A major US airport is underdoing a large-scale revamp, and completion of the project is now only months away. An ongoing modernisation programme is taking place at Pittsburgh International Airport in Pennsylvania, that will see the travel hub given a new terminal for arrivals and departures, as per Simply Flying.

The plans will see the airport's separate terminal operations consolidated into one location, sat in the centre of its iconic X-shaped layout, the aviation news outlet reports. It will see airline operations, public spaces and passengers all brought under one roof, as per Aviation Pros. A key addition the creation of a bridge and tunnel linking the new terminal to the existing airside terminal.

The new terminal promises to cut waiting times at security checkpoints and baggage claim, following previous issues with bottle necks and queues. 

Pitt Transformed, the website for the project, says a new baggage handling system it's introducing "increases luggage scan speed and efficiency through x-ray technology and an automated high-speed diverter system".

"The sound volume of the system is greatly lowered compared to the current baggage belts through permanent magnet motors that naturally run more quietly, and the belts are positioned higher to reduce workers bending over as far to reach luggage."

It adds that bags flagged for additional security evaluation "will automatically be diverted and retrieved by one of 30 new robots that will deliver the bag to a mobile testing station manned by TSA, saving time for our team members, airlines and passengers".

A multi-level parking garage is also being added, as well as a new roadway system that will support the new terminal building, Pitt Transformed says.

The current cost of the project has been put at $1.57billion (around £1.18billion), having previously been pegged at around $1.4billion (£1.05billion).

The airport's news site Blue Sky said the increase was due to pandemic-related inflation and supply-chain shortages, as per Patch.

However, the outlet noted that "no local or state tax dollars are being used to pay for the project" with the Allegheny County Airport Authority, the agency responsible for the project, backing construction bonds "from operating revenues, most of which are paid by the airlines".

The agency says the project is more than 80% completed. It's currently scheduled to launch in the autumn.