Need advice with ORD connection
 

Hi all, it was suggested I post this here to get more clarity.

So, I am looking at booking either a Tuesday AA flight from SMF to ORD that lands at 1:38 pm that involves a 1 hr 32 min connection. I assume this is in T3.
OR
United flight from SMF to ORD that lands at 1:00 pm that involves a 2 hr 10 min connection. I assume this is in T1.

I have a flight on Alitalia in T5 at 3:10 pm, and I prefer the AA flight, but I am a little concerned (with both flights actually) on making it on time. Are these both viable options? I am one adult, with NO checked luggage (just a carry-on), and I can run fast. :)

Technically, you're a little bit safer with the UA flight simply because of the extra time. That said, it's easier to connect from the AA flight as the airside bus to T5 (all Alitalia flights are T5) leave from T3 where AA resides. With UA, you can either walk over to T3 (it's not long) to take the airside bus or take the landside bus straight from T1 and then reclear security at T5. If it was me, I'd take UA and walk over to T3 and catch the airside bus. All else equal, I think you end up at the Alitalia boarding gate sooner.

Is this on one ticket or two?

I agree with JimInOhio. To the extent possible, avoid having to exit the secure zone and needing to re-clear security. T5 security lines can sometimes be very long.

Definitely avoid extra security and also avoid the landside bus. I would not chance the 1h32min connection. The (sometimes grumpy) ladies (they have all been ladies in my recent experience) once wanted to insist that I exit security and take the landside train because the "bus would have been too slow" (!). The bus drivers do take breaks/shift changes that are not well disclosed on the website.

While it is certainly possible to purchase UA-AZ as a single ticket, the more likely scenario is that this is two tickets. If this is the case, I would not do it. It is not a connection and if OP no shows for his AZ flight, it will be cancelled and he will likely need to purchase a new ticket for the next day. The same problem exists for the AA origination.

On separate tickets, the risk is 100% on OP. If this is a single ticket, it will be a matter of being rebooked. Exactly what that might be and how long a delay OP will experience is an issue for him to research.

Alternatively, take a look at connections with alliances for pricing. E.g. AA-BA or DL-AZ through other gateways.