Beehive (Gatwick Airport)

The Beehive
The Beehive from the east
Location within Crawley
General information
Type	Former airport terminal
Architectural style	Art Deco
Location	City Place Gatwick, Gatwick Airport, Crawley, England
Address	Beehive Ring Road, Gatwick Airport, West Sussex RH6 0PA
Coordinates	51°08′39″N 0°09′48″W / 51.14417°N 0.16333°W / 51.14417; -0.16333
Current tenants	Various
Construction started	July 1935
Completed	1936
Inaugurated	6 June 1936
Owner	Bland Group
Technical details
Floor count	3
Design and construction
Architect	Alan Marlow
Architecture firm	Hoar, Marlow and Lovett

The Beehive is the original terminal building at Gatwick Airport, England. Opened in 1936, it became obsolete in the 1950s as the airport expanded. In 2008, it was converted into serviced offices, operated by OREGA, having served as the headquarters of franchised airline GB Airways for some years before that. It was the world's first fully integrated airport building, and is considered a nationally and internationally important example of airport terminal design. The Beehive is a part of the City Place Gatwick office complex. The 20,000-square-foot (1,900 m²) former terminal building is on a 2-acre (0.81 ha) site.

In September 1933 A. M. (Morris) Jackaman, who owned several light aircraft, bought Gatwick Aerodrome for £13,500. He planned a purpose-built terminal building; the previous aerodrome building was a converted farmhouse. He put great importance on the design process: he, and contemporaries, considered terminals at other aerodromes to be impractical and unsuitable for expansion.

Jackaman developed the idea of a circular terminal building—reputedly in response to a throwaway comment by his father—and submitted a patent application for the concept on 8 October 1934. Advantages claimed for the design included efficient use of space and greater safety of aircraft movements. Telescopic "piers" or gangways would provide covered access from the building to the aircraft. A subway was recommended as the best method of bringing passengers into the building from outside.

Jackaman raised money by floating his company, Airports Ltd, on the . The Air Ministry also paid for the right to use Gatwick as a diversionary destination at times when Croydon Aerodrome was inaccessible; and in 1935, Hillman's Airways—months before its merger to form the company now known as British Airways—made Gatwick its operational base, increasing its commercial viability and providing more finance. The aerodrome closed on 6 July 1935 to allow the terminal to be built. The contracted opening date of October 1935 was not met, partly because of ongoing drainage problems, but a new railway station was provided on time in September of that year. This was linked to the terminal when it did open.