Newark Liberty International Airport’s New Terminal A Wins Award for Best New Airport Terminal in the World from Prestigious Global Airport Evaluation Firm Skytrax

Courtesy of the Port Authority of NY & NJ.

Port Authority Officials Celebrated World-Class Honor Based on Passenger Surveys as Well as Terminal A’s Five-Star Skytrax Rating Based on Audit of Terminal Facilities and Services

Newark Liberty is Port Authority’s Second Airport in Two Years to Receive Skytrax’s Most Prestigious Honors for New Airport Terminals; LaGuardia’s Terminal B Recognized in 2023 as Skytrax’s Best New Airport Terminal in the World

Photos of the Award-Winning New Terminal A are Available Here

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey celebrated the recognition of Newark Liberty International Airport’s new Terminal A as the world’s best new airport terminal by the preeminent global airport evaluation firm Skytrax. The prestigious international industry honor comes a month after Skytrax gave Terminal A its highest rating, five stars, following a detailed audit of the terminal’s facilities, operations and customer service in 2023.

The Skytrax honor is considered a global benchmark of airport facility excellence, following the results of comprehensive surveys taken between August 2023 and March 2024 from passengers worldwide that evaluated traveler experiences regarding airport facilities, staff service and customer experience ranging from check-in, arrivals, transfers, shopping, security and immigration through departure at the gate. Newark Liberty is the second Port Authority airport in just two years to receive Skytrax’s highest honor for airport terminals: LaGuardia Airport’s Terminal B was named the world’s best airport terminal in 2023 and was also rated five stars by Skytrax. 

Newark Liberty’s latest Skytrax honor was announced at the 2024 Skytrax World Airport Awards held last week at the Passenger Terminal Expo & Conference in Frankfurt, Germany, which was attended by Port Authority Chairman Kevin O’Toole; James Heitmann, the agency’s chief operating officer; Jacquelene McCarthy, the agency’s director of aviation redevelopment; and Frank Radics, the Port Authority’s aviation operational standards and compliance general manager. The annual ceremony is known within the international aviation industry as the industry’s equivalent of filmmaking’s Academy Awards.

“This is a tremendously well-deserved honor for the flagship of the Port Authority’s ongoing renaissance at Newark Liberty International Airport,” said N.J. Gov. Phil Murphy. “It’s no surprise that the industry’s leader has bestowed one of its highest honors on this facility. From the distinctly Jersey aesthetic to the first-rate amenities and home-grown attractions, Terminal A is a point of pride for the Garden State that the whole world now gets to enjoy.”

The $2.7 billion Terminal A represented both the Port Authority’s largest single investment in New Jersey and the state’s largest design-build project. The terminal opened in phases throughout 2023 as operations migrated from the 50-year-old former Terminal A. Within its first year of service, the terminal served 15 million passengers, greatly outperforming yearly passenger totals from the previous Terminal A. 

The new 1 million-square-foot Terminal A features state-of-the-art passenger amenities, local artwork, a children’s play space, digital technology and dozens of local and national dining and retail options. Other unique passenger amenities include a sensory room that offers neurodivergent travelers and their families a calm space away from the bustle of the airport, and a children’s lending library curated by a local fifth grader.

In addition to the facility’s best new terminal award and five-star rating, the terminal has collected myriad other awards and recognitions. Terminal A was awarded a 2023 United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Prix Versailles Special Prize for the terminal’s exterior, a design that reflects the building’s distinctive architecture emphasizing spaciousness, functionality and abundant natural light. The terminal also received LEED gold certification from the U.S. Green Building Council, the most widely used green-building rating system in the world and an international symbol of environmental responsibility. In 2023, the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) in New Jersey named Terminal A as its 2023 Project of the Year.

About the Newark Liberty International Airport redevelopment 
The Port Authority is redeveloping the entire Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR), beginning with Terminal A – the centerpiece of an airport-wide renaissance designed to establish the airport as a world-class gateway for the New Jersey and New York region. Planning work to replace the airport’s existing mass transit system, AirTrain Newark, with a modern, reliable 2.5-mile automated people mover train system is underway. In December 2023, the first contract in a multi-phase procurement process was awarded to Doppelmayr, a leader in cable-propelled transport systems.

Additionally, the Port Authority is adding local access to the airport and New York City by increasing public transit access through the EWR Station Access Project. The new accessible facility will provide easy access for underserved communities in Newark and Elizabeth to New York Penn Station via Amtrak and NJ TRANSIT’s direct Northeast Corridor service, decreasing the current journey time from 40 minutes to under 10 minutes. Most recently, the agency’s Board of Commissioners approved $160 million for the design and construction of the project. 

The next phase of the Port Authority’s transformation of Newark Liberty International Airport will be developed through the work of a world-class airport master planner selected by the agency. The EWR Vision Plan — which will serve as a framework for future development through 2065 – will incorporate plans for long-term economic growth, sustainability projects, and multimodal access to the airport for both work and travel. More information on Newark Liberty’s redevelopment and the new AirTrain Newark is available at EWRredevelopment.com.

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey is a bi-state agency that builds, operates, and maintains many of the most important transportation and trade infrastructure assets in the country. For over a century, the agency’s network of major airports; critical bridges, tunnels and bus terminals; a commuter rail line; and the busiest seaport on the East Coast has been among the most vital in the country – transporting hundreds of millions of people and moving essential goods into and out of the region. The Port Authority also owns and manages the 16-acre World Trade Center campus, which today welcomes tens of thousands of office workers and millions of annual visitors. The agency’s historic $37 billion 10-year capital plan includes unprecedented transformation of the region’s three major airports – LaGuardia, Newark Liberty and JFK – as well as an array of other new and upgraded assets, including the $2 billion renovation of the 90-year-old George Washington Bridge. The Port Authority’s annual budget of $8 billion includes no tax revenue from either the states of New York or New Jersey or from the City of New York. The agency raises the necessary funds for the improvement, construction or acquisition of its facilities primarily on its own credit. For more information, visit www.panynj.gov or check out the Now Arriving blog.