St. Louis Lambert Int. Airport [airline/hub/operations/info]

jshank83 · PostOct 15, 2025#92262025-10-15T19:58+00:00

DogtownBnR wrote: ↑
Oct 15, 2025
I know this topic has been beat to death, but does anyone know any specifics ( in the early stage) regarding the amenities the new terminal will offer? Will there be a consolidated food court? I have heard the new garage will house some rental car companies. I would love to see those consolidated into the garage & away from the surface lots.

I am hoping STL is doing what STL CITY SC did. They traveled all over the place taking ideas from soccer venues all over the place to incorporate into the design of City Park. I hope STL officials are doing the same thing, stealing great ideas from successful, modern & sleek airports all over the world. That would be the way to top some of the new terminals built in recent years. I want people to come to Lambert & be wowed, feel like they are entering unique STL treasure. I know that's a lot to ask, but for that price tag, I want it all.

The new garage will not have rental cars.

I think there is suppose to be 50-60% more retail/restaurants as there are now.

STL officials have traveled to many airports, especially new ones and talked to them about what they did and lessons learned, etc.

I don’t think the airport is going to be “Wow”. So I wouldn’t get your expectations too high. With the rise in prices I’ve heard they are going to try to keep costs down by going more function over Wow factor. Not to say it won’t be very nice but I wouldn’t expect anything crazy.

DogtownBnR · PostOct 15, 2025#92272025-10-15T20:04+00:00

I won't get into where I obtained this, but some of the information I've been privy to shows rental car areas in the new garage. Could be wrong, but that is my understanding.

More restaurants will be great considering all of the airlines will be consolidated into the new terminal.

Glad to hear they are doing their due diligence, but sucks to hear they are not going all in on making this thing amazing. I sure it will be nice, but I would like it to be nice well into the future.

What is the latest speculation on the future of Terminal 2, what it will be used for?

dweebe · PostOct 15, 2025#92282025-10-15T20:37+00:00

We already do pretty decent at the local food options, but it would be nice to see it taken up another step or two at the Lambert 2.0.

That being said, whoever allowed Skyline Chili at CVG should answer for their crimes against humanity. I like the stuff, but only after landing. It SHOULD NOT be carried onto an airplane.

But on the flip side they do have a Graeters Ice Cream at the Cincinnati airport. So maybe a Clementines would be a wish list option at Lambert 2.0?

addxb2 · PostOct 15, 2025#92292025-10-15T22:05+00:00

“Tickets on the St. Louis route are already on sale, and British Airways said early demand has been strong, with St. Louis-London searches on the airline’s website surging nearly 1,000 percent on the day of the announcement.”

https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/c ... 497205007/

A funny little typo…

“As St. Louis prepares to host games for the FIFA World Cup in 2026, Dean said it’s likely that passenger traffic will surge. But, he said, the British Airways flight also brings an increase in air cargo capacity that could help give the route even more staying power.”

jshank83 · PostOct 16, 2025#92302025-10-16T01:10+00:00

DogtownBnR wrote: ↑
Oct 15, 2025
I won't get into where I obtained this, but some of the information I've been privy to shows rental car areas in the new garage. Could be wrong, but that is my understanding.

More restaurants will be great considering all of the airlines will be consolidated into the new terminal.

Glad to hear they are doing their due diligence, but sucks to hear they are not going all in on making this thing amazing. I sure it will be nice, but I would like it to be nice well into the future.

What is the latest speculation on the future of Terminal 2, what it will be used for?

Interesting. I was under the impression there would be no room for anything except parking. Especially with how full the T lots are now.

Rhonda said in an interview last week they aren’t going to start figuring out T2 until they get the green light to start construction. Until then they don’t want to put much effort into it since they don’t know for sure it will be empty. She did make it sound like the building is too young that they don’t want to tear it down. So that limits things. Mentioned small rental car center, airport offices, event/conference space.

dweebe · PostOct 16, 2025#92312025-10-16T14:38+00:00

jshank83 wrote: ↑
Oct 16, 2025
DogtownBnR wrote: ↑
Oct 15, 2025
I won't get into where I obtained this, but some of the information I've been privy to shows rental car areas in the new garage. Could be wrong, but that is my understanding.

More restaurants will be great considering all of the airlines will be consolidated into the new terminal.

Glad to hear they are doing their due diligence, but sucks to hear they are not going all in on making this thing amazing. I sure it will be nice, but I would like it to be nice well into the future.

What is the latest speculation on the future of Terminal 2, what it will be used for?
Interesting. I was under the impression there would be no room for anything except parking. Especially with how full the T lots are now.

Rhonda said in an interview last week they aren’t going to start figuring out T2 until they get the green light to start construction. Until then they don’t want to put much effort into it since they don’t know for sure it will be empty. She did make it sound like the building is too young that they don’t want to tear it down. So that limits things. Mentioned small rental car center, airport offices, event/conference space.

Is that just the ticketing/lobby building or that PLUS the gates?

DogtownBnR · PostOct 16, 2025#92322025-10-16T14:40+00:00

jshank83 wrote: ↑
Oct 16, 2025
DogtownBnR wrote: ↑
Oct 15, 2025
I won't get into where I obtained this, but some of the information I've been privy to shows rental car areas in the new garage. Could be wrong, but that is my understanding.

More restaurants will be great considering all of the airlines will be consolidated into the new terminal.

Glad to hear they are doing their due diligence, but sucks to hear they are not going all in on making this thing amazing. I sure it will be nice, but I would like it to be nice well into the future.

What is the latest speculation on the future of Terminal 2, what it will be used for?
Interesting. I was under the impression there would be no room for anything except parking. Especially with how full the T lots are now.

Rhonda said in an interview last week they aren’t going to start figuring out T2 until they get the green light to start construction. Until then they don’t want to put much effort into it since they don’t know for sure it will be empty. She did make it sound like the building is too young that they don’t want to tear it down. So that limits things. Mentioned small rental car center, airport offices, event/conference space.

I will do some digging to confirm that.

Glad to hear T2 is still going to play a role in the airport's future.

jshank83 · PostOct 16, 2025#92332025-10-16T16:53+00:00

dweebe wrote: ↑
Oct 16, 2025
jshank83 wrote: ↑
Oct 16, 2025
DogtownBnR wrote: ↑
Oct 15, 2025
I won't get into where I obtained this, but some of the information I've been privy to shows rental car areas in the new garage. Could be wrong, but that is my understanding.

More restaurants will be great considering all of the airlines will be consolidated into the new terminal.

Glad to hear they are doing their due diligence, but sucks to hear they are not going all in on making this thing amazing. I sure it will be nice, but I would like it to be nice well into the future.

What is the latest speculation on the future of Terminal 2, what it will be used for?
Interesting. I was under the impression there would be no room for anything except parking. Especially with how full the T lots are now.

Rhonda said in an interview last week they aren’t going to start figuring out T2 until they get the green light to start construction. Until then they don’t want to put much effort into it since they don’t know for sure it will be empty. She did make it sound like the building is too young that they don’t want to tear it down. So that limits things. Mentioned small rental car center, airport offices, event/conference space.
Is that just the ticketing/lobby building or that PLUS the gates?

I assume it means the gate area also. Having space overlooking the airfield I would think would be part of the draw.

dredger · PostOct 16, 2025#92342025-10-16T20:19+00:00

I take her comments on T2 on we will figure it out when we need too and in the meantime we need to get our new terminal built

symphonicpoet · PostOct 17, 2025#92352025-10-17T07:09+00:00

^^The B concourse event space is pretty cool, so replacing it in the E concourse when B is torn down and E is repurposed would be pretty cool. I wonder if they might also move a lot of the offices currently on the first floor of the main terminal over there. I expect many of those would need to move to rework the baggage claim, customs, and concourse exits. (And even if they didn't, they'll lose their cushy airfield views.) Anyway, I'd think there's enough space in T2 to do quite a lot once things are moved out of it and into the new concourse.

bwcrow1s · PostOct 17, 2025#92362025-10-17T11:24+00:00

DogtownBnR wrote: ↑
Oct 16, 2025
jshank83 wrote: ↑
Oct 16, 2025
DogtownBnR wrote: ↑
Oct 15, 2025
I won't get into where I obtained this, but some of the information I've been privy to shows rental car areas in the new garage. Could be wrong, but that is my understanding.

More restaurants will be great considering all of the airlines will be consolidated into the new terminal.

Glad to hear they are doing their due diligence, but sucks to hear they are not going all in on making this thing amazing. I sure it will be nice, but I would like it to be nice well into the future.

What is the latest speculation on the future of Terminal 2, what it will be used for?
Interesting. I was under the impression there would be no room for anything except parking. Especially with how full the T lots are now.

Rhonda said in an interview last week they aren’t going to start figuring out T2 until they get the green light to start construction. Until then they don’t want to put much effort into it since they don’t know for sure it will be empty. She did make it sound like the building is too young that they don’t want to tear it down. So that limits things. Mentioned small rental car center, airport offices, event/conference space.
I will do some digging to confirm that.

Glad to hear T2 is still going to play a role in the airport's future.

I know duplicitous with Link, but just turning a portion of T2 into consolidated rentals + long term parking with a people mover could make sense. To me. I'm done talking on the rental topic though. Just seems like a majority of infrastructure is already built.

JaneJacobsGhost · PostOct 17, 2025#92372025-10-17T19:19+00:00

Auggie wrote: ↑
Sep 30, 2025
I have a question for those more familiar with the airport/airline world:

While we see Southwest cutting service from Lambert to cities like Des Moines, Little Rock, OKC, Tulsa, etc as a bad thing, how do those cities see it? I would naturally think that they would also see it as bad to lose a connection to a larger airport like Lambert, but at the same time, they still have flights to even larger airports than Lambert, so do they not see it as big of a negative as we do? Or do they still see it as pretty bad? I don't know, just wondering from those more educated.

I took one of these to-be-cut flights recently and it was packed to the gills

jonkleinow · PostOct 17, 2025#92382025-10-17T20:34+00:00

dweebe wrote: ↑
Oct 15, 2025
We already do pretty decent at the local food options, but it would be nice to see it taken up another step or two at the Lambert 2.0.

That being said, whoever allowed Skyline Chili at CVG should answer for their crimes against humanity. I like the stuff, but only after landing. It SHOULD NOT be carried onto an airplane.

But on the flip side they do have a Graeters Ice Cream at the Cincinnati airport. So maybe a Clementines would be a wish list option at Lambert 2.0?

Porque no los dos?

addxb2 · PostOct 20, 2025#92392025-10-20T15:58+00:00

Just a punch of a pessimism for Monday morning. I am currently nervous that STL is going to struggle to fill NINE flights to Europe next summer.

Still excited but considering STL is going from 3 to 9 in one year… during a recession… idk.

dbInSouthCity · PostOct 20, 2025#92402025-10-20T16:05+00:00

World Cup will mask any slowdown. Don’t be surprised to see 7 days a week for both in June, especially if the rumored base camp for England is in KC

jshank83 · PostOct 21, 2025#92412025-10-21T03:26+00:00

Alaska adding nonstops to Portland starting out seasonal.

symphonicpoet · PostOct 21, 2025#92422025-10-21T06:19+00:00

Hey, I'm hoping I can go again next year. Put my butt back in a seat, but maybe a BA seat on a direct flight this time.

shadrach · PostOct 21, 2025#92432025-10-21T12:10+00:00

Portland, like JFK, has been one of those head scratchers. Nice to see the dot back on the map.
This is one of my wishes from Alaska, the other is adding San Diego (not even going to pipe dream Anchorage and Boise).

DogtownBnR · PostOct 21, 2025#92442025-10-21T13:18+00:00

jshank83 wrote: ↑
Oct 16, 2025
DogtownBnR wrote: ↑
Oct 15, 2025
I won't get into where I obtained this, but some of the information I've been privy to shows rental car areas in the new garage. Could be wrong, but that is my understanding.

More restaurants will be great considering all of the airlines will be consolidated into the new terminal.

Glad to hear they are doing their due diligence, but sucks to hear they are not going all in on making this thing amazing. I sure it will be nice, but I would like it to be nice well into the future.

What is the latest speculation on the future of Terminal 2, what it will be used for?
Interesting. I was under the impression there would be no room for anything except parking. Especially with how full the T lots are now.

Rhonda said in an interview last week they aren’t going to start figuring out T2 until they get the green light to start construction. Until then they don’t want to put much effort into it since they don’t know for sure it will be empty. She did make it sound like the building is too young that they don’t want to tear it down. So that limits things. Mentioned small rental car center, airport offices, event/conference space.

I did some further digging. I think you are right as we sit today regarding the rental car issue. So I apologize. However, from what I did find out, there have been discussions on how to solve this issue long term. However, at this time, it does not appear that the new garage is going to house any rental car companies. At the very least, the Airport decision makers acknowledge the need for a consolidated rental situation. I think the new terminal provides some flexibility to consider a future rental car garage close to the new terminal. A consolidated garage may open up the other side of 70 for new developments, where the rental lots sit today.

jshank83 · PostOct 21, 2025#92452025-10-21T13:43+00:00

DogtownBnR wrote: ↑
Oct 21, 2025
jshank83 wrote: ↑
Oct 16, 2025
DogtownBnR wrote: ↑
Oct 15, 2025
I won't get into where I obtained this, but some of the information I've been privy to shows rental car areas in the new garage. Could be wrong, but that is my understanding.

More restaurants will be great considering all of the airlines will be consolidated into the new terminal.

Glad to hear they are doing their due diligence, but sucks to hear they are not going all in on making this thing amazing. I sure it will be nice, but I would like it to be nice well into the future.

What is the latest speculation on the future of Terminal 2, what it will be used for?
Interesting. I was under the impression there would be no room for anything except parking. Especially with how full the T lots are now.

Rhonda said in an interview last week they aren’t going to start figuring out T2 until they get the green light to start construction. Until then they don’t want to put much effort into it since they don’t know for sure it will be empty. She did make it sound like the building is too young that they don’t want to tear it down. So that limits things. Mentioned small rental car center, airport offices, event/conference space.
I did some further digging. I think you are right as we sit today regarding the rental car issue. So I apologize. However, from what I did find out, there have been discussions on how to solve this issue long term. However, at this time, it does not appear that the new garage is going to house any rental car companies. At the very least, the Airport decision makers acknowledge the need for a consolidated rental situation. I think the new terminal provides some flexibility to consider a future rental car garage close to the new terminal. A consolidated garage may open up the other side of 70 for new developments, where the rental lots sit today.

It has to be figured out one way or another. On site obviously is ideal but if that can’t happen off site needs to happen. I am not sure the last airport I went to where there wasn’t a consolidated location. At the very least it gets rid of all the shuttles clogging up arrivals and there is only one shuttle taking people instead of 8 or whatever it is now.

DogtownBnR · PostOct 21, 2025#92462025-10-21T13:48+00:00

jshank83 wrote: ↑
Oct 21, 2025
DogtownBnR wrote: ↑
Oct 21, 2025
jshank83 wrote: ↑
Oct 16, 2025

Interesting. I was under the impression there would be no room for anything except parking. Especially with how full the T lots are now.

Rhonda said in an interview last week they aren’t going to start figuring out T2 until they get the green light to start construction. Until then they don’t want to put much effort into it since they don’t know for sure it will be empty. She did make it sound like the building is too young that they don’t want to tear it down. So that limits things. Mentioned small rental car center, airport offices, event/conference space.
I did some further digging. I think you are right as we sit today regarding the rental car issue. So I apologize. However, from what I did find out, there have been discussions on how to solve this issue long term. However, at this time, it does not appear that the new garage is going to house any rental car companies. At the very least, the Airport decision makers acknowledge the need for a consolidated rental situation. I think the new terminal provides some flexibility to consider a future rental car garage close to the new terminal. A consolidated garage may open up the other side of 70 for new developments, where the rental lots sit today.
It has to be figured out one way or another. On site obviously is ideal but if that can’t happen off site needs to happen. I am not sure the last airport I went to where there wasn’t a consolidated location. At the very least it gets rid of all the shuttles clogging up arrivals and there is only one shuttle taking people instead of 8 or whatever it is now.

Agree 100%. This is a much bigger issue than many realize. The amount of traffic congestion created by the rental shuttles is significant. While we all know Atlanta Hartsfield is a model airport ( I know it is way bigger), their rental car lot is awesome. Austin has a nice lot as well. Lambert will have the space. I just hope this is on Rhonda's radar after the new terminal is up & running.

jshank83 · PostOct 21, 2025#92472025-10-21T14:04+00:00

shadrach wrote: ↑
Oct 21, 2025
Portland, like JFK, has been one of those head scratchers. Nice to see the dot back on the map.
This is one of my wishes from Alaska, the other is adding San Diego (not even going to pipe dream Anchorage and Boise).

I don’t think Anchorage is as much of a pipe dream as some think. I’m sure it would be a weekend only summer thing if it happened.

shadrach · PostOct 22, 2025#92482025-10-22T00:43+00:00

Flightconnections.com updated with London and Portland. Looking pretty good.

addxb2 · PostOct 22, 2025#92492025-10-22T02:11+00:00

FlightConnections is easily the best subscription I have. I can play there for hours. The app is pretty good too. It’s a great tool to trip plan. I’ve been updating everyday waiting for LHR. Looks great!

jshank83 · PostOct 22, 2025#92502025-10-22T02:38+00:00

^ Noticed American is running a nonstop flight and Southwest is adding an extra flight to Oklahoma City for the Mizzou at Oklahoma game. Outbound Friday Oct 21st, return Sunday Oct 23rd.

St. Louis Lambert Int. Airport [airline/hub/operations/info]

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