Right. Simply compare it to a transfer at most US airports - no transfer area.

TXL originally was built as an airport for point to point connections, mostly from Weat Germany to Berlin and a few flights from France, the UK and the US and (mostly) charter to a few other destinations.

I am basically reiterating what the first post in this thread is about, but I just want to ask to make sure:

I am travelling with my girlfriend from Arlanda Sweden to Henry Coanda Airport in Romania with a layover at Berlin Tegel Airport during which we have 35 minutes to transfer to our flight to Bucharest.

Both flights are on a single booking with Air Berlin and we will have luggage checked in (not only hand-luggage that is). The flight is within the EU but from Schengen to non-Schengen since Romanias bid to accession was denied.

Will we be able to make it? Reading about the airports design and the luggage-belts being at each gate is comforting but I still want to ask. I'd be very grateful for fast answers. Thank you.

Since you are on a single ticket, your checked luggage will be transfered to your connecting flight. You do not have to retrieve it in TXL. As for the connection. AB utilizes two terminals at TXL. The main terminal has security (as well as passport control) at each gate. However, the AB terminal just about 50 meters to the east of it has a general security checkpoint system. I believe there are two on each side. One for Schengen gates, one for non-Schengen gates. However, I have never connected flights with AB through that terminal, so I'm not sure if you will need to leave the secured area, but just go through a passport control desk while staying inside the secured area of the terminal.

BTW, that AB terminal is not that large to begin with. So the walking distance between gates would not be that long. However, they do use remote parking stands for some flights, so a planeside bus service may be involved.

I had a 50min connection from Cologne to Sofia there a few weeks ago which shrunk to 30mins due to an incoming delay. Fortunately both flights used terminal C (which should also be the case for you), which involves bus transportation from the aircraft and directly behind the entrance door there was a signposted path to the passport-control for non-Schengen. Under 5mins walk in all. I could see my luggage being separately forwarded to the aircraft immediately before push-back.
Due to this experience in the following week connecting in 30mins from Dusseldorf to Bucharest I forced myself to travel with handluggage only (no checked baggage). Everything was on time, I was expected at the terminal entrance door with a sign "Bucharest" and escorted out through the main door to a small non-Schengen Terminal (again 5mins) where security check was already waiting for us. Mostlikely my luggage would also have made it.

The Essence: if you booked through on AB they will know you are coming and take care of you in case of a tight connection and flights will even wait for a few minutes in case of delay. But if you can not avoid checking luggage make sure they put enough "transfer" or "Tight connection" badges on it and ask before you board your second flight with your baggage tag, if the luggage has already arrived (by the time you board it will not have, but probably someine will have the senses to check for it then). Good luck, it is tight.

UPDATE: We made it, luggage did not
 

This is the daughter of the original poster with an update. In short, we made the connection but our luggage did not. We did have to switch terminals and go through passport control twice and security once. Air Berlin failed to provide the "meet and assist" service we'd reserved and then confirmed at check-in at TLV.

Baggage, including the gate-checked stroller, arrived in Florida 3 days later.

Thanks to all the posters for their helpful insights.


Added by moderator:
This thread is closed, please see this thread for further information: http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/germa...ough-time.html

FLYGVA
co-moderator Germany Forum