bocastephen

That routing would still guarantee a misconnection unless the OP walked on the shuttle bus directly off their flight, the bus left immediately after, made very brief stops at A and B, and then the OP ran like an Olympic sprinter from the C gate bus stop to their departure gate, likely over in the C13x pier.

jensepping

Fellow FT members,

I am currently booked on UA 1170 from FLL to EWR and on to a connecting flight UA50 to FRA (booked on one reservation/ticket). All legs are booked in Business class (international leg) / First (national leg).
UA 1170 arrives at 5:16 p.m. and UA 50 leaves at 7 p.m. (1:44 h time to rush from gate to gate in Terminal C).
My first leg on the same day is UA 1667 EWR to FLL at 6:30 a.m. and my guess is that I can check in my baggage to my final destination FRA then.

Question: Is my assumption correct that I can check through my baggage to the final destination FRA when I check in for FLL in the morning ?
Assuming this to be true, I believe I neither have to claim my baggage at FLL nor later on at EWR -> without the baggage hassle at EWR I should easily make the connection in EWR in the evening ???

THX

bocastephen

Unfortunately, afternoon flights from Florida to Newark are delayed quite often - any type of adverse weather in Newark (which could even be light rain or high wind) could add 2 hours or more to the flight. It would also help to know your dates - if you were traveling from April to October, I would say no way as the thunderstorm risk is too high...the risk is lower during winter when the only two issues are winds or snow (which can be predicted ahead of time).

As I wrote upthread, I would not book an outbound int'l connection with less than 3 hours of connection time, the only exception is the first flight out in the morning...but during the winter months, I generally restrict my intl connections to IAH so there is less to worry about.

belynch

I'm confused. You're flying down to FLL in the am and then returning that night back to FRA? If you're originating in EWR that might be able to just hold your bag there (assuming you won't need it on FLL) for UA50; but I wouldn't count on it.

I also don't think they'd keep your bag at FLL to reload it for your return.

If they won't hold your bag at EWR just drop your luggage off at the ticket counter when you get to FLL (it's two escalators or an elevator ride away. It will take 2 minutes).

Your connection should be safe assuming there's no weather issues in EWR (hah). It's all within Terminal C and you won't have to do anything with your luggage in EWR.

If there are delays affecting your return flight, get on an earlier flight back to EWR. There's a United Club in FLL that will help you with this. Keep an eye on your flights (and the inbound that makes up your return) using the United App so you'll know if trouble is brewing.

jensepping

The FLL flight is a business trip - I only need an hour at Miramar+Taxi from and to the airport and then I'll return to EWR. The FRA-EWR-FRA ticket was booked earlier. Going from MIA (which would be easier) to FRA would cost $1000 more than flying the original route.
Baggage: I'm not sure if UA would accept my baggage more than 3 hours prior to the EWR-FRA flight. It obviously doesn't make sense to take it with me for a couple of hours in Florida.
Travel date is April 24, 2013. Is this hurricane season already ?

bocastephen

Hurricane seasons starts in June...there are no hurricanes in Florida during April. I would try and check the bags at the FLL counter after arrival - they probably won't say anything, but if they do, just say you want to spend the afternoon in the Club working.

Make sure there are no valuables inside those checked bags - 3+ hours sitting around the ramp is ample time for the TSA goons to shop-till-they-drop while rummaging through your bag.

jensepping

Thanks - I think I will do that. Worst thing that can happen is stay another night in NY anyway.

tandemlax

Hi All,

Been reading for a while but just registered to post for the first time. I'm flying DCA-EWR-EZE next month, and was booked with a 2 hour connection time at EWR. I recently received an alert from UA informing me that a schedule change has cut that connection time to just 48 minutes. I'm not too familiar with the Newark airport, but perusing this thread informed me that United flies in and out of multiple terminals there.

Several questions: Is there any way to tell a month ahead of time which terminals I'll be arriving and departing from and if I'll have to pass through security? Would UA be amenable to a fee-free change to an earlier flight DCA-EWR that would give me a 2.5 hour connection time in light of the schedule change? Or is a 48 minute connection time reasonable at EWR?

Thanks in advance for any input!

rove312

I'd never want that connecting time before an international flight; they generally want everyone onboard by the 45-minute mark. It looks like the DCA-EWR flights are all Express flights, which mostly go to Terminal A, and your departure would be from C. There is a bus that keeps you from needing to re-clear security, but I'd say that isn't a reasonable connection time.

The one recent time that I had a connecting time, as a result of a schedule change, that was legal but not reasonable, I was able to get it changed without penalty.

tandemlax

Thanks for the info - I'll definitely call and see if I can be moved to the earlier flight.

Shai Sendik

I'm flying TLV-EWR with United, arriving at Terminal C at 05:20 and connecting to UA/AC codeshare flight in Terminal A at 07:00.

1. I understand there's a shuttle bus between the two terminals so I won't have to through security twice, but would I have to go through immigration or customs before going on the bus?
2. Is this connection time sufficient?

Thanks!

njcommodore

The C to A terminal is inside security meant for domestic connections. You're correct that you'll have to clear immigration and customs so once you are through you'll see a bag drop. Then look for the Airtrain to get to Terminal A.

1hr 40 min is enough time at that time of day, though if you're not a US Citizen make a point of walking quickly as the visitor line can quickly grow.

Shai Sendik

Thanks!

IflyfromABE

You will have to clear immigration/customs at C, but if you have all boarding passes and your checked bags tagged to the final destination, there is another way that might be faster:

-Drop the checked bags after the customs and then get up and go through security at terminal C. Then go to gate C71C (between gate C71 and the restaurant) and take the shuttle bus to terminal A. You won't have to clear security again and it might save you a few minutes.

wanderingviolet

I'm looking at an outbound flight from ORF-EWR- MUC with a connection time of 1 hr 45 min, should this be sufficient. It's been about 4 years since I've flown through EWR and I usually liked about 2 hours in case of delay. Thanks for any assistance.