I saw that helicopter pad and thought how could they have lost the entire point of the building. But China has. It says more to me than anything I've discussed about modern China. Now the commplaints that the money has gone down the drain are accurate.

What a pity.

it's hard not to laugh at Koolhaas's bargain with the devil.

well,in 1989,there were also holicopters flew over the tiananmen square when the students camped there.

It sounds to me that the 'gossip' about Koolhaas being 'enraged' is probably nothing more than gossip. The helicopter pad has been in the plans from the beginning. The July 2005 special issue of the Japanese journal Architecture and Urbanism, a 200+ page glossy mag of plans, elevations, sections and renderings dedicated entirely to the CCTV by OMA, shows the helipad on at least four different pages. In fact, the current one looks even better than the one they had planned. While I disagree that it's had its "clean lines ruined" by the helipad, I do think it looks a bit odd, like a too small skullcap on a blocky weightlifter.

Regarding the helicopters zipping about, seeBuzz, a post concerning hopped-up choppers doing touch-and-gos at the Tianjin Olympic Center.

Helicopters are increasingly making it into airspace across China as China itself increases production (there's a major AVIC venture in Jingdezhen that sells parts to Sikorsky), and private helicopters start to be the new must-buy for Chinese as well as global CEOs.

BTW, for Olympics visitors more interested in the Games than in the politicized comments on them, there are good tips, tools, sports vocabulary and other info available free at www.chinesepod.com/olympics

I've lived in Shanghai for many years and could probably count on one hand the number of helicopters I've seen flying over the city.

Helicopter are a must-buy for Chinese CEO's? How about some numbers behind that? I'd be surprised if there are more than a few private helicopters flying in China.

I don't think it's a 'Koolhaas's bargain'. it must be just another sign of bad Chinese planning and execution.
Think.. if they wanted a helipad from the beginning, I'm sure Koolhaas would have been able to design something nicer, like a recessed landing pad on the roof, or anything else not visible from 10km around.

I called a staff member of Koolhaas' firm OMA in Beijing. He told me he was too busy right now to find out what happened: essentially "no comment".

I havent been in beijing for a little bitter,in fact,i dont give a damm when i first learnt that china won the beat.
but when it come 2008,which should be a year that everything just goes well,but when storm hit,when earthquake shocked,nothing just change the way of china,the spirt of chinese,the heroic nation ...
our nation now in a difficult state,but i know everything will be fine
may god bless china
may olympic torch will always light our way

I thought this post looked familiar: it was translated and posted to Solidot.

http://society.solidot.org/society/08/08/07/024228.shtml