American Airlines passengers flying into Charlotte Airport this month may need to hone their navigation skills to find ticket counters — and prepare for more delays in what is already the airport’s busiest season ever.

From July 9 through July 21, some American Airlines ticket counters at Charlotte Douglas International Airport will be temporarily relocated due to construction to expand the terminal lobby. Ticket counters east of Checkpoint C will be relocated outside Door 2 on the Departures Level.

American accounts for approximately 90% of passenger traffic at Charlotte Airport.

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Both the airport and the airline advised passengers to arrive for their flight a half hour earlier than usual. Domestic passengers should now arrive at the airport 2 1/2 hours before domestic flights and 3 1/2 hours before international flights. The airport added that American Airlines passengers who do not need to check baggage should check in for their flights through the airline’s website to avoid the counter.

According to an airport press release, American Airlines will have four ticket counters and four kiosks in this new area in front of Door 2. Additional signage will be placed in the lobby to direct passengers, as well as airline and airport employees.

Bri Harper, spokeswoman for American Airlines, said priority check-in will be available near the Air Canada ticket counter.

Harper added that the airline had sent an email to affected passengers with upcoming flights informing them of the change and would continue to keep passengers updated on any changes.

“We continue to work closely with our airport partners to minimize disruption to our customers and team members,” Harper said.

Some passengers flying out of Charlotte in August also reported receiving a warning from the airline that they would need to arrive earlier than normal due to the construction, but American later sent another message saying that the previous email would not be honored and that the delays only affect people traveling from July 9 to July 21.

Construction work at CLT Airport continues

The change is due to the airport’s terminal lobby expansion project, which will add 175,000 square feet of lobby space for TSA security checkpoints, ticket sales, baggage claim and offices.

According to the Airport Council International’s preliminary rankings for 2023, CLT is the seventh busiest airport in the world in terms of landings and takeoffs. The airport’s construction project has been launched to create more space for the additional passengers.

According to the airport, passenger traffic reached a record high of 53.4 million last year. And traffic is expected to rise to record levels in the summer.

The airport said that from Memorial Day to July 4, CLT exceeded last year’s passenger numbers by 14%. During the Independence Day holiday from July 2 to July 7, about 925,000 people arrived and departed from the Charlotte airport.

The airport said the increase in passengers will continue until Labor Day, with an estimated increase of 13% compared to last year.