CHARLOTTE, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS) — Memorial Day will bring a high volume of local passengers to Charlotte Douglas International Airport as the busy summer travel season begins this weekend. 

CLT is expecting approximately 142,000 passengers to begin their trip Thursday through Tuesday in addition to the approximately 295,000 connecting passengers. The airport will have additional staff in the lobby to guide and assist passengers. By comparison, during Memorial Day weekend 2022 the airport welcomed 124,000 local passengers and 277,000 connecting passengers. 

Checkpoint B closed March 17 for expansion and scheduled to reopen by the end of the year. Standard lanes are located at Checkpoints A, D and E. TSA PreCheck is located at Checkpoint C. Any checkpoint can get you to any gate.  

For a smooth traveling experience, the airport urges: Don’t Fly by the Seat of Your Pants. This means to:  

  • Book your parking when you book your flight.  

Visit parkCLT.com or the CLT Airport app for the best available rates. CLT provides more than 21,000 public parking spaces. 

Visit tsa.gov to learn what’s allowed through security checkpoints. Check with your airline for any additional restrictions for what is allowed on your aircraft. 

  • Monitor estimated security wait times on CLT’s website or app and remember any checkpoint can get you to any gate. Wait times can change frequently, therefore, check often.  
  • Mark Howell of the Transportation Safety Administration has the following advice for flyers feeling anxious while waiting in line: “Just take a deep breath.”

What are the construction impacts? 

The Terminal Lobby Expansion is nearly halfway complete and remains on target for a summer 2025 finish.  

In March, CLT opened new ticket counters on the TLE’s west side for Delta, Air Canada, JetBlue, Contour, Frontier, Southwest and United airlines. 

“Don’t just come to the airport and do things as soon as you get here,” CLT Chief Operating Officer Jerome Woodward said. “Pack your patience.” 

The airport recommends arriving at the airport two hours early for domestic flights and three hours for international.

The best time to book flights, according to travel experts, is for first thing in the morning.