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AA Guide: ORD / Chicago O'Hare International Airport - MCT, Connection, etc.

Old Oct 18, 2015, 7:37 pm
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Last edit by: TEDisgone
Please edit or add information to this wiki as necessary.

At Chicago OHare (ORD), American Airlines operates out of Terminal 3



AA Ticket counters Open daily: 3:30am to 10:00pm
Flagship Check-in: Yes
Five Star Service: Yes
Curbside check-in: International only


Check-in times
In most locations, you must be checked in:
At least 45 minutes before scheduled departure, for flights within the United States
At least 60 minutes before scheduled departure, for flights to or from airports outside of the United States


Peculiarities:
ORD can be affected by winter storms or very heavy air traffic; ground holds even at incoming flights' departures airports, are not uncommon at these times. Knock-on effects during lengthy IROPS can manifest themselves systemwide.

NOTE: AA has 66 gates at Terminal 3, and has added five more at Concourse. Alaska, Iberia, and Japan Airlines all depart AA T-3. Alaska has moved to Terminal 2. All international arrivals are at Terminal 5, many international departures as well. AB, BA, CX, EY, QR, RJ depart T-5.

International arrivals from Canada airports without USCBP pre-clearance are sometimes listed as arriving at "IAB" - International Arrivals Building. These aircraft's passengers will not arrive at T-3 as domestic passengers; by Federal law, they must be cleared by USCBP, and that facility is at T-5.

There is no airside connection T-3 <--> T-5; one must go landside and use the free "ATS" airport train. Flyers connecting to BA departing T-5 may use the airside shuttle bus departing near gates G17 and K20. Every half hour 11 am - 9 pm. Sign with orange dot. TTB SERVICE HAS BEEN TEMPORARILY SUSPENDED - TTB service takes travelers from the domestic terminals (1, 2, & 3) to Terminal 5 without having to exit security or be rescreened in Terminal 5 at the TSA​ checkpoint. [Still suspended as of 4/30/2022] Airside connection has been restored March 1, 2023 - SEE BELOW


Operating terminals and gates
Terminal 1 is used by All Nippon Airlines (Departures), Ethiopian (Departures), Lufthansa (Departures), and United.

Terminal 2 is used by Air Canada, Alaska, Delta, and previously US Airways, jetBlue, along with many United Express flights.

Terminal 3 is used by Alaska Airlines, American Airlines and for departures only by Iberia and Japan Airlines (exception: arriving international flights that have been USCBP cleared, e.g. originating in Canada or DUB, arrive at Terminal 3 as domestic flights). Other airlines flying domestically and not mentioned above are also handled in Terminal 3.

Concourse G is used mostly for American Eagle flights
Concourse H and K are used for mainline flights
Concourse K gates 12-20 are typically used for international flights
Concourse L is used mostly for American Eagle flights (as well as non-oneworld carriers)

Terminal 5 is now both an international and domestic terminal. Among the international flights, the following oneworld carriers depart and arrive here: British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Etihad Airways, Finnair, Qatar Airways, and Royal Jordanian; arriving international American Airlines, Iberia and Japan Airlines flights all arrive here as well. In fact, all arriving international passengers from places without pre-clearance will arrive at Terminal 5.

Domestic carriers now using Terminal 5 are: Delta and Delta Shuttle, Frontier, Southwest, and Sun Country.


Getting from terminal to terminal
Landside transfers are normally done by using the Airport Transit System train, which also connects to the airport car parks. The ATS is currently out of service with substitute buses operating at present. April 18, 2022: ATS service has been fully restored and is operating 24/7 daily.

Terminals are connected by frequent landside buses, and AA T3 - International T5 are connected by an airside Terminal Transit Bus (TTB). If you have a boarding pass for your connection (or a printed itinerary of flight confirmation), you can use this bus, boarding at G17 or K20 and arriving airside at T5 Gate M1. The TTB runs 7 days a week, 1100 / 11 am to 2100 / 9 pm while the ATS is shut down, but seasonally and with shorter hours when it is. At other times you must exit landside and use the landside bus.

If you arrive at O'Hare on an international flight you will arrive at Terminal 5. If you have a connecting domestic flight from T1-2-3. You must use the landside bus to T3 after you process Immigration and exit Customs. You will be required to pass through security at T3. Landside busses are frequent.
May 1, 2022: Shuttle buses ended.

Airside:
walking corridors connect Terminals 1, 2 and 3 between terminals. (ATS landslide train must be used to connect to or from Terminal 5 outside of shuttle bus operating times.)

For those holding boarding passes on same day flights out of Terminal 5 (International Terminal), a shuttle bus will operate from T-3 (From Gates G17 and K20) to T-5 (Gate M13) between 11:30 am and 9:30 pm. [Still suspended as of 4/30/2022] March 1, 2023: Service restored. Connecting Traveler Information


Walking between terminals
Walking airside between terminals airside is possible (other than Terminal 5). There are no shortcuts and it can take significant time.


Arrival at the airport:
Within the U.S. as well as flights to Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, check in:
At least 30 minutes prior to departure (if not checking bags)
At least 45 minutes prior to departure when checking bags

For flights to international destinations check in:
At least two hours prior to departure to complete all necessary international requirements


Minimum time for checking in and arriving at the gate
To better ensure an on-time departure, our goal is to close the jetbridge door 10 minutes before departure time. This allows all customers to board and stow their belongings. (AA may release your seat if you show up at your gates less than 15 minutes prior to scheduled departure.)

To retain your pre-reserved seat on a confirmed flight, make sure to follow the minimum check in and gate arrival times.*


Time to baggage delivery:
minimum 20 minutes


Security at ORD
May 2016: security queues have been quite lengthy at times, requiring up to an hour to pass through security, even at PreCheck queues. Options include:

If you have Flagship Check-In privileges, they will place you at the head of the security queue next to that check-in area.

You may choose to process security at Terminal 2 and walk airside to the AA gates (UA is only slightly better than AA). If you have CLEAR, you might want to consider clearing security here.

The mid-terminal Pre-Check line tends to be better than the one at priority security.

Note: coming out from International Terminal Arrivals immigration and customs, you are landside and may find yourself with two options: leave the building land side, or take the escalators or lifts to the ATS train platform to proceed to the other terminals or remote parking lot. To access the other terminals, you will have to process through TSA security.


What is the domestic to domestic or to international Minimum Connection Time (MCT)?
The minimum connect time at ORD, domestic to domestic or international, is 0:40 minutes. Domestic to international is easy if your international flight departs the AA terminal, but domestic to International terminal is comfortably done in 2:00 (not the official MCT, 1:15), because of the lack of connectedness between terminals. International arrival at Terminal 5 with flight departing Terminal 3, Global Entry is likely to allow 2:00 or even less, but non-U.S. or Canadian passport holders with checked baggage might use 3:00 as a better guideline.

If I am making an international to international connection, what is the process?
There is no international transit process in nearly all airports in the USA (MIA has a baggage exception for international to international). Arriving internationally, unless you have been pre-cleared, you must proceed through U. S. immigration (there are kiosks and a fast channel for Global Entry approved passengers), recover your baggage from the baggage carousel and proceed through U. S. Customs. There is a "green line" shortcut for passengers traveling only with carry-on baggage (no checked luggage) which is called "1 Stop" and there are Global Entry kiosks and there have fairly recently been dedicated Global Entry customs lines added, which ORD lacked for a very long time. Global Entry kiosks are located both in the central part of the main immigration hall area, as well as in the hall next to the 1-Stop exit.

Upon exiting Customs there is a bag drop facility; drop your checked baggage, exit to the landside arrivals area. Proceed to the the AA terminal on the ATS train, to counters or kiosks to get boarding passes for your ongoing travel, then proceed through TSA security to airside.



Print Wikipost

AA Guide: ORD / Chicago O'Hare International Airport - MCT, Connection, etc.

Old Aug 17, 2022, 1:34 pm
  #1441  
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Originally Posted by Ziz
Yes, it is lucky for sure. In my case I would have chosen to connect via a different city since any of the eastern seaboard would have been just as good. Never mind, I’ve learned to always check flyertalk before booking a new route. It didn’t even occur to me that there wouldn’t be a connections facility!
Originally Posted by Ziz
I acknowledge all of that. I consider myself a seasoned traveller, although I had not done this particular type of connection (International to international in the US) before so wasn't aware that 2h would be considered "tight". I've done it, for example, at Heathrow with no issues at all. On my own I would have been perfectly happy spending the 6h in the Flagship lounge, but my son was exhausted as it was, so we went to the Hilton and flew out the next day. I would have chosen a different connection airport had I known! Anyway, as I said, I'll be sure not to make assumptions in future.
Unlike at LHR, there are no international-to-international transit facilities at any US airport. Every passenger arriving in the US on an international flight has to be admitted into the US and must clear immigration and customs inspections at their first port of entry. That is regardless of whether they connect to another flight, domestic or international. I believe that it is the same in Canada.

A few US airports, including DFW, IAH and MIA, but not ORD, have international to international luggage transfer. However, the connecting passenger still has to go through US immigration before boarding their flight to another international destination.

So, even if you connected in a different US city on the eastern seaboard, you still would have had to go through US passport controls when your transatlantic flight landed in the US. The only way that could have avoided going through both US and Canadian immigration and customs controls was for you to have flown non-stop to Toronto or with a connection at another Canadian airport.
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Old Aug 17, 2022, 3:46 pm
  #1442  
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Originally Posted by TWA884
Unlike at LHR, there are no international-to-international transit facilities at any US airport. Every passenger arriving in the US on an international flight has to be admitted into the US and must clear immigration and customs inspections at their first port of entry. That is regardless of whether they connect to another flight, domestic or international. I believe that it is the same in Canada.

A few US airports, including DFW, IAH and MIA, but not ORD, have international to international luggage transfer. However, the connecting passenger still has to go through US immigration before boarding their flight to another international destination.

So, even if you connected in a different US city on the eastern seaboard, you still would have had to go through US passport controls when your transatlantic flight landed in the US. The only way that could have avoided going through both US and Canadian immigration and customs controls was for you to have flown non-stop to Toronto or with a connection at another Canadian airport.
oh sure I know that now! What I meant with reference to alternative airports was I would have picked one with a longer layover, though shorter than the ORD alternative which would have been 7h.
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Old Aug 18, 2022, 6:26 am
  #1443  
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For international-to-anywhere airport transits in the US for those travelers without priority immigration/customs access and priority screening access at US airports, two-hour scheduled connections are too often a gamble at all the major US TATL gateways (when coming in from non-CBP Preclearance airports) because of US DHS for immigration/customs and airport security screening times.

Originally Posted by pjs
Thanks. If we check bags and get all our boarding passes in Atlanta when we check in with AA, would we have to check in again with QR at T5 or could we just hop off the train and go through security?
If AA@ATL tags your bags as checked in to your final destination on QR and you have your ORD-DOH QR boarding passes issued before you get to the ORD T5 screening checkpoints, then at ORD you can just go straight over to whichever open T5 security screening checkpoint you pick to go back airside at T5 after you arrive at ORD. If you're extra-worried about your luggage making your QR flight out of ORD, you can ask the gate-agents for the QR flight about the status of your bags by showing them the checked baggage tags you are given by AA showing that the bags are thru-checked onto your QR flight(s).
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Last edited by GUWonder; Aug 18, 2022 at 6:32 am
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Old Aug 18, 2022, 7:43 am
  #1444  
 
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Originally Posted by GUWonder
Originally Posted by pjs View Post
Thanks. If we check bags and get all our boarding passes in Atlanta when we check in with AA, would we have to check in again with QR at T5 or could we just hop off the train and go through security?.
Unless you have a layover over 12hours, the bags should be checked through. Qatar staff is great about checking bags in ORD if you h ave any concerns. We have asked them to check with both tight and extra long layovers just to be sure. They have even retagged adn checked through to a final destination beyond DOH that AA was unable to tag due to a long DOH layover.
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Old Aug 18, 2022, 7:46 am
  #1445  
 
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Originally Posted by JJeffrey
35 mins is right at the MCT so it's legal.

Connecting to international doesn't matter, the MCT is the same for D>I as D>D.
There is legal and then there is realistic. I would -never- do a 35 minute connection at ORD.
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Old Sep 6, 2022, 7:16 am
  #1446  
 
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The wiki on this thread states:

What is the domestic to domestic or to international Minimum Connection Time (MCT)?
The minimum connect time at ORD, domestic to domestic or international, is 0:40 minutes. Domestic to international is easy if your international flight departs the AA terminal, but domestic to International terminal is comfortably done in 2:00 (not the official MCT, 1:15), because of the lack of connectedness between terminals. International arrival at Terminal 5 with flight departing Terminal 3, Global Entry is likely to allow 2:00 or even less, but non-U.S. or Canadian passport holders with checked baggage might use 3:00 as a better guideline.



That confused me last month, since someone said 35 is legal for D2D (not 40). I'm happy to edit the wiki so others don't run into that - any other disclaimers to account for there or specific rules to call out besides just changing that line to 35?
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Old Sep 6, 2022, 7:41 am
  #1447  
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Originally Posted by sea_flyer_17
That confused me last month, since someone said 35 is legal for D2D (not 40). I'm happy to edit the wiki so others don't run into that - any other disclaimers to account for there or specific rules to call out besides just changing that line to 35?
For AA to AA at ORD, the MCT for mainline D-D or D-I is 35 mins.

It's slightly less (29 mins) if it's an Eagle to Eagle connection, and slightly more (50 mins) if the arrival is from a Pre-Clearance destination. And add 5 mins if the connection is from a widebody.
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Old Sep 6, 2022, 8:44 am
  #1448  
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Originally Posted by sea_flyer_17
That confused me last month, since someone said 35 is legal for D2D (not 40). I'm happy to edit the wiki so others don't run into that - any other disclaimers to account for there or specific rules to call out besides just changing that line to 35?
Originally Posted by JJeffrey
For AA to AA at ORD, the MCT for mainline D-D or D-I is 35 mins.

It's slightly less (29 mins) if it's an Eagle to Eagle connection, and slightly more (50 mins) if the arrival is from a Pre-Clearance destination. And add 5 mins if the connection is from a widebody.
Yeah, quite a few different MCTs for AA-to-AA connections.

Code:
Minimum Connect Times:
Connecting at ORD
Incoming airline AA
Outgoing airline AA
Flight type Domestic to Domestic

AA-AA DD .50 AUA - ALL
AA-AA DD .50 BDA - ALL
AA-AA DD .50 COUNTRY BS - ALL
AA-AA DD .55 EQP W - ALL COUNTRY IE - ALL
AA-AA DD .50 COUNTRY IE - ALL
AA-AA DD .40 FLT 1 - 2999 - ALL EQP W - ALL
AA-AA DD .29 FLT 3000 - 6399 - FLT 3000 - 6399
AA-AA DD .35 FLT 1 - 2999 - ALL
AA-AA DD .35
Code:
Minimum Connect Times:
Connecting at ORD
Incoming airline AA
Outgoing airline AA
Flight type Domestic to International

AA-AA DI .55 EQP W - ALL COUNTRY IE - ALL
AA-AA DI .50 COUNTRY IE - ALL
AA-AA DI .40 EQP W - ALL
AA-AA DI .35
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Last edited by Peter Snijder; Sep 6, 2022 at 8:57 am
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Old Sep 8, 2022, 12:58 pm
  #1449  
 
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I have an international arrival in T5 (NH112 in mid november) arriving at 7:00am, I had an AA flight that was set to depart at 11:45am, but has been moved down to 9:51am in T3 (aa2089). I have global entry and clear, and can use the priority lane for AA, but will have checked bags I have to gather. Is this enough time to make it through immigration/customs, and then drop my checked bags back off before aa cuts off bag check at 8;50am?

TIA.
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Last edited by seigex; Sep 8, 2022 at 1:12 pm
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Old Sep 8, 2022, 6:43 pm
  #1450  
 
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Originally Posted by seigex
I have an international arrival in T5 (NH112 in mid november) arriving at 7:00am, I had an AA flight that was set to depart at 11:45am, but has been moved down to 9:51am in T3 (aa2089). I have global entry and clear, and can use the priority lane for AA, but will have checked bags I have to gather. Is this enough time to make it through immigration/customs, and then drop my checked bags back off before aa cuts off bag check at 8;50am?

TIA.
If your inbound is on time, you should be okay. ORD doesnt have Clear, but with Global Entry, youll breeze through customs and immigration and through security in terminal 3. Also, there is rarely any line for rechecking bags.
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Old Sep 8, 2022, 6:52 pm
  #1451  
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Originally Posted by AntMom
ORD doesnt have Clear...
ORD has CLEAR lanes in Terminals 1 and 2.
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Old Sep 9, 2022, 7:12 am
  #1452  
 
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Originally Posted by TWA884
And you can walk airside from either to the AA gates (T2 is closer and I've found it usually to be quieter). If they don't take your checked bags at the T5 re-check desk, you'll still need to go to T3 to check those
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Old Sep 13, 2022, 3:15 pm
  #1453  
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Originally Posted by pjs
Flying ATL-ORD-DOH on New Years Eve arriving 4pm into ORD and departing to DOH at 6:35pm. AA award ticket on AA F and QR J. I assume we arrive T3 and depart T5. Assuming on time arrival into ORD, what time do we need to depart Flagship Lounge to head to T5? We have clear and precheck it that helps. Thanks.
Update on this. We have no real timing issues anymore as AA canceled the later ATL-ORD flight and put us on a midday flight. We'll have about 4 hours in the Flagship Lounge.

However, my oldest is flying from BDL and meeting us at ORD to join us on our QR legs. AA has also canceled her nonstop from BDL and put her on a connection through DCA that doesn't get her to ORD until 4:15pm. I'm not willing to risk that so I can just cancel her AA legs and start her award ticket in ORD. If I do that and get her to ORD on UA (nonstop arrives around 1pm), I assume she'll just have to go to T5 and wait for QR check-in to open to check her bag? Then she can go to T3 and meet us at the Flagship Lounge. Is there any possibility of her checking her bag with AA as it's an AA award ticket? I assume not if there's no AA leg. If so, does QR check-in open exactly three hours before the flight? Thanks.
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Old Sep 13, 2022, 3:33 pm
  #1454  
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Originally Posted by pjs
Update on this. We have no real timing issues anymore as AA canceled the later ATL-ORD flight and put us on a midday flight. We'll have about 4 hours in the Flagship Lounge.

However, my oldest is flying from BDL and meeting us at ORD to join us on our QR legs. AA has also canceled her nonstop from BDL and put her on a connection through DCA that doesn't get her to ORD until 4:15pm. I'm not willing to risk that so I can just cancel her AA legs and start her award ticket in ORD. If I do that and get her to ORD on UA (nonstop arrives around 1pm), I assume she'll just have to go to T5 and wait for QR check-in to open to check her bag? Then she can go to T3 and meet us at the Flagship Lounge. Is there any possibility of her checking her bag with AA as it's an AA award ticket? I assume not if there's no AA leg. If so, does QR check-in open exactly three hours before the flight? Thanks.
No, if she's flying UA to ORD and then QR from ORD on a separate ticket then AA doesn't have anything to do with bags. She'll have to claim her bag at ORD then take it to T5 to check in with QR. I'm not sure what UA's policy is with regards to checking bags through across separate tickets, but I suppose you could always check on that as well (look on the UA forum, etc.). QR check in at ORD should be open 3 hours before departure but that's something you would need to double check with QR on as well.
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Old Sep 13, 2022, 6:33 pm
  #1455  
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Originally Posted by JJeffrey
No, if she's flying UA to ORD and then QR from ORD on a separate ticket then AA doesn't have anything to do with bags. She'll have to claim her bag at ORD then take it to T5 to check in with QR. I'm not sure what UA's policy is with regards to checking bags through across separate tickets, but I suppose you could always check on that as well (look on the UA forum, etc.). QR check in at ORD should be open 3 hours before departure but that's something you would need to double check with QR on as well.
Thanks. Ill check on QR opening time but theres no way Im going to have UA transfer the bag when were going all the way to Nairobi.
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