Germany: The ongoing saga of Berlin's unfinished airport

The grand opening of Berlin Brandenburg Airport Willy Brandt was slated to take place in June 2012, and the aviation world was ready and waiting.<br/>Thousands of volunteers had been conducting trial runs in the weeks leading up to the big day. The media were preparing to provide around-the-clock coverage of the event, which would have the German Chancellor Angela Merkel and numerous other VIPs among its guests. Lufthansa was even bringing one of its newly acquired Airbus A380s for the inaugural flight to Frankfurt. But then the unexpected happened -- the inauguration of Germany's new architectural jewel had to be called off at the very last moment due to "technical issues." Fast forward nearly six years, and the airport remains closed. Not a single regular commercial flight has used the state-of-the-art terminal and no official date for the inauguration has yet been provided.<br/>The construction of Berlin Brandenburg Airport continues to be an unmitigated fiasco, made all the more striking by the fact that it's taken place in a country known for its engineering prowess. Story has full background.<br/>