Architects Heatherwick Studio and Kohn Pedersen Fox have been appointed to design a new wing at Singapore's Changi Airport, which will aim to challenge the "sterility and soullessness" of terminal design.

The new terminal will add a passenger capacity of 50 million to one of the busiest airports in the world. There are no renders of the project available yet, but the architects have promised to shake up traditional airport design.

"This is an extraordinary opportunity to break away from the sterility and soullessness we've come to expect from typical airport environments," said Thomas Heatherwick, founder of Heatherwick Studio.

"We're excited to treat this next phase of Changi as a new piece of city and bring together the rigour of airport planning with an uncompromising interest in the quality of human experience for passengers," he added.

Moshe Safdie is also building an extension to Changi

Work is already underway at the airport on Moshe Safdie's 134,000-square-metre extension, which also aims to "reinvent what airports are all about". The Jewel Changi Airport will feature a giant greenhouse dome with a 40-metre-high waterfall pouring down through the centre.

Stuart Wood, group leader at Heatherwick Studio, said its Changi Terminal Five project would be "the most challenging opportunity" ever undertaken by the architecture practice.

"The scale and ambition of this project is unprecedented," said Wood.

Aim is to make Terminal Five "homely"

"Our hope is to make Terminal Five the most homely and at the same time spectacular airport in the world for many years to come," he added.

Thomas Heatherwick ranked at number 18 on Dezeen Hot List 2017 and is also one of the judges for the upcoming Dezeen Awards.

His studio and KPF will work with Architects 61 on this project. Design consultants on the project include James Corner Field Operations, The Fountain Workshop, Speirs + Major, Lichtvision Design, and Bruce Mau Design with Entro.

Arup, Motts McDonald and Surbana Jurong will be the engineering team leads.

In other recent international airport news, Zaha Hadid Architects has won the competition to design Mumbai's new airport, and Grimshaw has been announced as lead designers for Terminal One at Newark Airport, which serves New York City.

Main image, showing the existing control tower at Singapore's Changi Airport, is courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.