“The old terminal of arrivals of Vilnius Airport, which will soon count 67 years, does not represent a modern and contemporary Lithuania. Besides, it is inconvenient for the passengers, undermines the expansion of new terminals of the airport – the condition of the building is that of a serious patient. As the flows of passengers at the airport are increasing, it is important to ensure convenient service conditions, in line with contemporary standards. We have to decide on the perspective of the airport’s terminal of arrivals – to conserve the old building reminding the Stalinist era or to build a modern air gateway to the country,” says Minister of Transport and Communications Marius Skuodis.
According to the Minister, Vilnius Airport serviced 1.3 mln. passengers last year, and the numbers were several times higher before the pandemic. Therefore, the image of the Airport – the first impression the visitors coming to Lithuania have – is no less important.
This building of arrivals is not only morally old and reflects the old Soviet and Stalinist Empire style, but its maintenance and repair also requires high costs: more than EUR 1 mln. will be necessary this year for the repair of collapsing stairs, roof and façade, an additional EUR 100-200 thousand are allocated each year for maintenance and care.
The building of the Airport was designed by the Soviet architects as one of the forms of promoting the ideology, which, after the World War II, began spreading rapidly not only across Russia, but also the countries occupied by the Soviets. During that period, the Palace of Culture and Science in Warsaw and the Latvian Academy of Sciences in Riga were built. The buildings were meant to express the greatness of the Soviet government. As the project was being prepared, Vilnius was intended to be as one of the final stops in the Soviet Union, and greater flows of passengers were not planned.
This building is not unique, airports of such style were built in the Russian cities of Koltsovo, Khabarovsk, Chita, (Kadala).
According to the Minister, an airport primarily means functionality. The current columns, load-bearing walls and other constructions of the protected building do not allow efficient organisation of the functions of baggage retrieval and passenger acceptance. For instance, out of the area of 2000 m2 on the first floor, the largest area undivided by columns, barriers or similar constructions is 150 m2. This is completely incompatible with the needs of the current passenger flows and contemporary standards of accessibility and organisation of baggage flows. Modern airports meet passengers with open and spacious terminals.
“Integrating the old building and attempting to adapt it to current needs usually increases the cost of the project by 1.5–2 times. Therefore, while contemplating this issue, it is important to adequately consider what we are trying to conserve and why,” says the Minister.
M. Skuodis will soon initiate meetings and discussions with the Ministry of Culture, institutions of heritage protection, architects, designers, government of the city.
Construction of the current central building of Vilnius Airport was completed on 4 October 1954. In 1984, it was included in the Register of Cultural Values. Considerations regarding the future perspectives of this building have sparked many discussions and debates throughout the years.
