THE historic Pier 1 at Gatwick was demolished on Monday as work began on a £180 million construction project.
The South Terminal pier, which consists of the corridors and gate rooms for short haul flights to Europe and domestic destinations, was branded "no longer fit for purpose" by airport chiefs.
Its demolition will make way for a state-of-the-art, two-storey building scheduled to open in August 2015.
The project is Gatwick's largest capital investment since it changed ownership three years ago.
Ben Green, head of piers and infrastructure at the airport, said: "The new building will offer a much-improved passenger experience.
"The gates will be closer to the departure lounge, so there is a shorter walk, which will particularly aid those with reduced mobility and our business travellers in a rush."
He added: "Once complete there will be panoramic views over the airfield from the gate rooms which I'm sure will prove popular."
The existing Pier 1, which opened in 1962, was originally made predominantly of glass and had an open roof where travellers could watch the planes.
Its replacement will be linked to five new aircraft stands by air bridges. The project also includes a new £50 million baggage system capable of handling 4,250 bags per hour – compared to 3,800 today.
It will also have capacity to store 2,600 bags, thereby allowing passengers to check their bags in the night before if they are staying at an airport hotel.
Derek Hendry, the project's construction director, said: "Overall it benefits the passengers and benefits everyone on the airport."
He added: "Really the time has come. [Pier 1] is well past its useful life, it is no longer fit for purpose, we need to do something about it."
Demolition work will continue until the end of the year. So far it's included large excavator vehicles taking the air bridges apart. The area has been cordoned off from the rest of the piers and runway to ensure debris doesn't create a danger.
To ensure passengers are not affected some flights have been switched to the North Terminal, while other planes will be towed and passengers bussed to the main building.
The pier closed in April to ensure the extra passengers could be handled at other gates.
Airport chief executive Stewart Wingate said: "When it's delivered, I am absolutely convinced that what we will see is one of the oldest facilities on the airport which has been very well used replaced with a facility which is absolutely second to none."
