The second national airport is sited on the flat expanse of the Maasvlakte off the South Holland coast, a transferium in the ever swelling network of mobility, economy and culture. In its capacity of transferium the airport signally ignores all the scales of time, distance and context, but for all these non-contextual qualities it is indisputably solid and real. In the airport, two apparently counteractive powers are at work: congestion and separation. In order that the airport be as functional and effective as possible, its primary programme components are centralized; conversely, to maximize safety and control, passenger flows are kept separate. Thus, for example, the unification of Europe necessitates a distinction being made between European and international passengers, while each component of the programme is sited for optimum functioning in terms of walking distance, effectiveness, security and suchlike. Passengers are held captive in the controlled world of the transferium. Here waiting time is wasted time but also free time; a void that is extremely interesting economically. These 'empty hours' are channelled into functions attendant on transferium culture. The spatial structure is shaped by a structural grid. Grids can both facilitate flows and house programmes. The need to centralize generates rhythmic patterns of primary programme components which in turn lead to congestion and interference. A functional, spatial structure that can be added to linearly, is a guarantee of expansion and diversity. The passenger flows are diverted, layered and mixed like water and oil. Separating the flows heightens the force field in the transferium and increases its attraction, making it a facet of the metropolitan character comparable to the Berlin Wall. Institution: TU Delft Tutors: Arne van Herk, Henk Mihl, Arie Krijgsman & Jan Engels Specialization: architecture