Originally Posted by
jackvogt
I don't believe that's correct. There isn't 2 separate baggage claims depending on what concourse your arrive in. It all goes to the same place. There are people who connect on every single flight so they can't differentiate between local and connecting bags. Once you go through immigration and customs, you get "spit out" into the baggage claim area. THEN if you are connecting you recheck your bag and go through a different security checkpoint. So regardless of where the inbound flight arrives, the OP will be able to pick up his/her bags and exit the airport as though they were someone whose final destination was Atlanta.
What
pgh234 says is 1000% correct!
Your scenario above is true for MOST airports, but, it
DOES NOT work that way at ATL! When they added Concourse F onto the airport, this is the goofy scheme they came up with.
Originally Posted by
jackvogt
Well either way it will be E or F. No other concourses accept international arrivals that require customs and immigration. Honestly it doesn't matter where the flight arrives anyways. As part of international to domestic connection in Atlanta, you claim your bags and then recheck them to your final destination. In the OP"s case, they would just exit with their bags instead of rechecking them.
Anyone arriving international at Concourse E that has checked bags, has to go thru regular TSA x-ray security
to get out of the airport. If the bag is small enough to fit in x-ray, AND doesn't have any large liquids, sharp items, etc. it could work. If you arrive international at Concurse F, you can just walk out after Customs. NOT at E!