Twa Terminal, JFK Airport, New York, 1964
A pilot stands waiting for a ride. Five station wagons including a black ’63 Ford Falcon Squire and white ’64 Dodge crowd the loading and unloading zone. Suitcases sit on the curb. Yes, a typical airport scene with one exception – the terminal is straight out of a sci-fi fantasy.
Unique in every way, shape and form, the one-of-a-kind swooping-sweeping cement sculpture was the final creation of master modernist, Eero Saarinen. The Finnish designer never saw it finished. He died in 1961, a year before it was dedicated. Inside, the ticket counters, furnishings, signage, telephone booths and bright orange carpet were all custom-made to complement the organic shape and form
Last year while waiting on the tarmac at JFK in the wee hours of the morning, sitting there in my seat half asleep, all buckled up ready for the thrill of takeoff, I looked out of the window and much to my delight and surprise there it was – the TWA Terminal. I thought I was seeing things. More than forty years later it still looks like it belongs in the future. That makes it a perfect and rare example of timeless architecture and a miracle of mid-century modern design. Only one slight problem – it’s no longer in use. TWA is a thing of the past and its former terminal is empty. The future of this futuristic fantasy is unknown. For now it is dead – waiting to be reincarnated.
Oh, how I hope they don’t tear it down! Just think. Someday it will be the perfect terminal when the general public gets to fly to the moon. It could happen
Here’s to you and the TWA Terminal
Great photo of a marvelous building. I was fortunate enough to have worked in this building for nearly 7 years in the mid to late 80′s. It’s beauty prevented me from ever growing tired of it. I spent most of my working hours outside with the aircraft which I enjoyed immensely. If there was ever a moment I did take the building for granted I would spot a passenger staring at the terminal in awe which would remind me of the impact the building had on people.
The only flaw in Saarinen’s design was that he underestimated the growth of the air travel industry and the terminal quickly became to small to accommodate the increasing volume of people and luggage that started coming through by the mid-sixties. The unique design made it impossible to add aesthetically pleasing extensions.
I’m grateful the terminal survived long enough to be landmarked and that jetblue found a solution to keep and honor the building while building a new terminal behind it capable of handling todays airline needs. What was lost, however, were the two flight wings that were at the end of the long tubes extending out of the back where passengers boarded the planes.
My 1st trip to NYC started with this wonderful terminal. I was so happy walking down from the gate in that tube,like being on a Star Trek. I know America West(now USair) used it for a while then Jet Blue. I havn’t been to the city in 5 years so I don’t know who uses it now.Hey does anyone remember the sea monkey art work at Howard Beach Station? So sad it was taken down. I hope they save TWA terminal,but this is a city that let CBGB’s die.
It brought back good old memories as I walked in in this marvelous terminal for the first time when I took TWA 727 in the early 80s from to Tampa , Florid
When I see slides like these, I am flooded with mixed emotions. Yes, I adore this very unique architecture!!But, on the other hand nothing of today’s designs rivals this one for its sheer,one-of-a-kind creativity!!That’s what’s sad about it. America has now become a cookie-cutter image of itself with one city’s landscapes and buildings looking like the next. In other words, we have lost our sense of individuality…after all, isn’t that what America was and should be about?
Ahh! I remember going to visit the TWA terminal with my brother.Walking through those amazing futuristic tunnels and then watching those giant TWA 747-200′s load up.I really hope they use this terminal again!
Ahh JFK. I remembered my invalidated domestic flight ticket after a long flight from Singapore some years back. I ended up going on the bus going from terminal to terminal to find an airline to redeem my tickets. As I rode in the bus, I couldn’t help to notice the different architectural style of each terminals. Then it occurred to me, the bus ride is a great architectural tour of evolution of airport architecture through the ages! I ended up using TWA, and I think flying out from this terminal. It was such a nuisance trying to redeem the ticket, but I ended up having a great “tour.”
I love this shot! I love airports, airplanes, the smell of Jet fuel in the morning. But…HEY! There’s an UNATTENDED bag there! Call the bomb squad! Must be pre-9-11….Duh!
My most memorable experience @ JFK was on an inter-terminal shuttle bus. (this was also pre-9-11). Someone placed their luggage in front of the shuttle bus waiting for a cab. The shuttle driver shouted out “hey..anybodys’ bags here?” a couple of times. After about 15 seconds (a New York minute), he closed the door and drove on…. and over them. I was surprised that the bus didn’t bounce more as they were a hard shell Samsonite type luggage. “Welcome to New York” I thought.
Thanks for the memories Charles!
KevinL
I’m happy to see that the physically challenged were not shunned from the camera’s eye in the early ’60′s