READY FOR TAKEOFF: Artist’s preview of the soon-to-open Delta Sky Deck at Kennedy. (
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With a view like this, airline passengers might not mind if their flight is delayed.
Delta is building a rooftop viewing area at its new Kennedy Airport gates — giving everyone from jet-setters and geeky plane-spotters incredible views of aircraft taking off and landing.
The roof lounge will be part of the Delta Sky Club the airline is building as part of its $1.2 billion Terminal 4 expansion project, which opens in May.
To get in, you’ll have to either be a Sky Club member — which costs between $300 and $450 a year — or pay a day-use fee of $50.
Not cheap — but it does include the price of booze.
The lounge harkens back to the golden days of air travel.
“Since the late ’90s, the observation deck has gone the way of the dodo bird,” said avid plane-spotter Jason Rabinowitz, whose hobby is photographing aircraft at local airports.
“To have an actual deck that looks out on the ramp is fantastic.”
The designer of the so-called Sky Deck, Thom Filicia, says the viewing area “pays homage to an elegant lifestyle of travel and the spirit of flight.”
It will be outfitted with a bar, cushioned divans and chairs, designer lamps and carpeting.
It will be located behind the security gates, so you’ll need to be a ticketed passenger to use it.
New York hasn’t had a similar outdoor spot in years.
Kennedy’s old International Arrivals Building — torn down years ago to make way for the new Terminal 4 — used to have an outdoor deck.
The Central Terminal Building at La Guardia and Newark’s old North Terminal also had outdoor observation areas.
But over the years — partly because of costs and security concerns — outdoor observation areas disappeared at the three big New York metro-area airports and around the nation.
Los Angeles International is one of the few big US airports with an outdoor viewing space, on the roof of the Theme Building — a giant, spidery, Disney-designed structure amid the airport terminals.
That observation deck closed after 9/11. But officials reopened it three years ago, and it’s outfitted with benches and telescopes.
Westchester County Airport in White Plains also has an outdoor observation deck — though the aircraft that use the airport are smaller than those using Kennedy and Newark.
Atlanta-based Delta is also planning a similar Sky Deck at Hartsfield Airport — the busiest in the world — in that city.