CLT704

Even without the screening, you can clearly see how much the elevator shaft will stick out by- it’s obvious. But I’ll take your word for it, I’ll reserve full judgement for when it’s screened.

I second that, it seriously looks like a design flaw or an oversight. Someone, I think RDF, said it would be less noticeable than the chillers on 300ST but I digress, it's a lot more obvious. I hope Crescent and Little does read this thread and realise how much they messed up.

Maybe a second tower for their innovation center?

I’m hoping Truliant’s lawsuit is successful, every time I think I start to like Truist I remember how stupid it sounds. SunTrust is such a good name, I wouldn’t mind the bank keeping it. I wonder what other options they considered, either way the marketing team needs to be fired lol.

Even then, the slack in A330 utilisation is extreme and AA doesn’t seem to do as much winter island flying with the 330s as they did previously. Consequently, there should be enough for both and for Madrid, you would only need 1 extra aircraft: plane A flies to MAD one night, plane B flies to the islands and back the next day, A flies back to the USA, B flies to Madrid, A overnights in CLT flies to the islands the next day. Surely it would allow for maximum usage of the planes

All very valid points, they did get me thinking. With regards to AA funding a new FIS, maybe they are putting money towards upfitting the C gates for INTL- isn't the plan to have a secure corridor into FIS from C? 1. When is that happening? 2. Is it in conjugation with C renovations. 3. How many INTL gates will that provide? 4. How many A330s could fit on C? My (optimistic?) thought is that AA does want to add INTL flights but is waiting for the airport to sort itself out. CLT really seems to be dragging its feet when it comes to INTL infrastructure. As for a new pier, that wouldn't happen in time for 2020 and we don't know what the airport is planning beyond, who knows maybe the airport and AA are talking about increasing INTL capacity for 2021. With the new A gates, it appears to me that AA has enough gate space for departing A330s and Euro flights but not arriving. Concourse D is so small that it's difficult already for arriving flights. I was also thinking that the comment Vasu Raja said in the Tell Me Why podcast was in regards to summer 2020 announcements, moving CDG/MAD to year-round announcement could come at a later date (again, trying to be optimistic); anyhow, I think he was specifying peak summer travel when the airport is stretched with all the seasonal flying- so I am still hopeful. Either way, I still think CLT needs a new INTL concourse; in my head, I think the best approach would be to build a new midfield concourse once the new parallel runway is open (with temporary INTL gate increase through expansion onto C gates) that has access to FIS from all gates- it could be used for domestic or international when necessary. This would be more than a few years away but i think it's the best long term solution.

"There is nothing there [new international announcements from CLT] in part because there is not much real estate to put another big A330 into Charlotte... this is one of the reasons we're really excited for the XLR, the XLR can use the footprint of a 321 but can launch services from Charlotte to Europe, which is really exciting to us". - Vasu Raja Sorry to hijack the thread from A-north expansion but it’s a shame that CLT is getting nothing at all, even CDG/MAD year-round, which is doable right now. The XLR is due in 2023 so we have to wait 4 years. We really need a new international concourse.

"CLT is getting "at least something" "

That’s the bit that worries me slightly, there should be an announcement about service cuts and frequencies so watch this space. EDIT: the optimist in me likes to think this is the year that MAD and CDG go year-round.

In non-AA news, Lufthansa is putting the A340-600 back on the CLT route replacing the A350 from May 1. It’s a shame since the A350 is a beaut but it does reintroduce first class.

I do get some info about AA but what I have heard for new routes is mostly Philadelphia related. In terms of CLT, the main I keep hearing is third daily London, AA is sitting on a slot at Heathrow; other ones I hear are leisure destinations, I hear whispers of Prague occasionally but I would guess that is wishful thinking.

Literally. Isn’t there a Charlotte vs Atlanta thread in the coffee house? Can’t we move this? I keep getting excited thinking there is a new announcement.

They already did, it was initially 40. If they add more is debatable but I would think they would have added even more when they increased the count from 40 to 42.

That elevator shaft is very prominent from afar, which is kinda disappointing. Anyone know if there is a chance of it being covered up?

Not that I don't believe you, I'm just interested in where 427' comes from?

I personally believe that once the new runway is built and 5/23 is demolished that either 1. a new international concourse should be built midfield or 2. a new commuter concourse is built midfield with the current E being demolished to make way for new INTL gates. I'm pretty sure 2 is the long, long-term plan.

So when will the tower go vertical?

Forgive my negativity but seeing how Lowe’s HQ is already in the region, i don’t get how this would be gigantic news. Scratch that, I thought it was just that the HQ, if it’s 2000+ jobs then that is huge

This is very interesting, which the latter being a direct quite from Vasu Raja who is VP of Network Planning. Sounds like we're gonna get a flight to Düsseldorf or Cologne, plus other smaller Euro markets (maybe a return to Lisbon?).

It's Truist Financial Corp but Truist Bank, similar to US Bancorp and US Bank.

Probably a diversion from Atlanta.

Why couldn't we have buildings like this on LU: https://www.dezeen.com/2019/06/05/rose-hill-tower-cetraruddy-rockefeller-group-nomad/

With the discussions of extending the blue line, I always thought of splitting the existing blue line into 2 separate lines that meet at CTC. Similar idea but no overlapping: everything south of CTC is the blue line and everything north is the green line.

Maybe we can crowdfund to buy LU and demolish it?

Portland’s location definitely helps. One of the reason we don’t TPAC is that any flight to Asia would overfly other AA hubs, which AA can funnel traffic through.