LONDON, England (CNN) -- It has taken nearly two decades and $8.6 billion, but London Heathrow's Terminal Five finally opened for business Thursday morning. A general view of the new Terminal 5 at Heathrow Airport prior to its official opening on Thursday. When British Airways Flight 26 touched down from Hong Kong at 4:42 a.m. (12:42 a.m. ET), passengers made their way to the 400-meter-long terminal, the largest freestanding building in Britain. With 60 aircraft stands actually attached to two new buildings, "T5" can handle dozens of planes at the same time -- including the new Airbus A380 superjumbo -- and can process 12,000 bags an hour. All of this is for just one occupant: British Airways.
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Heathrow Airport's $8.6 billion new Terminal 5 finally opens to public
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The new building took more than 15 years to complete following protests
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Building will carry all British Airways traffic
British Airways Flight 26
British Airways
British Airways
We've got lounges like you have never seen before and it will be down to us and it will be down to the people at @placeholder to make it a success."
London Heathrow
Heathrow Airport
Heathrow Airport
@placeholder sits to the west of London in a densely populated area.