v27.1 Winter2013

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US Airways and American

Airlines announced a

merger agreement on

February 14, creating the

world’s largest airline.

The combined carrier will

retain the American name

and offer more than 6,700

daily flights to 336 desti-

nations in 56 countries.

US Airways CEO Doug

Parker will lead the merged

airline based in Fort Worth,

Texas, home of American

Airlines.

Parker has been pursuing

the merger since American

Airlines filed Chapter 11

bankruptcy in November

2011. American’s bank-

ruptcy judge and federal

antitrust regulators must

still approve the deal,

which if upheld would

culminate the last of

recent mega-mergers in

aviation: Delta/Northwest,

United/Continental and

Southwest/AirTran.

The new American Airlines

has reported it will main-

tain all hubs currently

served by American Airlines

and US Airways. If this holds

true, Dallas/Fort Worth would

be its largest hub followed

by Charlotte Douglas.

Currently, US Airways

operates more than 600

daily flights and employs

more than 7,000 employees

at CLT. Reports claim the

combined airline will operate

Continued on page 3.

US Airways begins daily

nonstop service to Sao

Paulo, Brazil from CLT

on June 8. It is the

airline’s second South

American destination.

US Airways began offer-

ing nonstop service to

Rio de Janeiro from

CLT in December 2009.

The airline flies to more

than 30 international

destinations out of

Charlotte Douglas.

Sao Paulo passengers

will fly on a Boeing

767-200, which seats

18 in business class and

186 in the main cabin.

Flights may be booked

through US Airways’

website (usairways.com),

by calling US Airways

Reservations at

1.800.428.4322 or

through a travel agent. m

US Airways and American Airlines Announce Merger PlansUS Airways and American Airlines Announce Merger Plans

US Airways Begins Sao Paulo Service in June

Airport Breaks Passenger Traffic RecordAirport Breaks Passenger Traffic Record

Charlotte Douglas pas-

senger traffic reached a

record high in 2012 with

41.23 million travelers vis-

iting the Airport last year

– the largest in Airport

history. It’s a 5.6 percent

jump from 2011, which saw

39.04 million passengers.

International travel at

CLT also rose, climbing

3.2 percent from 2.62

million passengers traveling

abroad in 2011 to 2.70

million in 2012.

Airport officials attribute

much of the gain to increased

flights by airlines who serve

CLT. Last year, Delta Air

Lines added another flight

to Detroit, six flights to

LaGuardia Airport and

made its seasonal service

to Salt Lake City year

round. AirTran Airways

offered two more flights

to Atlanta. US Airways,

which operates its largest

hub at Charlotte Douglas,

began operating two new

flights to John F. Kennedy

Airport and introduced

nonstop service to Salt

Lake City; Des Moines,

Iowa and Omaha, Neb.

The airline also added

a second daily flight to

Frankfurt, Germany.

Continued on page 3.

Sao Paulo, Brazil

Construction continues at

Charlotte Douglas to meet

the demands of growth.

Currently, CLT is in the

middle of expansive build-

ing projects that include a

new deck, entrance road and

terminal expansion. It’s just

the beginning of what lies

ahead for CLT within the

next five years.

Hourly Deck

The structural frame of the

new Hourly deck and Rental

Car Facility is taking shape.

The $120 million deck will

contain seven levels and

7,000 parking spaces.

Opening date is scheduled

for November 2014.

The lower three levels

will house the Rental Car

Facility with 3,000 parking

spaces for rental cars and

a service area to wash and

refuel vehicles for a quick

turnaround. Once com-

pleted, passengers will

pick up and drop off their

rental cars inside the deck,

eliminating shuttles to

and from Rental Car

Road. The top four levels

will contain 4,000 spaces

for public parking. The old

Hourly decks combined

contained 2,713 public

spaces for parking.

Construction of the deck

will utilize 180,000 plus cubic

yards of concrete, 4,400

piles of steel and cover

3.2 million square feet.

CLT began demolition

of the West Hourly deck

in mid January and the

East Hourly deck in early

March. Queen Charlotte

was also moved and relo-

cated between the Daily

decks at the beginning of

2

CLT Construction Remains Ongoing

Construction of Charlotte’s

new Norfolk Southern

intermodal facility on

CLT’s airfield is moving at

a steady pace. Crews are

entering the final stages of

laying stone base, grading

and drainage work. By

early spring, the laying of

tracks will begin.

Norfolk Southern is funding

and building the facility,

which will connect contain-

ers transported by trucks

Demolished concrete

from the Airport’s West

and East Hourly decks

is being recycled and

reused as fill for Long

Term Lot 2 expansion off

Little Rock Road.

It’s all part of CLT’s

efforts to become a more

sustainable entity. The

endeavor will save the

Airport more than $100,000

with the use of concrete

from the leveled decks.

Charlotte Douglas is add-

ing 1,500 parking spaces

to the 3,265 space lot.

Expansion work begins

this summer and wraps up

by the end of this year.

Currently, crews are

completing demolition

of the West Hourly deck

and have just begun level-

ing the East Hourly deck.

Machinery will break the

concrete into small pieces

to use as fill for Long Term

Lot 2 expansion. m

and trains to eastern

seaports. It will be located

adjacent to the Airport’s

westerly parallel runway.

The project is expected

to generate $7.6 billion in

regional economic devel-

opment over the next 20

years and bring thousands

of jobs to Charlotte and

the surrounding regions.

The facility remains on

schedule to open at the

end of 2013. m

Intermodal Facility Moves at Steady Pace

the year to start construc-

tion this spring on the

front half of the new deck.

New Entrance Road

By the end of this year,

drivers will have easier

access to CLT from

Wilkinson Boulevard and

Little Rock Road. Construc-

tion includes the addition

of three bridges and

expansion of Little Rock

Road. Crews are currently

installing sewer and storm

water lines. Paving is set

to begin this spring.

Terminal Westside

Expansion

Work on the 45,000-

square foot terminal

westside expansion is

underway. Crews are

demolishing sections of

the ramp and completing

New International

Concourse

With the removal of rental

cars off Rental Car Road,

the space will be free to

build a new international

concourse. Design work

is underway. The Airport,

however, will first build

a ramp connector off

Concourse A that will

include four gates for

domestic air carriers.

Second Business Valet

Work on a second Business

Valet deck will begin in

June 2013. The five level

deck will contain 3,200

parking spaces. The $50

million structure, located

off Wilkinson Boulevard

beside the current Business

Valet deck, will house

Business and Curbside Valet

vehicles. It is scheduled to

open in June 2014. m

underground utility work on

the $10.5 million addition.

It will contain three floors.

The first floor will house

TSA’s inline baggage

system. The second floor

will connect Checkpoint A

to Concourse B and debut

new concessions. The third

floor will hold office space.

What Lies Ahead

Terminal, Curbside and

Lobby Expansion

Completion of the new

Hourly deck will allow CLT

to widen the roadway in

front of the terminal to

eight lanes on each level and

to expand the Departures/

Ticketing and Arrivals/

Baggage Claim area by

150,000 square feet to the

front of the building within

the next four to five years.

The terminal lobby expan-

sion will accommodate

additional checkpoint

lanes and reconfigure

the ticket counters and

Baggage Claim lobby.

Airport Recycles Concrete for Long Term Lot 2 Expansion

Airport Recycles Concrete for Long Term Lot 2 Expansion

New Hourly parking deck and Rental Car Facility from entrance road.

Terminal Westside Expansion

3

Genghis Grill’s Mongolian

stir fry, TCBY’s frozen

yogurt and a third Travelex

location are three new

additions to CLT’s more

than 70 concession choices.

Genghis Grill opened

earlier this year in the

Atrium. Popular dishes

include Genghis Grill’s

own teriyaki chicken, beef

broccoli, thai chicken and

firecracker shrimp. The

Mongolian stir-fry concept

allows customers to build

Nine out of ten passen-

gers who visited the Airport

last year rated their overall

experience at CLT highly

satisfactory, according to

a recent survey by Phoenix

Marketing International.

The 10- to 15-minute

survey evaluated all

aspects of the passenger’s

trip from start to finish.

Other high satisfactory

marks – nine out of ten

passengers were pleased

with the Airport’s overall

terminal facilities, check-in

experience and ease of

getting to the terminal.

Overall service at the

security checkpoints and

concessions also received

high scores.

Passenger surveys have

been conducted regularly

their own bowl from a

selection of meats, vege-

tables, rice or noodles and

sauces. Customers even

get to see dishes prepared

before their eyes on a

2,500 pound grill.

TCBY Yogurt has returned

to CLT. Yogurt lovers may

choose from a variety of

flavors and fresh toppings

to create their own one

of a kind tasty treat. The

menu includes smoothies,

shakes, frappé chillers

and frozen coffee drinks.

The best part – TCBY

Yogurt boasts it contains

less fat and calories than

ice cream.

CLT has added a third

Travelex mobile cart. It’s

located in Ticketing – Zone D.

Travelex assists passen-

gers with foreign currency

exchange and offers a

variety of business, travel

and mailing services.

Hours of operation are

7 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily.

Travelex is also open

throughout the week in

the Atrium from 7 a.m. – 8

p.m. and in Concourse D

from 2 p.m. – 8 p.m. m

at the Airport in an effort

to identify areas in need

of enhancement. Results

have solidified recent

improvements, including

the addition of more

charging stations and

new signage throughout

the terminal.

The Aviation Department

contracted with Phoenix

Marketing International, a

marketing research group

based in New York, in

the summer of 2008 to

develop and implement

a customized passenger

survey. The company

works with several other

airports in the country,

as well as various desti-

nations, attractions and

hotel chains. m

Terminal Adds Three New ConcessionsTerminal Adds Three New Concessions

CLT Aviation Director

Jerry Orr was named

Business Person of

2012 by the Charlotte

Business Journal.

In its December 21st

edition, the newspaper

called Orr, “a plainspoken

visionary whose influence

can be felt across the

region.” Orr’s knack for

managing an airport that

consistently ranks as

one of the most afford-

able and efficient for

airlines in the country

and his ability to oversee

an airport that is adding

flights, passengers and

airline employees at a

time when most airports

are coping with cuts and

service reductions were

just two reasons cited for

why Orr was selected.

The Charlotte Business

Journal’s 10th annual

Business Person of the

Year award recognizes

business and community

achievement of the highest

level. Candidates are

judged on four criteria:

financial performance,

personal qualities,

managerial skills and

contribution to Charlotte’s

strength as a region.

Past recipients of the

award include: Duke Energy

CEO Jim Rogers in 2011,

Peak 10 CEO David Jones

in 2010 and Snyder’s-

Lance CEO David Singer

in 2009. m

Orr Named Business Person of 2012Orr Named Business Person of 2012

CLT Receives High Satisfaction MarksCLT Receives High Satisfaction Marks

Continued from page 1.

Merger Plans50 to 100 additional daily

flights at CLT. Charlotte

Douglas could also see an

increase in international

flights. CLT currently

offers more than 30

nonstop flights abroad.

Visit usairways.com/

arriving to learn more

about the US Airways –

American Airlines merger

agreement. m

Continued from page 1.

Traffic RecordAs the second largest hub

on the east coast, CLT

offered nonstop service

to 142 destinations and

averaged 703 daily depar-

tures and landings in 2012

compared to 673 in 2011.

The impact created a

jump in Airport operations.

Last year, CLT oversaw

552,093 landings and

departures, a 2.7 percent

increase from 2011, which

had 539,842 aircraft

movements.

CLT continues to be one of

the fastest growing airports

in the country. Airports

Council International’s

(ACI) 2011 rankings

placed Charlotte Douglas

11th nationwide in pas-

senger traffic and sixth

nationwide in operations.

Rankings for 2012 will be

released in spring 2013. m

v27

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W

inte

r20

13

CLT’s Runway 5K Run

has marked a milestone,

raising more than $120,000

over the past five years

for LifeSpan.

Aviation Department offi-

cials presented a $29,336.76

check from last year’s Run

to LifeSpan representatives

on February 13 for its

Community Activity and

Employment Transition

Program (CAET). The Sixth

Annual Runway 5K Run,

held on October 27, drew

more than 2,300 partici-

pants to CLT’s airfield,

the second largest crowd

in the Run’s history. The

Airport has donated

proceeds from the Run

to LifeSpan since 2008.

The nonprofit organization

assists children and adults

with developmental

disabilities by providing

education, employment and

enrichment opportunities.

Twenty-two LifeSpan

participants currently work

at Charlotte Douglas. m

What’s Inside!m US Airways and

American Airlines

Announce Merger Plans

m Airport Breaks

Passenger Traffic Record

m CLT Construction

Remains Ongoing

m Intermodal Facility Moves

at a Steady Pace

m Terminal Adds Three

New Concessions

Photography and graphics courtesy of: Charlotte Douglas International Airport, Erika Helm, Nils Lucander Design, Carrie Lynch and Nancy Pierce.

CLT Presents Check to LifeSpan CLT Presents Check to LifeSpan

PRESORTED STANDARD

U.S. POSTAgEPAID

ChARLOTTE, NCPERMIT #3307

PUBLIC AFFAIRSP.O. Box 19066 Charlotte, NC 28219

704.359.4000 cltairport.com

NASA artifacts are sched-

uled to touch down at the

Carolinas Aviation Museum

(CAM) in mid-March. Items

include an escape basket,

heat tiles, space food and

gloves. More items are on

the way.

CAM is one of only a few

museums in the country

to receive the artifacts.

Three years ago, museum

officials applied to receive

items from NASA when

the US space program

ended in July 2011, after

135 flights in 30 years.

Carolinas Aviation Museum Receives NASA Artifacts

Several of the items are

now part of the museum’s

permanent collection.

NASA is also loaning arti-

facts to CAM throughout

the year. Museum goers

can be on the lookout for

an astronaut survival kit

and a production model

of the Hubble Space

Telescope coming soon.

For more information,

visit CAM’s website at

carolinasaviation.org. m