Gatwick begins the demolition of Pier 1 in the South Terminal

Gatwick Airport kicked off the most ambitious stage of its £1.2bn redevelopment so far this week with demolition work starting on Pier 1 in the South Terminal.

This has been in use since 1962, amazingly.  The development will create a new wing of departure gates with a new baggage system for the South Terminal being installed at the same time.

It is not yet clear how much inconvenience the work will cause day-to-day, for what will clearly be a substantial job.  The new two-storey facility is due to open in 2015.