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Los Angeles by plane


Los Angeles by plane

The Los Angeles area is served by six major commercial airports and more than a dozen private airports. Los Angeles International (IATA: LAX) is the major gateway. The airport is huge, with nine terminals. A free "A" shuttle bus loops around all the terminals, and departs from the curbside on the lower level. If you do not mind walking, it is no more than a 10 min walk between any of the terminals, and if you are transferring between adjacent terminals, walking will be quicker than the shuttle; a streetside sidewalk connects all the terminals. Don't assume that all international flights leave from or arrive at the Tom Bradley International terminal. Many don't, and some carriers even operate some of their international flights from there and some from other terminals. To avoid missing flights, it's always important to determine in advance which terminal(s) your international flights will be flying in or out of, especially if you are connecting through LAX. There are also two executive terminals for charter aircraft, if time means money. In LA, an automobile is essential for reaching all destinations outside of Hollywood and downtown; public transportation connections to and from the airport are poor. There is no direct train service to the airport, although there are free shuttle buses to Aviation Station on the Metro Green Line, and half-hourly LAX FlyAway shuttles to Union Station for Amtrak ($7.00 one way). Taxis to downtown L.A. cost $45.00 and take 30 min in good traffic but can be far slower in rush hour. On your return to the airport, be sure to arrive two hours before your flight as lines for security are notoriously long and often time-consuming. If you want to rent a car, there are around 10 different companies with very frequent shuttle buses picking up on the lower level around all terminals and going to large off-site lots. If you want to compare prices, you will need to do so using the telephones in the arrivals area or on the Internet in advance of arriving. Don't expect any details from the shuttle drivers, or negotiable prices once you arrive at their lot. Signing up to one the car rental club schemes can get the shuttle bus to drop you at your car, thus saving substantial time. The other airports in the region are Long Beach Airport (IATA: LGB), Bob Hope (Burbank) Airport (IATA: BUR), Orange County/John Wayne Airport (IATA: SNA) and far flung LA/Ontario Airport (IATA: ONT) east of L.A and LA/Palmdale Airport (IATA: PMD) to the north. Only Bob Hope Airport is within walking distance of a Metrolink commuter rail station; all other major airports in the Southland also lack direct train service. Even though LAX often features the cheapest airfares, avoiding LAX will save a lot of time and hassle because the other airports are small and not as busy (especially Long Beach). However, keep in mind that upon arrival, you will often find yourself further away from your final destination than if you had selected LAX, which will entail a lot of driving. Then again, going anywhere in LA generally requires a lot of driving. If you're going to Disneyland or any of the Orange County beaches (Laguna, Huntington, Newport), consider the Orange County/John Wayne Airport. For any of the airports, it is probably best to use the numerous buses and shuttles to get to and from the airport if you are staying in the area. Locals do so to avoid dealing with the hassles and cost of parking. Private pilots will prefer smaller general aviation airports such as Santa Monica (ICAO: KSMO), Van Nuys (ICAO: KVNY), Hawthorne or one of the dozens of other small airports in the area. LAX does not cater to small general aviation; Burbank (ICAO: KBUR) does but is high-traffic; Long Beach (ICAO: KLGB) does but has a very complicated runway system and high traffic. Much of Los Angeles is Class Bravo or other controlled airspace, but due to the number of airports and the generally good weather Los Angeles makes a fantastic flying destination. Private pilots should also be prepared for flight delays when flying to LAX (including IFR ground holds} or delays in arrival or departure sequencing with busy jet traffic and consider alternatives such as Hawthorne (10 mi from LAX) as an option to leave an airplane and catch an airline flight.

The Most Frequently Asked Travel Questions about Los Angeles

LAX Terminals
Terminal Airlines
1 Southwest, US Airways, US Airways Express
2 Aeroméxico, Air Canada, Air China, Air France, Air Mobility Command, Air New Zealand, Alitalia, Avianca, Hawaiian, KLM, Lasca, TACA, Virgin Atlantic, Volaris, WestJet
3 Alaska, Horizon, Virgin America, V Australia
4 American, Cathay Pacific (arrivals for flights CX882/884 only), Qantas (Auckland, Brisbane, Melbourne)
5 Delta
6 AirTran Airways, Allegiant, Continental, Copa Airlines, Frontier, Delta, JetBlue, United (some international arrivals), Spirit Airlines
7 United
8 United Express
Tom Bradley / TBIT Serves most of the flights by international carriers, for example British Airways or Lufthansa

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Los Angeles Travel Guide from Wikitravel. Many thanks to all Wikitravel contributors. Text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0, images are available under various licenses, see each image for details.

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