonially opened on 8 March 2001.
