The main airport of Helsinki had been moved from Malmi in Helsinki to Seutula in Vantaa in 1952, but it was not until 1969 that the first modern terminal building was completed, designed by architects Keijo Ström and Olavi Tuomisto. In the 2020s, Helsinki Airport is a patchwork quilt of extensions which have been carried out at different times and the architectural quality of which is varying. The most recent extension is the impressing entrance building designed by Ala Architects.

The new part has been divided into two volumes. The first volume – an expressive entrance building with a wooden ceiling – is formed by a departures hall on the upper floor and an arrivals hall on the lower floor. These functionally clear floors are connected with each other by a diamond-shaped opening in the intermediate floor, a large skylight above it and a nature diorama called Luoto (the ”Islet”) on the lower floor. These three architectural elements facilitate navigation in the space and create a strong spatial feel by pausing the passenger flow in the terminal building for a short while. Luoto has potential for becoming a similar meeting place as the one under the famous clock at the entrance of Stockmann Department Store in Helsinki.

The second volume – an intensively blue lower building – functions as a conveying element between the entrance building and the terminal that was built in the 1960s. Security control has been located on the upper floor and the baggage conveyor belts on the lower floor. The geometry of the blue building is more pared-down, and it separates the terminal buildings that were completed in different decades from each other in a natural way. The Ström & Tuomisto terminal can be seen from the windows in the ceiling of the departures hall. At the same time, the solution provides an airy and lightweight feel for the wooden suspended ceiling. According to the designers, the original intention was to use the same blue colour for the floor surface of security control as for the walls. This would have further highlighted the character of the conveying space.Despite its free form, the new entrance building is highly rational. A significant operational improvement has been implemented, as all passenger traffic now runs through one terminal. This makes the routes of passengers much clearer, even though it sometimes means long distances to gates. The entrance building can also easily be extended, according to future needs, towards the bus terminal. This has been taken into account in the roof geometry as well as in the structural solutions.

Source: Mikko Summanen’s review in Finnish Architectural Review 1/2023