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I am 68 years old and have not flown anywhere since before 9/11. I am taking a flight from SNA to CVG with a 40 minute layover at DFW!. I’m arriving at terminal A gate 5. I need to get to gate C 16 in under 40 minutes! How should I take the skytrain service?

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    I took a similar flight once (on American Airlines) and got stuck in Dallas overnight because my plane was a few minutes late arriving. American Airlines put me up in a the hotel adjacent to the airport. Hope it goes better for you than me.
    – bigchief
    Commented Jul 25 at 19:31
  • I also had only 5 minutes to make a transfer at DFW. I had to run as fast as I could to make it to my connection five gates away before the gate would close 15 minutes before departure. Thankfully, once I got there, I found out they'd held the gate open just for me, and the flight departed on time. My checked bag was also transferred in just five minutes according to AA's bag tracker.
    – gparyani
    Commented Jul 26 at 18:07
  • 40 minute layover with a change of terminals is simply asking for trouble. Any airport, period.
    – Loren Pechtel
    Commented Jul 27 at 22:12

3 Answers 3

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My mom is in her 80's. She doesn't need a wheelchair, but when she passes through DFW, she requests a wheelchair. Then a nice young man shows up at her gate and takes her to her departure gate. The nice young man knows exactly how to navigate the entire complex including the tram. She usually tips him $20.

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  • Does that allow her to make the transfer in the very short window OP has?
    – Willeke ♦
    Commented Jul 25 at 14:25
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    @Willeke Sometimes the connecting flight is just across the hall, so it takes only 5 minutes. Other times it farther. She's never missed a connection, but I don't know if she's ever had to go from one terminal to another in just 40 minutes. I'm just saying here that the wheelchair guy knows exactly how the tram works and if it's possible to make it in 40 minutes, then this should work. They might even hold the plane if they know that a wheelchair person is in route(?)
    – B. Goddard
    Commented Jul 25 at 14:28
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    I have been on flights before where departure was (slightly) delayed due to waiting on someone in a wheelchair. If this is a service provided by the airport, I wonder if they will call ahead and make sure the plane does not depart without the assisted passenger. I do not know if this is something they must do for ADA compliance, a courtesy that some airports provide, or will vary wildly airport to airport.
    – Chuu
    Commented Jul 25 at 15:51
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    throw money at the problem, here's how. Nice.
    – hildred
    Commented Jul 25 at 22:31
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    @hildred Isn't that usually the answer? :-)
    – Mast
    Commented Jul 26 at 20:15
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I assume this is American Airlines AA2114 to AA2345. You may have your gates wrong there. It looks like A5 is you departure gate in SNA. Unfortunately AA does not have predictable gate assignments in DFW. AA2114 arrived in A18 yesterday, C20 today and is scheduled for C22 tomorrow and C16 on Friday.

AA2345 departed C6 yesterday, D38 today, C16 tomorrow, and D38 on Friday.

So first order of business is to make sure you have the correct gate info. This should be on you boarding pass when you check in but its also a good idea to have the airline's app on your phone and enable real time updates. Gate info can change. The AA app also provides life directions to your gate.

Once you know what your gates are you can plot your path. If you are flying tomorrow both gates are inside C (C22 to C16) and you are golden. C to D is a bit of a hike but there is a bridge. Whether the train or walking is faster, depends a bit on your walking abilities.

If everything is on time, than 40 minutes should be enough but there is little room for delays, getting lost, taking the wrong train or an leisurely bathroom session.

And I need to get to gate C 16 all in under 40 minutes!

Well, it's only 25 minutes. You need to be at the gate 15 minutes before the scheduled departure.

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    How do you check arrival gate? I've never seen this information on a boarding pass or an airline's app prior to landing (maybe the AA app is different from others).
    – Ben Voigt
    Commented Jul 25 at 14:59
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    @BenVoigt, the most reliable method I've found is to look out the window as the airplane taxis to the gate, and hope you're on the correct side.
    – Mark
    Commented Jul 26 at 0:27
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    @BenVoigt. Google will tell you with a simple search "flight status AA2114", Other websites too: flightstats.com flightaware.com etc.
    – Hilmar
    Commented Jul 26 at 21:01
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    @Hilmar - I use one of the ones you listed and have not had the arrival gate be incorrect yet (barring last minute issues with some other plane clearing out on time).
    – Jon Custer
    Commented Jul 28 at 1:27
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The United app doesn't show a gate A5 at DFW. According to that, the lowest numbered gate in Concourse A is A8.

But starting from there, it gives these directions:

  1. 4 minute walk to the escalator between gates A11 and A13. Take it up to level 3.
  2. 1 minute walk to the Skylink train stop. Board the train.
  3. 6 minute train ride to Terminal C.
  4. Exit the train. Walk 1 minute to the escalator. Take it down to Level 2.
  5. Walk 2 minutes to Gate C16.

You can generate your own directions using the interactive map at https://www.dfwairport.com/map/ The results look like this:

enter image description here

See also How can you travel between terminals at DFW (Dallas Fort Worth International Airport)?

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