RDU International Airport

[Gard]

Great pics! They sure are moving along on this project .

[DanRNC]

It looks like United will re-establish full operations at RDU once again-hopefully they will add a direct route to SF in the near future.

Story

[ERJ170]

So, I've heard different things... who will be the occupants of Terminal 2? I know Delta moves first next year as soon as the terminal opens. I know American, United, and Air Canada are just moving to the new end. I know America's AAdmiral lounge will be on the floor above the gate area.

So, Continental and Northwest are moving. Is US Airways moving to the Legacy terminal (2) or staying in the LCC terminal (1)? Is Midwest Connect staying or moving to Terminal 1?

Will they keep a gate like C16 (4 stand RJ/turboprop gate)? Personally, I think they should have a couple of gates like C16 that could take care of all the RJ/Turboprop operations since all gates will be shared..

[NcSc74]

It looks like United will re-establish full operations at RDU once again-hopefully they will add a direct route to SF in the near future.

Story

That is good news. Nice to see RDU add more flights and carriers. It seems the airport is THE airport for all of eastern NC. I know people who utilize it as far away as northeastern SC. How about a name change to Raleigh/Durham gateway Intl or something to show the scope of people it services.

[DPK]

How about a name change to Raleigh/Durham gateway Intl or something to show the scope of people it services.

RDU International is fine. Let's not lengthen things.

[ERJ170]

Raleigh-Durham to London switches airports starting March 29. 2008.

Now, RDU pax will be able to get off and on the American 777 at London-Heathrow airport for it's once daily flight. Along with one of DFW flights, RDU will be in even a more pristine location for connections and growth.

The only downside is that LHR is much, much more crowded and congested than LGW and it's much more delay prone.

But congratulations none the less. Looks like the LON flight will be at RDU for a long time.

[architect77]

I predict that after completion of terminal C/ 1....for a while it will be able to accomodate all airlines and Terminal A will be demolished and whatever is then needed will be built new. Renovating a former airplane hanger with a cheap temporary extension concourse does not make any sense.

For any geeks out there.... you can listen to RDU air traffic control live online.

http://www.liveatc.net/topfeeds.php

RDU is under Class C airports

Edited July 7, 2007 by architect77

[RDUairport]

Terminal C once completed will actually be remaned Terminal 2 and Terminal A will become Terminal 1. Terminal A will not be demolished as they will begin a slow process of renovating it. Renovations will start in baggage claim and then move to the security lines to make the process more efficent and less time consuming. Also the announcement for American flight 173/174 (RDU to London) is very good for RDU. If RDU had not been part of the announcement the flight would have probably been put on the chopping board, so this shows American's committment to the flight.

[dmccall]

I suggest converting it to an IKEA store. All it would take is a little yellow paint:

[Subway Scoundrel]

Raleigh-Durham to London switches airports starting March 29. 2008.

Now, RDU pax will be able to get off and on the American 777 at London-Heathrow airport for it's once daily flight. Along with one of DFW flights, RDU will be in even a more pristine location for connections and growth.

The only downside is that LHR is much, much more crowded and congested than LGW and it's much more delay prone.

But congratulations none the less. Looks like the LON flight will be at RDU for a long time.

I like the Gatwick flight because of the ease and less commotion. I do think the Heathrow flights could allow American to drive more European bound travelors through Raleigh which means they might open up more flights to RDU. Not sure. Just more options. Also, opens up more room for cargo on the flights which makes it more viable since Heathrow is major cargo point. I think . (my company once lost 16 palets of verty expensive "units" in Heathrow and it was believed to be taken by mafia, probably russian in a very organized theft. It was never found.)

[DPK]

I suggest converting it to an IKEA store. All it would take is a little yellow paint:

Haha, it's scary how right you are about that.

[DwnTwnRaleighGuy]

Terminal A will not be demolished as they will begin a slow process of renovating it. Renovations will start in baggage claim and then move to the security lines to make the process more efficent and less time consuming.

I think that simply renovating the very old terminal is not the best use of there space. I maybe wrong, (which happens a lot the older I get), but I am sure that both options are very expensive. Maybe making the renovations now for this terminal will mean a much larger terminal when they actually have to tare down and rebuild?

[ERJ170]

Really, the only problems with Terminal A is the color and the asthetic aspecs of it. It is a VERY sturdy building with good movement and plenty of space.. Once the walls are repaired, the walls are painted, and the furniture redone.. it will be a very nice terminal again.. it won't be as splendid as Terminal C.. but the future occupants of it don't want ritz and glitz.. they want reasonable prices and a place to load/unload pax. None of the LCC have lounges or any such requirements.. so for the occupants, the blue box is all they need.. and when baggage goes behind the lines, it will be easier for all involved.

And, when all is said and done.. there will be plenty of space to expand..

Airtran will have at most 2 gates (probably 1), jetBlue will have at most 2 gates (probably 1), Southwest will probably have 5 gates, and Expressjet will probably go for 2 gates. So 9-11 gates out of 21? 10 gates open will allow for plenty of expansion.. no need to have a fancy terminal for these occupants.

[RDUairport]

Yeah, ERJ170 pretty much sumed it up well. RDUAA does a very good job of working for the best it can offer with the money they can get, so I have no worries about the renovations that lay ahead for Terminal A. It may still be a blue box, but when they're done the part that counts will be done right. By the way ERJ170 I'm guessing you go by the same name on A.net's forum?

[DPK]

ERJ170 and RDUairport are on the right track with this. There's no real reason to demo the big blue monster outside of the exterior is ugly arguement. I'm sure that in about 25-30 years you might see it happen, but not until all of the gates are maxed out and another renovation cycle occurs after the upcoming one.

When both space requirements and a renovation arguement dictate that demolition is a more feasible solution, it will happen. I'm sure RDU officials have weighed all the factors and know what they are doing.

[ChiefJoJo]

Those arguments make perfect sense to me. The budget carriers don't need a fancy new $500M+ terminal, and "A" (1) can be renovated and improved signficantly without the hefty pricetag, and BTW, although almost nobody ever realizes it or complains, we do indirectly pay for these improvements via gate fees, parking, etc. (Have you ever heard anyone complain that RDU is spending over a $half-billion on a new building? ... completely under the radar.)

I'm glad they are finally ditching the "A" and "C" names for "1" and "2." I mean, there hasn't been a Terminal B in--what--15 years?

[Cary NC]

Weren't they going to renovate Terminal C and then decided that the cost was too high for a renovation and decided to tear down and expand?

[Tayfromcarolina]

If I recall yes, that's true.

[RALNATIVE]

Weren't they going to renovate Terminal C and then decided that the cost was too high for a renovation and decided to tear down and expand?

With Terminal A, the biggest factor to consider when deciding whether to renovate or rebuild should be the overall design. Despite what most seem to think, Terminal A is not all that functional. If you take a look at the design of most major airports, the terminals have central food courts, people movers, and in general more space. Terminal A feels really cramped.

Basically, Terminal A is outdated and should be built in a more functional design. What is the point of continually rennovating something that will need to be looked at again in another 10-15 years? Wasn't Terminal A rennovated 10-20 years ago anyway?

[DanRNC]

I have a feeling Terminal A will be bulldozed. Initially Terminal C was going to be a renovation (or at least a portion was) until they decided it was more economically feasible to just rebuild the entire thing. Terminal A has some serious issues with baggage claim/terminal security that I don't see being worked out in a renovation.

[JeffC]

pre 9/11, the plan was to replace Terminal A, since at that time, American still had some pretty extensive contractual rights to Terminal C dating back to late 80s when C was built for American's short lived hub (back when most people thought having a single airline hub was a *good* thing for a city). In fact the ugly "extension" to terminal A was built to be a "temporary terminal" while they demolished and replaced the older parts of A. After 9/11, of course, all expansion plans and programs were shelved. By the time the post 9/11 airline industry meltdown was over, the contractual probs. with Terminal C had been resolved, and the Airport Authority shelved the A replacement plans. Really, Terminal C with its anemic checkin and baggage claim areas (since it was built as a "hub" terminal, not to serve local traffic) turned out to be more unsuitably designed for RDU's current operations than the older A, so the Authority decided to replace it instead.

[ERJ170]

I have a feeling Terminal A will be bulldozed. Initially Terminal C was going to be a renovation (or at least a portion was) until they decided it was more economically feasible to just rebuild the entire thing. Terminal A has some serious issues with baggage claim/terminal security that I don't see being worked out in a renovation.

Ahh.. but that where the renovations are actually GOING to work out the problems. Whether or not everyone believes it.. Terminal A was built as a "brick house"! It is strong.. sturdy.. efficient.. and planned well. The only problem with Terminal A is baggage and security. As anyone can tell, Baggage check is done basically in the public. With the new renovations, baggage will all be done inline. No more of those big machines all in the way of airline workers. But Terminal A can take a hurricane and a tornado and still be standing. The gates have sufficient room (except a couple of gates) and the fact that it has two security areas that move rather quickly is actually a plus to me (even though they are going to combine them)..

Overall, I don't think there is anything horrible with Terminal A that can't be fixed with asthetic fixes.. and I think Terminal A will be around for at least another 20 years.

[RALNATIVE]

Overall, I don't think there is anything horrible with Terminal A that can't be fixed with asthetic fixes.. and I think Terminal A will be around for at least another 20 years.

The same sort of thing was said about the old RCC until Raleigh woke up and realized that the d*^# thing was outdated in a number of ways, and opted to stop trying to "fix" it and build a new structure.

Edited July 11, 2007 by RALNATIVE

[architect77]

Regardless of Terminal A's eventual fate, I have faith in the RDU Authority to make the right choices. As someone mentioned, they completely changed their expansion plans from a $1 Billion new Terminal A back in 2000 that was to be a huge trapezoidal building with 45 gates or so, to the new one now being built. So they are capable of surprising all of us.

I drove an airport shuttle back in 1989 for the North Raleigh Hilton while they were building the complex array of roads around RDU, and I think they have done an excellent job with the entire complex. You want to talk ugly, there used to be an old two story brick Motel across the road from Terminal A.

Unless some people posting here actually work for the airport authority, I doubt any of us can accurate predict the fate of Terminal A. I spent two years with HOK working on Boston Logan's new Delta teminal. The protocol for terminals today includes a high percentage of retail space, and along with changes in security, baggage handling etc, trends also affect how terminals are built and what ammenities are offered. This is why I predicted that Terminal A would not be renovated but rather demolished. But I could be wrong.

I do not agree that Terminal A is well laid out however, primarily due to wayfinding. Passengers should instinctively know how to progress through a building without much signage. Just remembering those escalators that require a 180 degree turn from ticketing and that are't even visible to deplaning passengers tells me that this is not a very functional building. Just my two cents.

[RDUairport]

Well RDUAA did change their plans from rebuilding Terminal A to rebuilding Terminal C; I'll give you that one, but I don't see them changing plans with what they have in mind for Terminal A now. As both ERJ170 and I both do, you can email the RDUAA and they do a good job feeling you in on any questions you may have. You can even sit in on their meetings, as they are public. Based on the information coming from RDUAA as of right now it will be renovated. Whether you agree or disagree RDU needs and will need another terminal other than Terminal C and that is Terminal A. This is why it won't be demolished. I too see the faults that Terminal A has, however I don't think they are worth demolishing the thing and then building a second 500 million dollar terminal in its place. This would send a lot of people in an uproar about how the airport authority is spending too much money (where's it coming from war), so this is the best option for the time being as I see it. Just my own opinion, (hope I didn't come off sounding too aggressive as I respect everyone own opinion).