LAX American Airlines terminals getting a big update

Hot on the heels of an ambitious multi-carrier terminal swap at LAX that saw Delta Airlines transfer its operations from Terminals 5 and 6 to Terminals 2 and 3, American Airlines has announced plans to update Terminals 4 and 5—where the carrier plans to stay for at least the next 15 years.

In preparation for a new lease agreement with Los Angeles World Airports (the city department that manages LAX), American has committed to spending $1.6 billion on terminal upgrades. According to a release from LAWA, the money would be distributed over the 15-year period of the new lease, but most of the biggest items it would fund are set to materialize over the next decade.

These include improved check-in facilities, easier passenger connections between the two terminals, centralized security checkpoints, and connections to the coming people mover system that will carry passengers from their terminals to a rental car facility, public parking, and a future Metro station.

The changes planned for Terminals 4 and 5 are among a host of upgrades on the way to the airport. Delta will spend $1.9 billion over the next seven years overhauling its new terminals, while United Airlines is now finishing off a $573 million renovation to Terminal 7.

• Timeline: LAX's Big Overhaul [Curbed LA]
• Take a Good Look Around LAX's People Mover System Plans [Curbed LA]
• Shiny new renderings of the Crenshaw Line’s 96th Street Station [Curbed LA]