from my post on www.airlinestars.com

I’m sitting at Seattle’s Best Coffee here in Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta Intl. Airport waiting for another delayed flight. I have a good view of the balconies between North and South Terminal where ATL plans to open more shops. There is a lot going on in this area between the two terminals’ baggage claim area – from an arrivals lobby to shops, eateries, a post office, and several tourist/travel services. The efficiency and fluidity of all these activities in the airport is remarkable. ATL has great facilities and a large staff, but handling a busy airport of this size requires some serious logistics and operations management. I must also mention the expediency of the Concourse trains that provide rides from the Main Terminal / Baggage Claim area all the way down to Gate E/T (I think).

The waiting area in between the two terminals looks a lot like a sitting area in one of those big Simon Malls – same shops and fast food chains in the periphery. If all goes as planned, there will more shops in the upper two floors of this circular corridor between the two terminals. Considering how big this airport is, this waiting area is not going to be very different from a mall.

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All well and good - but this airport still has the silliest international arrivals process in the world. Who would believe you have to be screened through security to actually leave the airport? Even recheck your suitcases?

This is because to go from international arrivals / baggage reclaim to the street, you have to pass through all the domestic gates,

It's just what you want at the end of a long transatlantic flight. Oh and when its busy, no one is around explaining what has to happen. As if this is 'normal'?!

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Very true, that is not what you want after a transatlantic flight - and, might I add on that, before/after standing in a long immigration line. It would be great if they separated their international and domestic gates similar to JFK or IAD. I think that would be harder for ATL considering that it's the main hub for Delta which is cutting domestic flights while adding international routes.

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