New RDU terminal takes off

Many raves, few glitches at opening

Terminal 2 is a fresh way to fly.

"You know how you buy a new car and it has that new-car smell?" said Mike Reed, an assistant football coach for N.C. State. "This has that new-car newness that I like."

Reed, 34, was leaving Raleigh-Durham International Airport for a recruiting trip to the West Coast. He was among the first few hundred travelers Sunday to fly out of RDU's new $570 million Terminal 2, which features a rolling roofline and sweeping, sunlit interiors.

RDU shut down the old red-roofed Terminal C on Saturday night and moved its four airlines (American, United, Air Canada and Charter Express) into the new building next door. All other airlines continued to operate out of the old Terminal A, which was renamed Terminal 1 this weekend.

"We couldn't have asked for a better first day," airport spokeswoman Mindy Hamlin said Sunday morning. "Everything went really smoothly. The baggage handling system is working well, and the bags are getting onto the planes."

Two restaurants on the Terminal 2 concourse -- California Pizza Kitchen and Brookwood Farms -- were forced to close about 11 a.m. when they lost power for the oven in their shared kitchen. An airport spokesman said electricians were working on the problem.

Mildred Green of Henderson, 63, was glad to find that her suitcase made it to the Terminal 2 baggage carousels. But by the time she got there, she was a bit out of breath.

Her American Airlines flight from Boston had parked at Gate C20, on the far end of Terminal 2's quarter-mile concourse. Green covered part of the distance on moving walkways.

"But we still had to walk a mighty long ways to get to the baggage claim," she said.

Terminal C opened in 1987 as an American Airlines hub. More than 80 percent of its passengers stopped at RDU only to change planes. They arrived at one gate, walked down the concourse and departed from another gate.

Nowadays, more than 90 percent of RDU travelers either start or end their journey here. Terminal C didn't have enough room in front -- ticketing, security checkpoint, baggage claim -- to handle many travelers. Airlines did not have room to expand their service.

Terminal C's demolition this winter will make room for the rest of Terminal 2. RDU plans a grand opening in 2011 for the finished building, which will have 32 passenger gates. The new terminal opened Sunday with 16 domestic and three international gates.

Green said she had been quite happy with her travels from Terminal C.

"It was easy going all the way, from where you check in to where you board the plane," she said. "I don't see where this could be an improvement."

But other travelers applauded the change. Kurt Lange of Dallas had flown into the old Terminal C for parents' weekend at Duke University. As he prepared to head home Sunday, he looked up at Terminal 2's high ceiling with its Douglas fir trusses.

"It's definitely more open and less dank, and I like how it's airy," said Lange, 49. "I love the wood. This is kind of modern, yet very nice."

Passengers on the American jet from London saw Terminal 2 as a major upgrade. In the past, London travelers often spent an hour or two clearing customs and immigration after landing at Terminal C. On Sunday afternoon, they began walking out less than 20 minutes after landing.

"Oh, it was horrible before," said Terry Kominski of Raleigh, as he wheeled his bag toward the exit. "This is much better."