An image has been released of the design for the control tower at the forthcoming Istanbul New Airport.

The 96-metre high tower is inspired by the tulip – one of the symbols of Istanbul – and will form part of the new airport which is scheduled to open in 2018.

Located on the western side of the city, Istanbul New Airport will have an initial capacity for 90 million passengers with three runways.

Future plans are for this to be extended to six runways and between 150 and 200 million passengers, which would make it among the largest airport in the world.

Istanbul has two other major airports currently in operation – Sabiha Gokcen International Airport on the Asian side of the city, and Istanbul Ataturk Airport on the European side. Ataturk will close once Istanbul New Airport is operational.

igairport.com