We%26#39;re flying on a one stop throught DTW in August and Northwest just changed our outbound flight so the layover in Detroit is only 45 min. Will we really make the connection? We have 3 boys who should be able to keep up but, are the distances between gates very far?? Any suggestions?
Thanks
Advice re: DTW layover
The terminal is about a mile long, but there is a tram. If your inbound flight is on time, you%26#39;ll have no trouble, though you may or may not have time for a bathroom break.
The trouble comes if your inbound flight is late. Have you checked flight schedules to determine if there are more flights to the same destination after yours? If your inbound flight is late enough to make you miss your next flight, NW will get you on the next flight out, if they can. But if you%26#39;re heading to a destination that doesn%26#39;t see many flights from DTW, it could take a while.
Advice re: DTW layover
If you%26#39;re staying on the same airline, you should be OK. That would most likely keep you in the same terminal at a nearby gate. And most companies will hold connecting flights to allow for your transfer. But if you%26#39;re changing from one airline to another, it could be more risky.
Well, my daughter has done this several times in the past few years because she is always flying from Lansing when she travels and she usually has to connect in Detroit. It IS possible to make the connection if your arriving flight is on time even if the gates are far apart.
The flight from Lansing usually comes into concourse C and the larger flights to other destinations go out of one of the other concourses and it seems like she always gets the 2 furthest apart gates. She hasn%26#39;t missed one yet, although she has had to nearly run on occasion. One time when her inbound flight was delayed, the outbound flight was held for her and several others who were making the connection.
Good luck!
Thanks... I guess we%26#39;ll hope for the best. Both legs sre with Northwest so maybe it will work...I wasn%26#39;t sure if I should contact the airline to see if they%26#39;d switch us to an earlier flight to DTW, the 45min(probably cost too much to change) seems short.
Based on your location I%26#39;m going to assume you are flying out of Milwaukee. MKE to DTW is operated only by NW mainline aircraft (looks like mainly DC-9 and A319/320), so you will arrive somewhere in the A concourse. These aircraft tend to use the odd numbered gates in the central part of A.
You don%26#39;t say where you are going, so I can%26#39;t tell where your outbound will be. Check nwa.com for todays flight status and it will be a good estimate of what you are in for.
45 minutes is a legal connection and enough time at DTW, so they won%26#39;t move you to an earlier flight for free.
Thnnks---We%26#39;re going to Greensboro, NC. I%26#39;ll check the current gates and hope we aren%26#39;t late departing.
The current flights show arrival at gate A11 from MKE and depart C18 to GSO....We%26#39;ll wear our running shoes:)
45 minutes is tight but certainly adequate if the plane is more or less on time. Distance between gates varies in accordance with your arrival and departure flights. Fingers are crossed for yours to be close together.
While Terminal A is huge, the tram runs every few minutes and has a stop in the middle of the terminal, as well as at either end. The moving sidewalks also run the length of the terminal. In general, you should be able to go from your arrival to departure gates in not more than 10-12 minutes, either on foot or via the tram.
As tev9999 notes, because they consider 45 minutes to be OK, NW won%26#39;t move you to an earlier flight without imposing fees. To facilitate the connection, if would be a good idea to get seat assignments near the main exit door (you can do this online) and also to inform the cabin attendants that you have a connecting flight with a 45 minute window. Often, they will make arrangements for connecting passengers to exit the aircraft first.
Finally, if you haven%26#39;t tried it before, NW can send your boarding passes directly to your cell phone or PDA, so all you would do is use the scanner when you board at the gate. Check the requirements, however, to be sure your device is compatible with their system (most are) and that they will send boarding passes for each of you to a single device. Otherwise, you simply can print the boarding passes at home and carry them with you.
I use my cell and the boarding pass comes as a text message.
Guess that I was writing when your earlier post was made, so didn%26#39;t know your arrival and departure gates at that time. Now that I do (and assuming that the gates don%26#39;t change from A-11 and C-18), I think that your fastest option with the 3 boys in tow likely will be the tram.
The south station is practically in front of A-11. Got off at the next stop, go down the escalator and walk to the tunnel entrance to Terminals B%26amp;C. The tunnel entrance is near gate A-38, just opposite the tram station. There is a moving sidewalk in the tunnel and there is an escalator at both ends of the tunnel to take passengers to their respective terminals.
There is an airport map on the airport%26#39;s website that you might want to look at to familiarize yourself with the gates and terminals.
If you would feel more comfortable with a longer layover, I would give NW a call and see if they will change the flights. Couldn%26#39;t hurt.
On a recent trip to Hawaii, NW changed our orignal flights and gave us a connection with a 40 min. layover. I didn%26#39;t feel comfortable with this based on travel delays we had had in the past. I called NW stating that they changed our flights and I wasn%26#39;t happy with what they gave us,especially with our 2 young children in tow. They changed our flight with no problem.
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