Originally Posted by
prometa
I have only transited FRA once before, on an SFO-FRA-DEL hop with many hours to make the connection so I didn't pay attention. In a few weeks am flying IAD-FRA (UA) / FRA-GVA (LH) with an 80 min connection time. From reading the thread, it looks like I should be okay, since I'll arrive in Z and depart from A (I hope), and will not go through transfer security but will go through passport control.
I read that Z and A gates are on different levels, Z one floor up. Do Z and A gates use the same jet bridge but different entry/exit points? UA's status indicates IAD-FRA frequently arriving at A gates, but that doesn't comport with what I read on this thread for non-Schengen flights.
Yes, Z gates are one floor above A gates. I have no idea why UA confuses Z and A gates. There is actually another floor above Z gates (Z50-69 only) where passengers from “unclean” non-Schengen countries arrive.
Occasionally, UA marks the flight as arriving gate V124, which seems to be a remote pad. Is arrival at a remote pad a real possibility? Is 80 minutes enough time to connect in that case? Where would the bus from the remote pad arrive at the terminal?
Marking a remote stand as “arrival gate” is another strange thing UA does. You will be taken to AEUW (if you are lucky) or ANS (if you are unlucky) by bus. Both are at the bottom of the central area of A/Z concourse. AEUW will allow you to enter the “clean” area of the terminal as if you have arrived at a Z gate. If a bus takes you to ANS you will be close to passport control and baggage claim but you will have to re-clear security before a connecting flight.
If you find your UA flight by the route on LH’s flight status page you will be able to find the exact arrival gate of your flight in the last day or two.