Lapis Bay Expo East Airport
Lapis Bay Expo East Airport | |||||||||||
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 The airport's logo | |||||||||||
Clockwise from top: The front of the airport, Terminal A, the airport's runway | |||||||||||
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| Airport type | Airfield | ||||||||||
| Owner | AlphaDS | ||||||||||
| Operator | City of Lapis Bay | ||||||||||
| Location | Odessa, Lapis Bay, New World | ||||||||||
| Hub for | Paklong Hibernal Sandstone Airr | ||||||||||
| Built | September 27, 2021 – August 30, 2022 | ||||||||||
| Coordinates | 11521, 65, -2447 | ||||||||||
| Runways | |||||||||||
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| Statistics | |||||||||||
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Lapis Bay Expo East Airport (LBX) is an airfield located in Lapis Bay that serves Lapis Bay and its satellite city Lazure. It was constructed and is owned by AlphaDS.
Lapis Bay Expo East Airport has a diagonal runway, the fourth of its kind at a civilian airport after Las Playas International Airport, Mojangsburg-Pretoria Capital Airport and Polytan International Airport.
History
Planning and sponsorship (2021)
Planning for Lapis Bay Expo East Airport began soon after Lapis Bay reached Senator, with the location selected on the same day in January 2021. Despite the promotion, AlphaDS decided to set aside the airport and focus on the A245 as the construction of the road had been delayed for over a year. No progress was made up until April 2021.
On April 2, 2021, AlphaDS announced in the MRT Discord that the airport was looking for a sponsor. He needed a new name for the airport as he wanted to use the name "Lapis Bay International Airport" for a future Governor airport. The sponsor would receive various perks, including the naming rights of the airport. On April 4, 2021, SimonScholar won the sponsorship auction and paid $2,000 to become the official sponsor of the airport. SimonScholar transferred the gates he received for his sponsorship to IntraAir and did not claim the other perks, stating that he was "only interested in the naming of the airport".
The airport would remain untouched for the next few months as AlphaDS continued to work on A245.
Gate allocations and construction (2021–2022)
In late September 2021, AlphaDS asked HarborRandom852 if he should continue working on the road or start building the airport, as he was running out of interest. HarborRandom852 suggested building the airport as it was long overdue and, as the road connection between the Expo East area and the main road network was completed, the A245 project was no longer urgent. Planning was restarted soon afterward.
AlphaDS wanted to build an airport that was both efficient and realistic. Numerous plans and layouts were discarded because of their lack of efficiency. On September 29, 2021, the airport layout was finalized and groundbreaking took place the same day.
Applications for gates opened a few hours later, with each of the 14 gates costing $10. After the allocation of the gates, airlines began pasting in their planes and warps, with many of them going into service, despite the terminals not being complete.
Construction on the first terminal slowed down to a halt because of AlphaDS's declining motivation and real-life distractions.
Completion and grand opening (2022)
Construction on the airport resumed in mid-2022 amid the 2022 MRT Summer Games hosted in Lapis Bay. By July 2022, construction resumed at full speed, and terminals were completed. By mid-August 2022, all of the structures were fully built and an announcement was sent out on Discord, reducing the price of a gate to $5 as a gesture of goodwill and announcing the scheduled grand opening to place on August 22, 2022. Final touches were done in the following week, including a Döner Plaza, more signage, and new facilities, including a parking lot.
The airport officially opened on August 30, 2022, a week later than the scheduled date.
Geography
Lapis Bay Expo East Airport is fully located in Lapis Bay, specifically in the Lantier area within Odessa district. The airport is bounded by the Lapis River to the west and the south, the MRT Expo Line to the north, and Maple Avenue to the east. Hills surround three sides of the airport. The high rises in the Lakeside Cove district, which are approximately 150 blocks away, are visible from the terminals.
Lapis Bay Expo East Airport is located in a forest bordering a taiga biome.
Layout
Lapis Bay Expo East Airport has three terminals: Terminals A, B, and C. These terminals are connected by sky bridges above taxiways. The air traffic control tower is located next to Terminal C.
Terminal A
Terminal A is the main terminal of the airport where gates A1 through A6 are located. All arriving and departing passengers must go through the airport border control and security on the first and second floor, respectively. Prior to the security checkpoint, the terminal is divided into two symmetrical sections. Check-in counters 1 through 6 are accessible via the southern entrance, while check-in counters 7 through 12 can only be accessed using the northern entrance. An information desk, DewBank ATMs, a children's play area, and public washrooms can be found within the terminal. A Döner Plaza is located on the third floor next to the sky bridge, providing dining options to passengers. The Stratus Gardens on the third floor offers views of the airport and the Lantier area.
Terminal B
Terminal B is the smallest terminal and is home to gates B1 through B4. The upper floor of the terminal serves as a passageway to Terminal C. Seating is available to passengers on the upper floor.
Terminal C
Terminal C consists of gates C1 and C2. The terminal adopts an open design that allows natural sunlight to reach the bottom floor. The antenna on the roof was added by DNAmaster10.
Air traffic control tower
The air traffic control tower is a 31 block tall structure providing a 360° view of the airport and its surrounding area. It is off-limits to the general public. The airport's weather station is situated on the rooftop of the tower.
Check-in counters
Lapis Bay Expo East Airport has 12 check-in counters. As of November 2022, the check-in counters are occupied by the following airlines:
- Sandstone Airr
- Sandstone Airr
- Paklong Hibernal
- Paklong Hibernal
- Astrella
- ArcticAir
- BluAir
- Michigana
- Cascadia Airways
- IntraAir
- FlyCreeper
- National Airlines
Gates and destinations
Lapis Bay Expo East Airport has 14 small gates, split among three terminals. As of November 2022, the gates and flights at the airport are:
Terminal A
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Terminal B
Terminal C
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Ground transportation
Road
Maple Avenue connects the airport to the Venessa Bay district of Lapis Bay to the east and the Lakeside Cove district to the south. The drive to the Venessa Bay district takes approximately two minutes and the drive to the Lakeside Cove district takes approximately one minute. Parking is available next to the airport with 24 parking spaces. The parking lot has two parking metres.
As of November 2022, no bus service is available.
Metro
A Lapis Metro station is planned to provide service from the airport to other parts of Lapis Bay. The station is planned to be an interchange station between the Downtown Line, the Expo Line, and the future rail hub. The metro station will be located across Maple Avenue, where the current BluRail station is situated.
Railway
A rail hub is planned to be built across from the airport, allowing transfers to the rest of the Woodlands and other nearby cities. As of December 2022, passengers can take a pathway across the airport to BluRail's Lapis Bay Station, with service available for the 11 line, and IntraRail's station, with service available for the 68, the Florensia Shuttle.
There is a planned service from RailEast.
Gallery
The information desk of the airport, located on the second floor
Baggage Carousel 1
Leisure area within the Stratus Gardens
