American Airlines passengers at CLT face new delays due to airport lobby construction
American Airlines passengers heading to the Charlotte airport this month may need to up their navigation skills to find the ticket counters — and prepare for more delays in what already is the airport’s busiest season ever.
From July 9-21, some American Airline ticket counters at the Charlotte Douglas International Airport will be temporarily relocated due to construction for the terminal lobby expansion project. Ticket counters east of Checkpoint C will be moved outside of Door 2 at the Departures level.
American accounts for about 90% of the passenger traffic at Charlotte’s airport.
Both the airport and airline advised passengers to arrive a half hour earlier than usual for their flights. Domestic passengers should now arrive at the airport 2 1/2 hours before domestic flights and 3 1/2 hours before international flights. The airport added that American Airlines passengers who don’t need to check a bag should check in for their flights through the airlines’ website to avoid the counter.
American Airlines will have four ticket counters and four kiosks in that new space outside of Door 2, according to an airport news release,. Additional signage will be placed around the lobby to help direct passengers, as will airline and airport staff members.
American Airlines spokeswoman Bri Harper said that priority check-in will be available near the Air Canada ticket counter.
Harper added that the airline sent an email to affected passengers with upcoming flights informing them of the change. They’ll continue to update passengers of any changes.
“We remain in close coordination with our airport partners to minimize the disruption to our customers and team members,” Harper said.
Some passengers flying out of Charlotte in August also reported receiving alerts from the airline about needing to arrive earlier than normal due to the construction. But American later sent a subsequent message to disregard the prior email, and noting that the delays only impact people traveling from July 9-21.
Construction continues at CLT airport
The change is due to the airport’s Terminal Lobby Expansion project, which seeks to increase lobby space by 175,000 square feet for TSA security screenings, ticketing, baggage claim and offices.
CLT is the seventh busiest airport in the world in terms of landings and takeoffs, according to Airport Council International’s preliminary rankings for 2023. The airport’s construction project was started to increase space for the additional passengers.
According to the airport, passenger traffic reached a record 53.4 million last year. And over the summer, traffic is expected to increase to record levels.
The airport said from Memorial Day through July 4th, CLT blew past last year’s passenger numbers by 14%. About 925,000 people arrived and departed from the Charlotte airport during the Fourth of July holiday from July 2-7.
Passenger increases will continue through Labor Day, the airport said, with an estimated 13% increase in passengers from last year.
This story was originally published July 8, 2024 at 5:14 PM.
