CHARLES DE GAULLE airport in Paris
Charles de Gaulle is an international airport of France, named on Free French Forces leader, Charles De Gaulle who was also the founder president of the Fifth French Republic. Full name of the airport is Paris Roissy Charles de Gaulle Airport, as it is situated at Roissy which is 25 kms far to the Paris in the northeast direction of the city. In French the Airpoirt is called as Aeroport Roissy Charles de Gaulle. It is also the world’s one of the major aviation hub. It is important international airport of France.
CDG is the Charles De Gaulle airport’s code. The CDG was ranked second in the continent in the year 2006 after Heathrow Airport of London taking into account the passenger traffic leaving behind Frankfurt International Airport. But the CDG ranked number one considering the number of plane movements with 541,566 takes offs and landings. When taken regarding to the Cargo transportation ranked top in Europe with 2,130,724 tonnes. And now it plays has a strategic place in France’s economy.
It is connected to the city railway networks RER that connects to the central Paris nearly 3 to 4 times in an hour, together with TGV a high speed network reducing the congestion. In France there are three international airports after CDG – Orly airport placed second after CDG, Third airport operating low cost planes is Paris-Beauvais-Tille Airport and fourthly Paris-Le Bourget Airport that is for business jets and the general aviations.
The CDG Straddling seven communes and three departments lies over an area of 32.38 square kilometers with plans of further future improvements. Aeropos de Paris has taken the management of CDG with Orly and le Bourget with many other smaller airports in Paris. The construction of CDG was started in 1966 with name Paris North Airport (Aeroport de Paris Nord) and began working in 1972 on March 8th with the name Charles De Gaulle. Paul Andrew being the main architect and had the responsibility of its further extensions in that decade.
The CDG with three terminals and Terminal 2E was the very new addition to the CDG which collapsed on early day on 23rd may 2004 at gate E50, and killed four people. This 2E Terminal was designed by the same architect Paul Andreu that was inaugurated in 2003. The ADP decided on 17th march 2005 to tear down the whole 2E terminal and rebuild it, and to complete it by the summer of 2008. The terminal 2 was specially built for the Air France that now has started hosting other airlines also.
The Terminal 2 is not actually a terminal but a name given to six specific halls named A to F. If taken considering to other airports the CDG will totally have 8 terminals as the halls in other airports are called the terminals. One should to clearly know to which terminal or hall the flight comes or departs which will be indicated on the tickets as 1, 2A, 2B, 2C, 2D, 2E, 2F, AND 3. The Terminal 2 which is the new one having six terminals are provided with its own RER and TGV stations underground, facilitating the passengers to go to the cities or other countries.