Why Did the Charles-de-Gaulle Airport Terminal Collapse?
Why Did the Charles-de-Gaulle Airport Terminal Collapse? Monday May 24, 2004#spacer{clear:left}#abc #sidebar{margin-top:1.5em}zSB(3,3)”I can’t explain what happened. I just don’t understand it,” Paul Andreu, architect of the collapsed terminal at Charles-de-Gaulle Airport, told L’Humanite newspaper. The 450-meter long terminal building is an elliptical tube constructed of concrete rings. Andreu, who also designed the French terminal for the English Channel Tunnel, drew upon principles of tunnel construction for the airport terminal building. When it opened last year, many people praised the futuristic structure, calling it both beautiful and practical. Since there were no internal roof supports, passengers could move easily through the terminal. Some engineers say that the terminal’s tunnel shape may have been a factor in the collapse. Buildings with no internal supports must rely entirely on the outer shell. However, investigators point out that it is the role of engineers to assure t
