Redevelopment and preservation campaign Terminal 3 would subsequently be demolished to create additional aircraft parking between Terminals 2 and 4. Construction of the Terminal 4 expansion began in November 2010 and was completed in May 2013.

JFK’s Terminal 3, famously known as the Pan Am Worldport, was demolished in 2013-2014 primarily because the iconic "flying saucer" structure had become operationally obsolete and was in a state of severe disrepair. Built in 1960, the terminal was designed for a pre-security era; it lacked the interior space required for modern TSA checkpoints, baggage handling systems, and the high volume of contemporary foot traffic. Its tenant, Delta Air Lines, determined that the cost of retrofitting the aging building to meet modern safety and efficiency standards was prohibitive. Despite a massive campaign by preservationists to save the Jet Age landmark, the site was cleared to create aircraft parking (remote stands) and taxiway space to support the $1.2 billion expansion of the adjacent Terminal 4. Today, the space serves a functional role in improving airport ground traffic, though it remains a significant loss for fans of 1960s futurist architecture.