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The Parisian hub will plough ahead with a new £478 million (580 million euro) project which could lead to shorter connection times for travellers. Officials hope the plans, also involving Air France, will make it Europe's favourite airport.

Plans to construct the Satellite 4 building at Terminal 2E were recently announced by the airport, with early July being the expected opening date.

The airport said only Air France and its SkyTeam partners will use the area for long-haul flights, and by the end of this year departures to Schengen destinations will only operate at Terminal 2F. As a result of the alterations, Air France and SkyTeam will move their services to terminals 2E, 2F and 2G towards the east of the airport.

Once Satellite 4 is built it will hold a capacity of 7.8 million passengers and will be made with 16 wide gates, of which seven will be capable of housing the A380 superjumbo. The automated train that goes to Satellite 3 will also take passengers to and from the new area and terminal 2E.

Travellers will be able to check in at any desk and a single security checkpoint will connect terminals 2F to 2E and their satellites. It also means that passengers who have departed from a Schengen country with a connection to another international destination can skip going through security twice, saving them an estimated 10 minutes.

A 4,500 square metre service area will also be built for those connecting travellers.

Pierre Graff, chairman and chief executive of Aeroports de Paris, said: 'Our aim is to make Paris Charles de Gaulle the favourite preferred hub for passengers. I am sure these changes will allow us to win the battle of European hubs and will be highly beneficial for our passengers.'

Mary Ann Pickford