jamesbrownontheroad

Various media outlets have referred previously to Terminal 4 at ARN re-opening on 15 June.

In light of the shortage of security staff but also the intense overcrowding in T5, is the re-opening going ahead as scheduled? Will any/all SAS domestic flights be moving? I realise most of my travels in the last six months have been greatly improved by SAS consolidating domestic and international flights in T5.

kilbornr

I’m at ARN right now on a Sunday morning and it’s an absolute disaster. Probably 4 hour wait for check in, security and passport control in Terminal 5. Luckily I could use Fastrack for security which probably saved 2 hours. Otherwise would have missed flight.

nussle

Yea, I got a movie on Whatsapp from a work collegue warning me that ARN is in absolute meltdown three hours from curb to gate using priority evreything he could (he is Diamond) (Sunday 12 June at 4am)

He sent it cause I am travelling with kids tomorrow so I moved the taxi time back a extra hour, as even the trains are not running to schedule, all the early trains to ARN are cancelled.

My understanding is that it is everything failure, lines to checkin were terrible, security is in absolute meltdown and even passport control was struggling.

Lets see how it goes tomorrow, fingers crossed.

jamesbrownontheroad

I sympathise with all affected, but my question is does anyone have any information about ARN-T4 reopening this week as previously announced? There hasn’t been any word from SAS about domestic flights moving back from T5 to T4, for example.

Tomas E

Swedavia has said that it is initially Ryanair that's moving to T4 when it reopens. (But we'll have to see what happens with non-Schengen Ryanair flights, because AFAIK there is no border check at T4.) At the same time, T4 effectively becomes a pier (C) of T5 since the airside connection walkway is supposed to be finished.
SAS domestic will stay in T5 for the time being and probably for the long term; they definitely liked having domestic-international connections being easier.

FlyingDobber

Thursday I had a 2 hour wait in the Fastrack queue for security. Total nightmare. SK lounge mobbed and my TG flight to BKK left 1:40 late as they couldn't get people through security quickly enough and then we missed our ATC slot.
Late arrival into BKK but made up enough time to meet connection to KUL.

T4 needs to open especially with building work, feels mobbed and cramped. Not an enjoyable experience this time around.

jamesbrownontheroad

That's a good point, because the ARN-based aircraft of FR (or rather Malta Air) do a mix of domestic, Schengen and non-Schengen destinations. These are flights that the F-pier were designed for, since you have a continuous mix of passengers disembarking from and boarding to a mix of all three.

(On 11 June, for example, ARN-based Malta Air 9H-VUV flew roundtrips from Stockholm to Luleå (FR7588 & FR7589) Banja Luka (FR4618 & FR4619), Gothenburg (FR4682 & FR4683) and Warsaw (FR4669 & FR4670)).

True ... I doubt anyone at SAS is listening, but if other airlines move to T4, hopefully SAS can remain consolidated at T5.

Tomas E

Well, we're slightly off-topic for the SAS part of the forum, but I found additional information from Swedavia about the changes 15 June, but only in Swedish: https://www.swedavia.net/airport/arl...de-c30-44.aspx
Some of the things it says is (my translation):

• All Ryanair passengers will check in at Terminal 4, including Non-Schengen.
• Check in for all other domestic flights will continue to be at the respective airline in Terminal 5.
• Ryanair passengers travelling with Non Schengen flights use the connecting walkway to Terminal 5 after they have completed check in and security at Terminal 4.
• Airside, there are no signs referring to Terminal 4, the term used is gate area C30-44.
• Gate area C30-44 handles Schengen flights and domestic flights. Also other airlines with the right aircraft types for these stands will be allocated to this gate area.

gnaget

How is the SK premium check-in these days? Is the problem that you cannot access the area because of mobs of people? I remember many years ago after they opened the new SAS check-in area they had doors where you could access directly. But for a decade or more, you have had to go around and enter from the old part of T5. And the walkway is narrow.

From the video on Expressen's website it seems that check-in is the bottleneck with reports that people arrive hours before check-in opens but they do not make it to the counter before it closes for the flight. I assume this is for charter flights in the old part of T5. That has always been a mess on Saturdays.

I checked several days ago around 9 am local time, which I guess would be after the morning peak. Check-in wait times were 8 and 16 min for the two T5 security areas, respectively.

jamesbrownontheroad

Super interesting, thanks. I hadn't been able to visualise it, but of course the new corridor is effectively right underneath the main SkyCity concourse.

With the T4 gates are now numbered C30-44 then it seems it's time to prefix the gates in T5 as well: D11-24 and E1-10.

Tomas E

Yes, my understanding is that such renumbering will happen eventually, but isn't done yet. They did it for pier C because it was closed anyway so I guess new signs didn't disturb anyone.

I agree that this bottleneck could be a problem in peak times. I've only passed the SAS desks a few times recently, when security queues have been "somewhat reasonable" (usually late in the day), and then there have been zero queues to the SAS priority desks. Since SAS reopened bag drop and you could handle LHR via self service I haven't had to use the manual desks at all.

As well as for all other airlines, domestic and international flights, except those few that are at T2 (such as AF, KLM, Iberia) or Ryanair which will be at T4 in a couple of days' time. Full list here: https://www.swedavia.se/arlanda/flygbolag/

Jainzar

When I was there I thought that I missed the SK priority check because the queue for the security started. But when I bypassed the queue close to the check-in counters there was an SK agent guarding an area. I couldn‘t see if this was the priority check-in, so I asked and I was welcomed in.

Check-in worked like a breeze and you head straight to the priority security. I was through check-in and security in about 10 min. The times for non-priority security must have been really bad since 50% of the security lines were reserved then for priority.

GUWonder

If they want to reduce the risks from a terminal emergency evacuation going wrong, they will want T4 open on time to distribute out passengers waiting to get to the screening checkpoints. Too many messes like yesterday’s mess at ARN T5, then the safety/security situation could get very ugly one of these days at ARN.

GUWonder

The check-in is not the major problem, the security lines are. Just have to have the eyes open for check in.

For those who got around the crowd blocking easy access to FT lines In the morning madness yesterday at ARN T5, the priority screening lines took only about 20-30 minutes to get through in the pre-5:20am period. They had 2 FT “lanes” screening at the main one and 2 regular “lanes” screening for everyone else at the main one. As you probably know already, having access to premium check-in with SK does not equate with access to Fast Track security screening for plenty of people flying SK in economy class.

gnaget

Since I am in a completely different time zone, was the main chaos this weekend on Saturday (as expected) or Sunday morning? My impression is that it is quite chaotic on a normal Saturday in the "charter hall" especially during peak holiday periods like now. When I said that check-in is the hold-up then I was referring to charter airlines (and maybe LCCs) in this old part of T5 where the Expressen video mentioned some guy arriving at 10 am and checking in at 16. It sounds incredible. The problem could be that a check-in for a specific charter does not open until 2-3 hours before so these people arrive early and wait for hours and clog up the terminal and make things worse. The media is telling them to arrive 4 hours early and then they arrive 5-6 before to beat the system.

I also heard that the roadway access to the terminal was closed at some point. This sounds insane......

So if we are flying SAS business ARN-CPH-IAD then we need to take the 10 am flight down. Normally, I would arrive 9 am. If we arrive early then it's the morning peak, so could be counter-productive. I am wondering if it is just better to not take the trip. It would be in late July. An alternative is to fly down and spend the night in CPH, I suppose.