Perth Airport Terminal 2 - Advanced Trial - 16 February

[Bob C]

Hi

I attended the Advanced Trial of Perth's new Terminal 2 on Saturday morning, the first terminal to be built at Perth airport for 26 years. It is located a few hundred metres to the left of the current International Terminal.

Participants gathered at 0900 in an air-conditioned marquee at the southern end of Long Term Car Park G, the latest and apparently final car park to be built along Horrie Miller Drive. We had been asked to bring along carry-on luggage such as a back-pack, camera bag, hand bag, briefcase etc. Larger items such as suitcases would be provided to some participants by WAC.

After completing registration, I was given a lanyard and "flight details" and it
was anticipated that the "journey" on Skywest flight XR650 to and from Esperance would take between 3 and 4 hours. Water and fruit were provided whilst we waited for our bus to take us to the terminal. Channel 7 and ABC Radio were in attendance as was a film crew from the airport and several independent observers.

No photos would be allowed inside the terminal but we were allowed to take as many exterior shots as we wanted - I did so and they will be posted on Greg Wood's excellent Perth Airport Blog.

Whilst waiting we received a briefing about the day's activities and a short
time later a group of "passengers" was called to a bus which would take us to
the terminal and so the journey began.

During the day I would participate in the departure and arrival process and at
the end complete various feedback forms. The bus took us along Sugar Bird Lady Drive past the Perth Cargo Centre and stopped at the covered, well signposted Drop Off and Pick Up zone adjacent to the large forecourt of Terminal 2. An area to the left of the Terminal has been landscaped with lawn and native plants since my last visit and was pleasant to see.

I was immediately struck by the size of the terminal building which is
apparently larger than the existing domestic terminal. Another smaller services
building is located between Terminal 2 and the International Terminal, but is a
bit of an eyesore. The forecourt to the terminal is paved in a light sandy
colour and various copper coloured structures are situated throughout. The
exterior colour scheme of sand, tan and ochre had an appropriate outback feel to it and there is good signage. A short stroll across the 30 metre forecourt (built as a security precaution) and I was into the terminal.

WOW ! What a building – high ceilings, with large skylights giving it a light,
bright, airy and spacious feel, helped no doubt by the white paint scheme.
Across a wide, light coloured tiled area to the left of the entrance are the
Check In counters – 16 for Skywest and 8 for Alliance and the Arrivals area and three baggage carousels are located on the right. Dividing the Check In and Arrivals areas is the entry to the Departures Hall which is accessed through security screening points. A Coffee Club outlet is situated across from the Check In area and another retail outlet also appears to be under construction. A very functional and spacious area.

I couldn't see any signage for Tiger and when I posed the question to one of the many WAC staff in attendance was advised that Tiger would move over from the Domestic Terminal in May.

I checked in for my "flight" and all systems were working normally, including my carry on luggage being weighed – I didn't have any luggage to check in. Then after receiving my "boarding pass" I proceeded through the security screening point and so far everything was as expected, just the usual check in procedure.

The Departures Hall is another large, bright and spacious area with plenty of
seating similar to that in the QANTAS domestic terminal. There are the usual
obligatory retail outlets of course – a Hudson's Coffee shop is located in the
centre, just after you pass through security, Tech 2 Go and Relay outlets on the left with another outlet under construction (a newsagent ?) and there appear to be at least another two being outfitted on the right. There is a large landscaped area under construction outside and to the left of the Departures Hall but this doesn't appear to be accessible and I think there may be something similar occurring on the right although there was still plenty of construction materials around this area so it is difficult to tell.

But disappointingly, although Perth enthusiasts have known for some time, there is nowhere to "spot" and there may be only two or three aircraft visible behind the boarding counters.

Several screens were displaying the various dummy flights we would be taking and I was amused to see them also displaying flights to exotic places around the world and being operated by Air Tran, America West, Avianca, British Airways, U S Airways etc in addition to Skywest and Alliance. Whilst waiting for my flight to be be called I enjoyed a coffee and muffin, courtesy of Hudson's, as did all other passengers. Water, soft drinks, juice and fruit were also available and I expect a food outlet to open at some stage as I'm sure some of the large FIFOs will be looking for something substantial to eat before or after their flights.

Whilst strolling around the Terminal, I noticed Brad Geatches, the CEO of WAC, so I walked up and introduced myself and congratulated him on the trial and wishing him well for a smooth opening etc etc. We chatted for a few minutes and after telling him of my interest in aviation, long time membership of AEGWA and my submissions about the Viewing Area etc, he said there were plans for an upgrade as it had proved so popular. He was then called away but appeared quite happy with my comments.

Shortly after 1030 my "flight" was called and I went through the usual boarding procedure at the counter, having my boarding pass scanned and being directed to Gate 2 which was to the right. Access to the aircraft is via non air conditioned, covered walkways which are open between the ceiling and top of the windows, about 3 metres above the ground, no doubt to allow for ventilation but which could be a problem if blustery winds are blowing rain towards the terminal.

It was a fair walk to the gate and I can see it being arduous for some people as although it was only 30 degrees or so on Saturday morning, a very hot summer afternoon may pose problems for elderly people. I presented my Boarding Pass to a Skywest "groundie" at the gate and was directed across the tarmac to my ride, "Bertie Bus" rego TC-7082 !

About 50 people boarded the bus (masquerading as an aircraft) and after a short briefing by a WAC staffer, a bubbly young Skywest hostie came aboard, gave the usual pre flight instructions and after handing out cheese and biscuits we were on our way – across the tarmac around some hardstands and back to Gate 9 on the left hand side of the building where we were to disembark.

I was a little disappointed in the light blue colour scheme on the exterior
panels and thought that the sand/tan/ochre colours may have been better – but that's just a personal preference. Then it was a long walk back along another covered walkway to the Arrivals door situated to the right of the boarding counters, facing the tarmac. A short walk into the Arrivals Hall where one of the carousels was operating but unfortunately the luggage for XR651 our return "flight" from Esperance was supposed to appear on Carousel 1, instead it was Carousel 2 which bought a few frowns to WAC staffers and anxious glances, with cameras coming out to record the SNAFU. Very minor and will no doubt be fixed.

So the journey was complete and after taking some shots of the exterior, I
boarded my bus back to the marquee where lunch awaited us in the form of wraps, sandwiches, fruit and cold drinks. A short debrief, a few questions then completion of feedback forms and the day was complete by 1255. But today's turnout was a bit disappointing for WAC as it appears that only half of the 300 or so who registered actually appeared.

Nevertheless, a great experience for me and I hope everything goes like
clockwork for the much maligned WAC on 2 March, only two weeks away, when the terminal opens.

There is still some work to be done and I was told that a short term car park
will be built behind the Drop Off/Pick Up zones, opposite the terminal, but
won't be completed for "some time". But already security gates can be seen along Horrie Miller Drive and much of the road work being done on the approach to the ITB appears to be realigning existing roads and building new ones to enter/depart the new car park. So perhaps today's entry along Sugar Bird Lady Drive may only be short lived.

I also noticed that there was plenty of work underway on the new
Virgin/International pier at the ITB which is due to open in June 2014. Many
large trucks carrying concrete came and went during the morning and crews were busily pouring it adding to the numerous pillars already out of the ground.

I'll be out at T2 again bright and early on 2 March and I look forward to
soaking up the atmosphere on T2's first day of operations. It should be a
relatively easy day as it's a long weekend in Perth and Skywest has 20 or so
flights on a Saturday (compared to the usual midweek average of 60) and Alliance only a couple.

Cheers

Bob