Charlotte-Douglas Airport (CLT) Expansion

[xapostrophe]

2 hours ago, kermit said:

I made the mistake of flying out today for a vacation. Security line this morning were brutal -- they were literally the full length of the terminal. Took about an hour and a half to get through the line, and that was with some 'creativity figuring out where the end of the line was.  It would have been less annoying (and long) if TSA had B and D checkpoints open. 

Maybe its time for TSA pre.

 

It was insane when i showed up for my trip.  No idea why the other check points were closed. Also, I think pre check in CLT is only at check point B So that would have not helped you this morning.

Edited March 25, 2016 by xapostrophe

[HopHead]

2 hours ago, kermit said:

I made the mistake of flying out today for a vacation. Security line this morning were brutal -- they were literally the full length of the terminal. Took about an hour and a half to get through the line, and that was with some 'creativity figuring out where the end of the line was.  It would have been less annoying (and long) if TSA had B and D checkpoints open. 

Maybe its time for TSA pre.

 

I gave into TSA pre check last year because of that. Best $85 you'll spend..

[teeg]

3 hours ago, xapostrophe said:

It was insane when i showed up for my trip.  No idea why the other check points were closed. Also, I think pre check in CLT is only at check point B So that would have not helped you this morning.

Also E, right?  

[tozmervo]

Yes, B & E, and yes, precheck is a marvelous investment. Especially coming home internationally, so so so much faster!

[LKN704]

What is everyone's opinion of the TSA at CLT? IMHO, I find that they are some of the rudest screeners in the entire system.

In the past month alone, I've been yelled at/ridiculed three times whilst in the screening process:

1. I was in the full body scanner, and the agent asked me if I had anything in my pockets. I said no. She asked again. I said no. She asked a third time, and I said "NO! Would you scan me already??" She turned to me, and said "I'm afraid I won't be able to let you fly if you don't cooperate....are you ok?"

2. Two weeks ago, I was standing in line waiting for my ID and boarding pass to be checked. A friend of mine was on the way to the hospital in labor and I was texting a family member of hers to see how she was doing, and I was very focused in the conversation to the point I didn't hear the TSA agent who was barking instructions ask me where my final destination was and what I was planning on doing there, until he got close to me and said "Do you understand what will happen if you ignore me?".

3. That same day, when I was placing my bags on the belt, I figured I would try to be friendly and talkative to the miserable looking agent at the belt. I seem to recall there used to be a line for First Class/Preferred customers at B so I asked him when that was taken away. He looked at me and snapped "There never was one. They are all the same. Don't argue with me. If you want to move quicker you must buy PreCheck, if not you will have to wait in line where you belong with everyone else!!"

[tozmervo]

12 minutes ago, LKN704 said:

What is everyone's opinion of the TSA at CLT? IMHO, I find that they are some of the rudest screeners in the entire system.

In the past month alone, I've been yelled at/ridiculed three times whilst in the screening process:

1. I was in the full body scanner, and the agent asked me if I had anything in my pockets. I said no. She asked again. I said no. She asked a third time, and I said "NO! Would you scan me already??" She turned to me, and said "I'm afraid I won't be able to let you fly if you don't cooperate....are you ok?"

you missed a golden opportunity to say, "no ma'am, I'm just happy to see you."

[caterpillar2]

10 minutes ago, LKN704 said:

What is everyone's opinion of the TSA at CLT? IMHO, I find that they are some of the rudest screeners in the entire system.

In the past month alone, I've been yelled at/ridiculed three times whilst in the screening process:

1. I was in the full body scanner, and the agent asked me if I had anything in my pockets. I said no. She asked again. I said no. She asked a third time, and I said "NO! Would you scan me already??" She turned to me, and said "I'm afraid I won't be able to let you fly if you don't cooperate....are you ok?"

2. Two weeks ago, I was standing in line waiting for my ID and boarding pass to be checked. A friend of mine was on the way to the hospital in labor and I was texting a family member of hers to see how she was doing, and I was very focused in the conversation to the point I didn't hear the TSA agent who was barking instructions ask me where my final destination was and what I was planning on doing there, until he got close to me and said "Do you understand what will happen if you ignore me?".

3. That same day, when I was placing my bags on the belt, I figured I would try to be friendly and talkative to the miserable looking agent at the belt. I seem to recall there used to be a line for First Class/Preferred customers at B so I asked him when that was taken away. He looked at me and snapped "There never was one. They are all the same. Don't argue with me. If you want to move quicker you must buy PreCheck, if not you will have to wait in line where you belong with everyone else!!"

My wife and I were on our way to Spain. We went through the line check and my wife's carry on was inspected. She had the bag with her all the way to Spain when she discovered that her prescription medicine was taken from the bottles at the check point. It was checked by two TSA women and there is no other possible way that the pills would have been missing. So, in my opinion, they are thieves and I have a hard time thinking that security depends on some of the less security minded workers.

[11 HouseBZ]

^I got the opportunity to be a test subject for their security once. It was a lot of fun. Oh, and 3 out of 5 security lines failed and I got through. I agree with your assessment. 

[LKN704]

Forgive me if this was already posted, but it appears that CLT-ABQ will not be resuming this summer on AA. Its a shame they couldn't make this work. I know DL used to fly CVG-ABQ thrice daily so I am perplexed why CLT couldn't make a daily flight work.

Still, thinking about all the flights that US/AA have added in the past 15 years or so, we have only had a few routes that failed to catch on: ABQ, YOW (Ottawa), LRM (La Romana), PVR (Puerto Vallarta), TUS, KIN (Kingston, Jamaica), GGT (Georgetown, Bahamas), EGE (Vail) are really the only routes I can think of. That's pretty good considering all that has been added over the years. I know US used to fly to Panama City (PTY) and San Salvador but I think they were from FLL (when they trying building the hub there against AA). US transferred GUA and KIN to CLT before discontinuing them. I wouldn't be surprised to see AA add GUA and PTY from CLT. I also wouldn't be surprised to see them try YVR seasonally from CLT. I knew they used to fly it from PHL.

I'm not counting the loss of BRU/LIS/MAN or GRU/GIG because I consider that merger related.

Edited April 7, 2016 by LKN704

[Deleted.]

4 hours ago, LKN704 said:

Forgive me if this was already posted, but it appears that CLT-ABQ will not be resuming this summer on AA. Its a shame they couldn't make this work. I know DL used to fly CVG-ABQ thrice daily so I am perplexed why CLT couldn't make a daily flight work.

Still, thinking about all the flights that US/AA have added in the past 15 years or so, we have only had a few routes that failed to catch on: ABQ, YOW (Ottawa), LRM (La Romana), PVR (Puerto Vallarta), TUS, KIN (Kingston, Jamaica), GGT (Georgetown, Bahamas), EGE (Vail) are really the only routes I can think of. That's pretty good considering all that has been added over the years. I know US used to fly to Panama City (PTY) and San Salvador but I think they were from FLL (when they trying building the hub there against AA). US transferred GUA and KIN to CLT before discontinuing them. I wouldn't be surprised to see AA add GUA and PTY from CLT. I also wouldn't be surprised to see them try YVR seasonally from CLT. I knew they used to fly it from PHL.

I'm not counting the loss of BRU/LIS/MAN or GRU/GIG because I consider that merger related.

ABQ was such an odd add, it was mainly added because AA is tight and did not like the fact that they had aircraft sitting in CLT overnight when they could be flying: but most destinations that could be served in the early hours (like the West Coast) already has adequate service and AA choose the next largest market where they would make a tiny bit of money flying overnight. 

GIG/GRU still hurt today for me, I loved Rio de Janeiro & Sao Paulo and when we upgauged them to A330-200s I was flying to Brazil nearly 3 times a week. Though I don't actually know if we turned a profit, we probably made a small one which with DFW, MIA, JFK and LAX plus the Brazillian economy wasn't enough to keep the flights. 

BCN/BRU/LIS/BCN were all carrots to let the merger go through without opposition from the state (do you remember when many state Attorney Generals sued AA over the merger?) and I fell for it, I thought it was going to be the start of a whole new wave of international flights. The only two I really cared about were Barcelona and Manchester, and we still have service to Barcelona so you win some, you loose some. 

[cltcane]

7 hours ago, Piedmont767 said:

ABQ was such an odd add, it was mainly added because AA is tight and did not like the fact that they had aircraft sitting in CLT overnight when they could be flying: but most destinations that could be served in the early hours (like the West Coast) already has adequate service and AA choose the next largest market where they would make a tiny bit of money flying overnight. 

GIG/GRU still hurt today for me, I loved Rio de Janeiro & Sao Paulo and when we upgauged them to A330-200s I was flying to Brazil nearly 3 times a week. Though I don't actually know if we turned a profit, we probably made a small one which with DFW, MIA, JFK and LAX plus the Brazillian economy wasn't enough to keep the flights. 

BCN/BRU/LIS/BCN were all carrots to let the merger go through without opposition from the state (do you remember when many state Attorney Generals sued AA over the merger?) and I fell for it, I thought it was going to be the start of a whole new wave of international flights. The only two I really cared about were Barcelona and Manchester, and we still have service to Barcelona so you win some, you loose some. 

There were lots of empty seats in both directions the times I checked.  I considered taking this flight to visit Albuquerque and Santa Fe for a long weekend, but it was always cheaper and more convenient schedule-wise to connect through DFW.  CLT is always going to have a hard time maintaining service to secondary destinations that overfly DFW (especially when they rely too heavily on O&D traffic), but I do think AA could try it again in the future if they re-time the the flight to maximize connection opportunities for people traveling to and from the Albuquerque area and extend the seasonal schedule.

[teeg]

Bathroom attendant tip jars will be eliminated!

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/politics-government/article70307667.html

[caterpillar2]

1 hour ago, teeg said:

Bathroom attendant tip jars will be eliminated!

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/politics-government/article70307667.html

I think it is too bad. People are making a living and they are not pushy. I was leaving the restroom last time I took a flight and apologized to the attendant that I didn't bring my jacket and money and he was very nice. He was from Turkey and we talked for 10 minutes. He is working and not asking for handouts. That is all that matters to me. And, they keep the bathrooms clean. You don't have to tip them or pay to get in the bathrooms like you do in Europe.

 

Edited April 7, 2016 by caterpillar2

[ScottCLT]

I have absolutely seen attendants be way too pushy. It's been an annoyance to me since I've been traveling so much (thank God for airline clubs). When I need to take a leak, I don't need anyone staring at me telling how he hopes I have such a nice day and safe flight. To tell me to feel free to take some listerine, and hand me a towel. Sometimes they even turn the sink on and off for me. I do not consider myself royalty and do not want or expect these things. And I don't want to pay a premium just because I feel I have to for something I could have done by myself and would have preferred to do by myself. I know it's all good intentions from the workers, and they are working to make a living for themselves and their families, but it really does annoy me when they go over the top, as happy and friendly as they are, to help me wash and dry my hands and expect a tip in return. I'm just fine turning on the faucet and grabbing my own paper towel myself for free. I am glad to see this change.

[Bikeguy]

^ as much as I would like to think that I'm contributing to employment numbers, a public bathroom is still a private place, not a salon.

 

[cltcane]

43 minutes ago, ScottCLT said:

I have absolutely seen attendants be way too pushy. It's been an annoyance to me since I've been traveling so much (thank God for airline clubs). When I need to take a leak, I don't need anyone staring at me telling how he hopes I have such a nice day and safe flight. To tell me to feel free to take some listerine, and hand me a towel. Sometimes they even turn the sink on and off for me. I do not consider myself royalty and do not want or expect these things. And I don't want to pay a premium just because I feel I have to for something I could have done by myself and would have preferred to do by myself. I know it's all good intentions from the workers, and they are working to make a living for themselves and their families, but it really does annoy me when they go over the top, as happy and friendly as they are, to help me wash and dry my hands and expect a tip in return. I'm just fine turning on the faucet and grabbing my own paper towel myself for free. I am glad to see this change.

Agreed.  And bathroom attendants generally make me uncomfortable.  I can't recall seeing bathroom attendants at any other airport I've traveled to or through (although I also typically only use restrooms at airline clubs), and this always seemed like one of Jerry Orr's folksy ways of being cheap.

[Deleted.]

http://charmeck.org/city/charlotte/Airport/News/Pages/CLTRanksFifthBusiestAirportintheNationandSixthintheWorld.aspx

CLT is the 6th busiest airport in the world!

 

[LKN704]

That's by aircraft movements though.

By passenger count, we dropped three spaces to be 27th busiest in the world. Airports in China and the Middle East are simply growing faster. I wouldn't be surprised if we drop out of the top 30 ranking by passengers.

The fact that CLT has more movements than any other airport in the world outside of ATL/PEK/DFW/LAX/DXB is still an impressive achievement though.

Edited April 12, 2016 by LKN704
Edit: Don't know why that quote was imbedded into my post...

[uptownliving]

I'm not expecting much growth in the passenger numbers until the Concourse A and E expansions are complete in about 2 years. American Airlines specifically requested the 10 gate expansion on Concourse E so they must be anticipating some growth of the Charlotte hub.

[Deleted.]

Lufthansa is cutting First Class on Munich-CLT-Munich effective December 1, due to the fact Lufthansa is cutting First on all Munich-based A330s. 

 

Lufthansa's new Business is lackluster, with 2-2-2 configuration, whilst AA's config' is 1-2-1 with all-aisle access on all flights to Europe, as all flights to Europe are on our A330s. 

[CLT704]

28 minutes ago, Piedmont767 said:

Lufthansa is cutting First Class on Munich-CLT-Munich effective December 1, due to the fact Lufthansa is cutting First on all Munich-based A330s. 

 

Lufthansa's new Business is lackluster, with 2-2-2 configuration, whilst AA's config' is 1-2-1 with all-aisle access on all flights to Europe, as all flights to Europe are on our A330s. 

If Lufthansa, for whatever reason, cut Munich would AA step in and take over the route?

[LKN704]

6 hours ago, CLT704 said:

If Lufthansa, for whatever reason, cut Munich would AA step in and take over the route?

I'd wager most probably. But, I would see LH contracting the route out to PrivatAir before discontinuing it completely.

Outside of NYC/LHR/ZRH/HKG/PVG/GRU/LAX, International First is going the way of the dinosaur. Business is now the new First, and Premium Economy is now the new business. The seats are the same just as they were 10 years ago, except the catering and service is different.

[Deleted.]

According to the OAG Update, Delta is resuming flights between New York JFK and CLT! A major add, allowing CLT residents to have a second option for one-stop service to Europe not on AA! 

[DEnd]

On ‎4‎/‎8‎/‎2016 at 7:20 PM, cltcane said:

Agreed.  And bathroom attendants generally make me uncomfortable.  I can't recall seeing bathroom attendants at any other airport I've traveled to or through (although I also typically only use restrooms at airline clubs), and this always seemed like one of Jerry Orr's folksy ways of being cheap.

The restrooms are a lot cleaner than they were before the attendants were introduced. 

[Miesian Corners]

16 hours ago, Piedmont767 said:

According to the OAG Update, Delta is resuming flights between New York JFK and CLT! A major add, allowing CLT residents to have a second option for one-stop service to Europe not on AA!

But Charlotte residents already have second options via ATL, ORD, IAD, BOS, DTW, MSP, etc...