DFW plans overhaul of busiest, oldest terminal

Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) is planning a major face-lift for its busiest but most dated terminal.

Last week, airport leaders joined forces with American Airlines on a ceremonial kickoff to a multibillion-dollar overhaul for DFW’s Terminal C.

The project will see construction crews overhaul the facilities of the terminal over the next six years, bringing passengers more airy, natural light-filled concourses with updated check-in, security and shopping areas, plus new restrooms and added lounge space.

The $3 billion transformation of Terminal C marks a big step forward for the 50-year-old airport and American, which calls DFW home and is by far the airport’s biggest tenant.

In need of a refresh

While other DFW terminals offer more modern facilities for travelers and airlines, Terminal C is far more outdated — yet remains the busiest for passengers, and a major part of American’s DFW hub operation.

The airport’s newest terminal, D, where many international flights originate, opened in 2005. Meanwhile, Terminals A, B and E have each received major renovations since their inception.

Now, it’s Terminal C’s turn.

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What the refreshed Terminal C will look like

Design renderings unveiled by the airport show better-lit concourses and modernized retail spaces will greet passengers inside the overhauled 1.1 million square foot facility.

DFW

It’s a clear improvement over the more sterile design travelers find in much of the terminal today, as seen in the below photo of last week’s wall-hammering that marked the start of the project.

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The plans call for construction crews to completely overhaul the aging terminal. Crews will remove more than 400 columns that currently block passengers’ views of the airfield and, quite literally, raise the roof of the building. That, along with new, larger glass windows should allow far more natural light to spill into the building.

Plus, there will be practical improvements, too, from new shops and restaurants to updated ticketing areas, security checkpoints and other spaces.

Additional expansion plans

At the same time, construction crews will also get to work expanding pier-style concourses in both Terminal C and Terminal A, which will give the airport extra gate space to work with.

In all, Terminal C will see 18 gates reconstructed, five gates rebuilt, and four entirely new gates added.

DFW has existing pier-style gate facilities, like the one shown in the below photo taken in late 2022.

The pier expansion at Terminal A will give that facility five rebuilt gates, and five new ones.

A larger ‘DFW Forward’ plan

The work on Terminal C is also just one part of a much larger, $9 billion transformation of America’s second-busiest airport planned over the coming decade — its biggest face-lift since opening in 1974.

New Terminal F planned

Among the changes, the airport is moving forward with plans to start construction on an entirely new sixth terminal: Terminal F. The 400,000 square-foot, $1.6 billion terminal which will someday offer 15 gates and a direct connection to DFW’s airside Skylink train.

“As we grow closer to serving 100 million passengers each year, it’s time for DFW to enhance our remaining legacy terminal and imagine brand new ones,” DFW CEO Sean Donohue said in an Aug. 29 statement.

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Accommodating future growth

DFW was not just the second-busiest airport in the U.S. in 2023, but the third-busiest in the world, according to annual rankings from Airports Council International.

The total number of seats on commercial flights departing from DFW rose 18% in 2024 versus 2019, five years ago, according to data from aviation analytics firm Cirium. They’re up 35% over 2014, a decade ago.

The airport is expected to grow its passenger traffic by around 25% between now and 2030, Donohue said at an industry conference last fall.

Not coincidentally, DFW hopes its work on Terminals C and F will be complete before then — and hopes to wrap up construction of the pier expansions in Terminals A and C even sooner, by 2026.

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