Los Angeles International Airport Los Angeles International Airport is the primary international airport serving Los Angeles and its Greater Los Angeles, surrounding metropolitan area, in the U.S. state of California. LAX is located in the Westchester, Los Angeles, Westcheste ...

has 161 gates in nine passenger terminals arranged in the shape of the letter U or a horseshoe. On the

landside An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial air transport. They usually consist of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surface such ...

of the airport, LAX Shuttle route A buses allow passengers to move between all terminals. On the airside, various pedestrian corridors allow passengers to move between all terminals on foot without having to exit and reenter airport security. Additionally, by January 2026, the airport will be served by the

LAX Automated People Mover The LAX Automated People Mover is an under construction automated people mover (APM) system that will eventually serve the area around Los Angeles International Airport (LAX). The system will be owned by Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA) and ...

, which will connect terminals to one another on the

, along with providing connections to the

LAX Consolidated Rent-A-Car Facility The LAX Consolidated Rent-A-Car Facility (also known as ConRAC or the LAX Rental Car Center) is an under-construction consolidated rental car facility for the Los Angeles International Airport (LAX). The first companies began operating out of t ...

, parking facilities, and the

LAX/Metro Transit Center The LAX/Metro Transit Center is an intermodal transport hub in the Westchester neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. Located near Aviation Boulevard and 96th Street, the facility serves as a transfer point between the Los Angeles Metro Rai ...

, which is served by the

Los Angeles Metro Rail The Los Angeles Metro Rail is an urban rail transit system serving Los Angeles County, California, United States, consisting of six lines: four light rail lines (the A, C, E and K lines) and two rapid transit lines (the B and D lines), ...

system and public bus routes. In addition to these terminals, there are of cargo facilities.

History

The basic layout of the airport dates back to 1958 when the architecture firm

Pereira & Luckman Pereira & Luckman was a Los Angeles, California architectural firm that partners Charles Luckman and William Pereira founded in Los Angeles in 1950. They had been classmates at the University of Illinois’ School of Architecture and had each becom ...

was contracted to plan the re-design of the airport for the "

jet age The Jet Age is a period in the history of aviation defined by the advent of aircraft powered by jet turbine engines and the social and cultural changes fostered by commercial jet travel. Jet airliners were able to fly higher, faster, and farth ...

." The plan, developed with architects

Welton Becket Welton David Becket (August 8, 1902 – January 16, 1969) was an American modern architect who designed many buildings in Los Angeles, California. Biography Becket was born in Seattle, Washington and graduated from the University of Washingt ...

and

Paul Williams Paul Williams may refer to: Authors * Paul Williams (Crawdaddy) (1948–2013), American music and science fiction journalist; founder of ''Crawdaddy'' and the Philip K. Dick Society * Paul Williams (Irish journalist) (born 1964), Irish journalis ...

, called for a series of terminals and parking structures in the central portion of the property, with these buildings connected at the center by a huge steel-and-glass dome. The dome was never built but the

Theme Building The Theme Building is a structure at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), considered an architectural example of the Space Age design style. Influenced by " Populuxe" architecture, it is an example of the Mid-century modern design moveme ...

built in the central area became a focal point visible to people coming to the airport. Each terminal originally had a common design: a satellite building out in the middle of the ramp, reached by tunnels from a separate ticketing building. Originally the tunnels were supposed to have

moving walkway A moving walkway – also known as an autowalk, moving pavement, moving sidewalk, travolator, or travelator – is a slow-moving conveyor mechanism that transports people across a horizontal or inclined plane, over a short to medium distance. T ...

s. Still, they were eliminated due to funding cuts. Instead, they received mosaics which came to be known as the

LAX color tunnels LAX color tunnels is a term used to describe decorative mosaic decor installed in several tunnels built in 1961 at the Los Angeles International Airport (LAX).* * Seven tunnels were created, three remain open to the public. Designed in the 19 ...

, to make the walk feel shorter. Terminals 7 and 8 (built for

United Airlines United Airlines, Inc. is a Major airlines of the United States, major airline in the United States headquartered in Chicago, Chicago, Illinois that operates an extensive domestic and international route network across the United States and six ...

) were the first to be completed on June 25, 1961, followed by Terminals 3 (

Trans World Airlines Trans World Airlines (TWA) was a major airline in the United States that operated from 1930 until it was acquired by American Airlines in 2001. It was formed as Transcontinental & Western Air to operate a route from New York City to Los Angeles ...

), 4 (

American Airlines American Airlines, Inc. is a major airlines of the United States, major airline in the United States headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, within the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, and is the Largest airlines in the world, largest airline in the ...

), and 5 (

Western Airlines Western Airlines was a major airline in the United States based in California, operating in the Western United States including Alaska and Hawaii, and western Canada, as well as to New York City, Boston, Washington, D.C., and Miami and to Mex ...

) in September. Terminal 2 opened as the international terminal in December. Terminal 6, a "consolidated" terminal for other domestic carriers, was the last to open. A significant airport expansion came in the early 1980s, ahead of the

1984 Summer Olympic Games The 1984 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXIII Olympiad and commonly known as Los Angeles 1984) were an international multi-sport event held from July 28 to August 12, 1984, in Los Angeles, California, United States. It marked the ...

. In November 1983 a second-level roadway was added, separating departing and arriving travelers; Terminal 1, which had been planned in the 1958 design, opened in January 1984; and the new Tom Bradley International Terminal opened in June 1984. Throughout the 1980s, the original terminals (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7) were also rebuilt with connector buildings that transformed the separate satellite and ticketing buildings into one continuous terminal.

Inter-terminal connections

While connections between some terminals had existed for years, by October 2023, as a result of the ongoing Landside Access Modernization Program (LAMP), passengers could walk through all the main terminals without needing to exit the secure area and be rescreened: *A departures-level walkway connects Terminals 1, 2, and 3. *Skybridges connect the Tom Bradley International Terminal (Terminal B) to Terminals 3 and 4. *A tunnel connects the main Tom Bradley International Terminal (Terminal B) concourse to the West Gates. *A tunnel connects Terminals 4, 5, and 6. *A departures-level walkway connects Terminals 6, 7, and 8. There are also airside shuttles connecting some of these terminals; for instance, some airlines have check-in counters and baggage claim at Terminal 1, but provide shuttle bus service to and from the distant Bradley West gates, where their planes arrive. The satellite regional terminal is only accessible by an airside shuttle bus that connects to Terminals 4 and 5.

Terminal 1

Terminal 1 has 14 gates: Gates 9, 11A, 11B, 12A, 12B, 13–16, 17A, 17B, 18A, 18B, and the bus gate. , this terminal serves as an operating base for

Southwest Airlines Southwest Airlines Co., or simply Southwest, is a Major airlines of the United States, major airline in the United States that formerly operated on a low-cost carrier model. It is headquartered in the Love Field, Dallas, Love Field neighborhood ...

. The terminal also has check-in facilities for

Allegiant Air Allegiant Air is an American ultra low-cost carrier, ultra-low cost airline headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada. The airline focuses on serving leisure traffic from small and medium-sized cities which it considers to be underserved, using an ult ...

Breeze Airways Breeze Airways, legally Breeze Aviation Group, Inc., is an American low-cost airline headquartered in Cottonwood Heights, Utah. The airline was founded by David Neeleman, who previously co-founded Morris Air, WestJet, JetBlue, and Azul Linhas ...

Cayman Airways Cayman Airways is the flag carrier airline of the British Overseas Territory of the Cayman Islands. With its head office in Grand Cayman, it operates mainly as an international and domestic scheduled passenger carrier, with cargo services avail ...

Frontier Airlines Frontier Airlines, Inc. is a major American ultra low-cost airline headquartered in Denver, Colorado. It operates flights to over 120 destinations in the United States, Caribbean, Mexico and Central America, and employs more than 5,000 staff. ...

Sun Country Airlines Sun Country Airlines is an ultra-low cost airline in the United States. Based at Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport with headquarters on airport property, Sun Country operates to about 140 destinations in the United States, Canad ...

and Viva. After clearing security in Terminal 1, passengers for all airlines other than Southwest board a shuttle bus to the West Gates of the Tom Bradley International Terminal, where the flights operate. Terminal 1 was built in 1984 for

Pacific Southwest Airlines Pacific Southwest Airlines (PSA) was a low-cost carrier, low-cost US airline headquartered in San Diego, California, that operated from 1949 to 1988. It was the first substantial scheduled low-cost carrier, discount airline. PSA called itself "Th ...

(PSA). The terminal was last extensively renovated in 2018, providing updates to the security screening area, terminal areas and baggage handling. The terminal was also expanded in 2021 to fill in the area between terminals 1 and 2, adding a post-security bridge between the terminals, and a bus gate to take passengers to boarding gates in the Tom Bradley International Terminal; this section of the terminal will provide a connection to the

Automated People Mover A people mover or automated people mover (APM) is a type of small-scale automated guideway transit system. The term is generally used only to describe systems serving relatively small areas such as airports, downtown districts or theme parks ...

when it opens. Former tenants of the terminal include Air California, Air Hawaii,

AirTran Airways AirTran Airways was a low-cost airline in the United States that operated from 1993 until it was acquired by Southwest Airlines May 2, 2011. Headquartered in Orlando, Florida, AirTran Airways was established in 1993 as Conquest Sun Airlines b ...

America West Airlines America West Airlines was an airline in the United States that operated from 1981 until it merged with US Airways in 2007. It was headquartered in Tempe, Arizona. Its main hub was at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, with secondary hubs ...

Braniff Braniff Airways, Inc., operated as Braniff International Airways from 1948 until 1965, and then Braniff International from 1965 until the cessation of air operations, was an American airline that operated from 1928 until 1982 and continues to ...

Lynx Air Lynx Air, legally incorporated as 1263343 Alberta Inc., was a Canadian ultra-low-cost carrier based in Calgary, Alberta. It previously operated as Enerjet and was rebranded as Lynx Air on November 16, 2021. The first flight under the Lynx Air ...

Morris Air Morris Air was a low-fare airline in the western United States, based in Salt Lake City, Utah. It began scheduled operations in 1992, and was sold to Southwest Airlines in December 1993 for over $120 million in stock. The airline officially becam ...

Piedmont Airlines Piedmont Airlines, Inc. ( ) is an American regional airline headquartered at the Salisbury Regional Airport in Wicomico County, Maryland, near the Salisbury, Maryland, city of Salisbury. The airline is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the American ...

StatesWest Airlines StatesWest Airlines was a commuter airline headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona that operated to destinations in the Southwestern United States. History StatesWest was founded by Phoenix entrepreneur Rudy Millein 1986 and began operating from its ...

, TranStar Airlines, and

US Airways US Airways was a major airline in the United States. It was originally founded in History of aviation in Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh as a mail delivery airline called All American Aviation, which soon became a commercial passenger airline. In 1953, it ...

Terminal 2

Terminal 2 has 13 gates: Gates 20, 21, 21B, 22, 23A, 23B, 24, 25A, 25B, 26A, 26B, 27, and 28. , this terminal, along with Terminal 3, serves as a hub for

Delta Air Lines Delta Air Lines, Inc. is a Major airlines of the United States, major airline in the United States headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, operating nine hubs, with Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport being its ...

, although the airline has no check-in facilities at this terminal. The terminal has check-in facilities for

Condor Condor is the common name for two species of New World vultures, each in a monotypic genus. The name derives from the Quechua language, Quechua ''kuntur''. They are the largest flying land birds in the Western Hemisphere. One species, the And ...

Norse Atlantic Airways Norse Atlantic Airways Aksjeselskap, AS is a Norwegian Low-cost carrier, low-cost, long-haul airline headquartered in Arendal, Norway. Founded in February 2021, the airline operates a fleet of Boeing 787 aircraft between Europe, North America, ...

and

WestJet WestJet Airlines, is a Canadian airline headquartered in Calgary, Alberta. Founded in 1994, it is the second-largest airline in Canada and the eighth-largest airline in North America by frequency. It began operations in 1996 with 220 employee ...

. After clearing security in Terminal 2, Condor and Norse passengers board a bus to the Tom Bradley International Terminal, while WestJet passengers walk to Terminal 3. Terminal 2 was built in 1962 and was the original international terminal. It was completely torn down and rebuilt in stages between 1984 and 1988 at a cost of $94 million. The rebuilt terminal was designed by

Leo A Daly Leo A. Daly, LLC is an American architecture firm established in 1915 by Leo A. Daly, Sr. in Omaha, Nebraska. Aside from architectural design, the firm also works in planning, engineering, interior design and program management. History As of ...

. Terminal 2 has CBP (Customs and Border Protection) facilities to process arriving international passengers, but the facility is currently not in operation, and will not reopen until security and usability renovations are completed. Former tenants of the terminal include

Air Canada Air Canada is the flag carrier and the largest airline of Canada, by size and passengers carried. Air Canada is headquartered in the borough of Saint-Laurent in the city of Montreal. The airline, founded in 1937, provides scheduled and cha ...

Air L.A. Air L.A., a wholly owned subsidiary of Air L.A. Inc (NASDAQ: AILA) was a U.S. commuter airline headquartered in the Westchester area of Los Angeles, California. It was founded by Wayne Schoenfeld, Ken Dickey and Bill Wolf. It discontinued oper ...

Air Mobility Command The Air Mobility Command (AMC) is a List of Major Commands of the United States Air Force, Major Command (MAJCOM) of the United States Air Force, U.S. Air Force. It is headquartered at Scott Air Force Base, Illinois, east of St. Louis, Missouri, ...

Air New Zealand Air New Zealand Limited () is the flag carrier of New Zealand. Based in Auckland, the airline operates scheduled passenger flights to 20 domestic and 28 international destinations in 18 countries, primarily within the Pacific Rim. The airline h ...

Air Resorts Air Resorts was a regional airline based in San Diego and Saint Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, Saint Thomas. History Air Resorts was founded in 1978 by Ted Vallas as a flight training and air-taxi operator based out of San Diego International Airp ...

Líneas Aéreas Allegro Líneas Aéreas Allegro was a scheduled/charter passenger airline from Mexico and the United States, Canada and points in the Caribbean. Allegro Airlines offered 212 domestic and international flights to the U.S. every week. Company history Alleg ...

, Asiana,

ATA Airlines ATA Airlines, Inc., formerly known as American Trans Air and commonly referred to as ATA, was an American low-cost and charter airline based in Indianapolis, Indiana. ATA operated scheduled passenger flights throughout the U.S. mainland and ...

Aviacsa Consorcio Aviaxsa, S.A. de C.V., doing business as Aviacsa, was a low-cost airline of Mexico, founded in 1990. The airline operated domestic services until the airline's grounding in 2011, radiating from major hubs at Monterrey, Mexico City, and ...

Avianca Avianca S.A. (acronym in Spanish for ''Aerovias de Colombia S.A.'', "Airways of Colombia", and stylized as avianca since October 2023) is the largest airline in Colombia. It has been the flag carrier of Colombia since December 5, 1919, when it ...

Braniff International Airways Braniff Airways, Inc., operated as Braniff International Airways from 1948 until 1965, and then Braniff International from 1965 until the cessation of air operations, was an American airline that operated from 1928 until 1982 and continues to ...

Caledonian Airways Caledonian Airways was a wholly private, independentindependent from government-owned corporations charter airline in the United Kingdom formed in April 1961. It began with a single 104-seat Douglas DC-7#DC-7C, Douglas DC-7C aircraft lease, ...

Canadian Pacific Air Lines Canadian Pacific Air Lines was a Canadian airline that operated from 1942 to 1987. It operated under the name CP Air from 1968 to 1986. Headquartered at Vancouver International Airport in Richmond, British Columbia, Richmond, British Columbia, ...

CAAC Airlines CAAC (), formerly the People's Aviation Company of China (), was the airline division of the Civil Aviation Administration of China and the monopoly civil airline in the People's Republic of China. It was founded on 17 July 1952, and merged int ...

Capitol Air Capitol Air was a United States supplemental air carrier and, after 1978, a scheduled passenger air carrier based which was operational from 1946 to its bankruptcy filing on November 23, 1984. From 1964, supplemental air carriers were simply cha ...

, Carnival Air Lines, Denver Ports of Call,

Hawaiian Airlines Hawaiian Airlines, Inc. ( ) is a commercial U.S. airline headquartered in Honolulu, and a subsidiary of the Alaska Air Group. It is the largest operator of commercial flights to and from the island state of Hawaiʻi, and the tenth largest ...

KLM KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, or simply KLM (an abbreviation for their official name Koninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschappij N.V. , ),

LTU International LTU International Airways,ch-aviation.com - LTU International Airways
r ...

, MarkAir,

Miami Air International Miami Air International was an American Air charter, charter airline based in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. It operated worldwide passenger charter flights for diverse groups including cruise operators, professional sports teams and ...

National Airlines (1934–1980) National Airlines was a trunk carrier, a scheduled airline in the United States that operated from 1934 until it merged with Pan American World Airways, Pan Am in 1980. For most of its existence the company was headquartered at Miami Internatio ...

Northwest Airlines Northwest Airlines (often abbreviated as NWA) was a major airline in the United States that operated from 1926 until it Delta Air Lines–Northwest Airlines merger, merged with Delta Air Lines in 2010. The merger made Delta the largest airline ...

Omni Air International Omni Air International, LLC is a United States charter airline headquartered in Hangar 19 on the grounds of Tulsa International Airport in Tulsa, Oklahoma, United States. It specializes in passenger charter flights and Aircraft lease, Aircraft, ...

Pacific Express Pacific Express was an all-jet airline in the western United States from 1982 to early based in marketed itself as Pan Am Pacific Express reflecting a marketing agreement between Pan American World Airways (Pan Am) and the carrier for connect ...

Pan Am Pan American World Airways, originally founded as Pan American Airways and more commonly known as Pan Am, was an airline that was the principal and largest international air carrier and unofficial overseas flag carrier of the United States for ...

Pan American Airways Pan American World Airways, originally founded as Pan American Airways and more commonly known as Pan Am, was an airline that was the principal and largest international air carrier and unofficial overseas flag carrier of the United States for ...

, People Express Airlines,

Ryan International Airlines Ryan International Airlines, Inc. was an American FAR 121 airline with domestic, flag, and supplemental authority. Synopsis and history Based at Chicago Rockford International Airport in Rockford, Illinois, the US Postal Service was once the ...

, Skyservice Airlines,

VASP Viação Aérea São Paulo S/A (São Paulo Airways), better known as VASP, was an airline with its head office in the VASP Building on the grounds of São Paulo–Congonhas Airport in São Paulo, Brazil. It had main bases at São Paulo's two m ...

Virgin Atlantic Virgin Atlantic, a trading name of Virgin Atlantic Airways Limited and Virgin Atlantic International Limited, is a British airline with its head office in Crawley, West Sussex, England. The airline was established in 1984 as British Atlantic A ...

World Airways World Airways, Inc. was an American airline headquartered in Peachtree City, Georgia in Greater Atlanta. During the regulated era that ended after 1978, World was a supplemental air carrier. After US airline deregulation in 1979, the company op ...

, and the majority of the International carriers before the Tom Bradley International Terminal opened. A Delta Sky Club operates on the upper level of Terminal 2; space originally built for a second lounge is currently in use as offices.

Terminal 3

Terminal 3 has 15 gates: Gates 30A, 30B, 31A, 31B, 32A, 32B, 33, 34A, 34B, 35, 36, 37A, 37B, and 38. , this terminal, along with Terminal 2, serves as a hub for

. The terminal also has check-in facilities for Delta's

SkyTeam SkyTeam is one of the world's three major airline alliances. Founded in June 2000, SkyTeam was the last of the three alliances to be formed, after Star Alliance and Oneworld. Its annual passenger count is 624 million customers (2024), the second ...

partners,

Aeroméxico Aerovías de México, S.A. de C.V. () operating as Aeroméxico (; styled as AM), is the flag carrier of Mexico based in Mexico City. It operates scheduled services to more than 90 destinations in Mexico, North, South and Central America, the Ca ...

and

. After clearing security in Terminal 3, Aeroméxico and Virgin Atlantic passengers walk to the Tom Bradley International Terminal. Terminal 3 opened in 1961 and was

' (TWA) terminal.

Eastern Air Lines Eastern Air Lines (also colloquially known as Eastern) was a major airline in the United States that operated from 1926 to 1991. Before its dissolution, it was headquartered at Miami International Airport in an unincorporated area of Miami-Dade ...

initially also shared space as a tenant. The terminal was expanded in 1970 to accommodate widebody operations and between 1980 and 1987, which included a new passenger connector building and baggage system connected to the original satellite. It formerly housed some

flights after that airline acquired Reno Air and TWA in 1999 and 2001, respectively.

Virgin America Virgin America Inc. was a low-cost airline headquartered in the San Francisco Bay Area city of Burlingame, California. It primarily focused on operating low-fare, higher-quality service between cities on the West Coast of the United States a ...

was also based here from 2008–2017 until the Alaska Airlines merger moved them to Terminal 6.

was housed in Terminal 3 after renovations were started in Terminal 1 from February 2014 until eventually, all American flights were moved to Terminal 4. Terminal 3 was closed, partially demolished and reconstructed between November 2020 and April 2022 as part of Delta Air Lines' $1.9 billion "Delta Sky Way at LAX" modernization project. The pace of construction was accelerated due to the decline in passenger air travel as the result of the global

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. Former tenants of the terminal include Air California,

Bonanza Air Lines Bonanza Air Lines was a local service carrier, a US scheduled airline focused on smaller routes in the Western United States (and eventually Mexico) from 1949 until it merged with two other local service airlines to form Air West in 1968. Its he ...

Golden West Airlines Golden West Airlines was a commuter airline that operated flights on a high volume schedule in California. It ceased operations in 1983. History The original Golden West Airlines, headquartered at Van Nuys, California, was founded in 1968 ...

, The Hawaii Express, Midway Airlines,

Midwest Airlines Midwest Airlines (formerly Midwest Express Airlines) was an airline in the United States headquartered in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, that operated from Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport between 1984 and 2010. For a short time, it also op ...

Northeastern International Airways Northeastern International Airways was a low-fare airline established in 1980 and based in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. Between 1982 and 1985, the airline operated scheduled passenger flights in the northeastern United States, Florida, California ...

, Pacific East Airlines,

, Reno Air,

Spirit Airlines Spirit Airlines, Inc. is an American ultra-low cost airline headquartered in Dania Beach, Florida, in the Miami metropolitan area. Spirit operates scheduled flights throughout the United States, the Caribbean, and Latin America. Spirit was the ...

Virgin Australia Virgin Australia, formerly known as Virgin Blue, is an Australian airline based in Brisbane, Queensland. It is one of two active airlines (the other being Virgin Atlantic) to use the Virgin Group, Virgin brand, as well as the larger by fleet ...

, and

Western Pacific Airlines Western Pacific Airlines, or WestPac, was an airline which operated in the United States from 1995 to 1998. A low-cost carrier, it was formed in 1994 under the name Commercial Air, later changed to Western Pacific, and began operating scheduled ...

. Terminal 3 has one Delta SkyClub located off the walkway between Terminal 2 and 3. The Delta One Lounge opened on October 8, 2024.

Terminal 4

Terminal 4 has 16 gates: Gates 40, 41, 42A, 42B, 43–45, 46A, 46C, 47A, 47B, 48A, 48B, 49A, and 49B. , this terminal, the Regional Terminal, and part of Terminal 5, serve as a hub for

. Terminal 4 was built in 1961, was expanded in 1983 by adding a connector from the ticketing areas to the original satellite, and was renovated in 2002 at the cost of $400 million in order to improve the appearance and functionality of the facility. The renovation was designed by Rivers & Christian. Some international departures operate at TBIT.

and American Eagle have more gates than any other airline at LAX, with 28 (

operates from 32 gates in total, including 9 gates at the American Eagle satellite terminal, 4 dedicated gates at Terminal 5, as well as 4 rotating gates at Tom Bradley International Terminal). American Airlines has two clubs in the terminal: one Admirals Club and one Flagship Lounge. Former tenants of the terminal include: Air California,

Alaska Airlines Alaska Airlines is a major American airline headquartered in SeaTac, Washington, within the Seattle metropolitan area. It is the fifth-largest airline in North America when measured by scheduled passengers carried, as of 2024. Alaska, togethe ...

KLM KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, or simply KLM (an abbreviation for their official name Koninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschappij N.V. , ),

Pride Air Pride Air was a United States airline that operated for three months during 1985. Pride Air was based out of New Orleans International Airport (MSY). History Pride Air was managed by several people who participated in an unsuccessful attempt to ...

, Reno Air,

Sun Aire Lines Sun Aire Lines was a United States commuter airline that operated from 1968 to 1985. Sun Aire served a number of cities in Southern California and Arizona. History Sun Aire Lines was founded as Borrego Springs Airlines in 1968. Its operations in ...

, and

Wings West Airlines Wings West Airlines was an American regional airline headquartered at McChesney Field (SBP), unincorporated area, unincorporated San Luis Obispo County, California. The airline initially began scheduled passenger service as an independent commute ...

Terminal 5

Terminal 5 has 17 gates: Gates 50, 51A, 51B, 53A, 53B, 54A, 54B, 55A, 55B, 51A–51D, 57–59, and a bus gate. Gates 52A–52I are located at the Regional Terminal. , the terminal serves as a hub for

along with Terminal 4 and the Regional Terminal. The terminal is also used by

JetBlue JetBlue Airways Corporation, stylized as jetBlue, is an American major airline headquartered in Long Island City, in Queens, New York City. Primarily a point-to-point carrier, JetBlue's network features six focus cities including its main hub ...

and

. Terminal 5 opened in 1962, and

occupied this terminal until Western was merged with Delta on April 1, 1987. Terminal 5 was redesigned by

Gensler Gensler is a global design and architecture firm headquartered in San Francisco, California. It is the largest architecture firm in the world by revenue and number of architects. In 2022, Gensler generated $1.785 billion in revenue, the most o ...

, expanded to include a connector building between the original satellite and the ticketing facilities and remodeled from 1986 through early 1988. It was unofficially named 'Delta's Oasis at LAX' with the slogan 'Take Five at LAX' when construction was completed in the summer of 1988.

moved all operations to Terminal 5 and Terminal 6 alongside Delta on June 30, 2009, as part of its merger with the airline. Delta, which had been based for decades in Terminal 5 (with additional gates in Terminal 6), moved to Terminals 2 and 3 between May 12–17, 2017, in order to relieve overcrowding and provide better and easier transfers with its airline partners at Tom Bradley International Terminal. American Eagle flights operate from a satellite terminal that is located just east of Terminal 8. This terminal is accessed from a bus gate in Terminal 5, and has nine gates that supplement American's mainline operation at Terminals 4 and 5. In July 2020,

announced that they would close their

Long Beach Long Beach is a coastal city in southeastern Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is the list of United States cities by population, 44th-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 451,307 as of 2022. A charter ci ...

operating base due to their routes underperforming there and because the officials at Long Beach refused to build a customs facility at LGB. As a result, JetBlue announced they would create a new operating base at LAX, as they planned a big expansion at the airport. JetBlue opened its LAX operating base on October 7, 2020, at Terminal 5. Because they moved their base to Los Angeles, they were able to expand domestically and internationally on the West Coast. Former tenants of the terminal include Aeromexico,

Air Jamaica Air Jamaica was the flag carrier of Jamaica. It was owned and operated by Caribbean Airlines from May 2011 until the cessation of operations in 2015. Caribbean Airlines Limited, headquartered in Piarco, Trinidad and Tobago, had administrative of ...

Air Tahiti Nui Air Tahiti Nui is the flag carrier of the Overseas France, French overseas collectivity of French Polynesia, with its head office and daily operations office in Faʻaʻā, Tahiti. It operates long-haul flights from its home base at Faa'a Intern ...

, Allegiant,

British Caledonian British Caledonian (BCal) was a private independent airline in the United Kingdom that operated from 1970 until it merged with British Airways in 1988. It operated primarily from London Gatwick Airport in south-east England. BCal was formed ...

China Southern Airlines China Southern Airlines (branded as China Southern) is a major airline in China, headquartered in Guangzhou, Guangdong. It is one of the three major airlines in the country, along with Air China and China Eastern Airlines. Established on 1 ...

Ecuatoriana de Aviación Empresa Ecuatoriana de Aviación, more commonly known as simply Ecuatoriana, was the national airline of Ecuador. The carrier had an operational hiatus between September 1993 and August 1995, resuming operations on 23 June 1996, after VASP beca ...

Frontier A frontier is a political and geographical term referring to areas near or beyond a boundary. Australia The term "frontier" was frequently used in colonial Australia in the meaning of country that borders the unknown or uncivilised, th ...

, Mexicana,

SkyWest Airlines SkyWest Airlines is an American regional airline headquartered in St. George, Utah. SkyWest operates and maintains aircraft used on flights that are scheduled, marketed and sold by four partner Mainline (air travel), mainline airlines. The comp ...

Song A song is a musical composition performed by the human voice. The voice often carries the melody (a series of distinct and fixed pitches) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs have a structure, such as the common ABA form, and are usu ...

Sun Country Sun Country Airlines is an ultra-low cost airline in the United States. Based at Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport with headquarters on airport property, Sun Country operates to about 140 destinations in the United States, Canada, ...

Swissair Swissair (German language, German: Schweizerische Luftverkehr-AG; French language, French: S.A. Suisse pour la Navigation Aérienne, stylised as swissair) was the Flag carrier, national airline of Switzerland between its founding in 1931 and ban ...

TriStar Airlines TriStar Airlines was an airline based at McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas, Nevada. It launched operations in July 1995 with scheduled flights to Los Angeles and San Francisco and added more destinations later in the year. TriStar utiliz ...

, and

. American Airlines has one Admirals Club in the terminal.

Terminal 6

Terminal 6 has 16 gates: Gates 60–63, 64A–64C, 65A–65C, 66, 67, 68A, 68B, 69A, and 69B. , the terminal serves as a hub for

and

and is also used by

Porter Airlines Porter Airlines (stylized in Letter case#All lowercase, all lowercase as porter) is a Canadian airline headquartered at Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport in Toronto. It is the third largest airline in Canada, behind Air Canada and WestJet. Owned ...

, and

Southern Airways Express Southern Airways Express is a commuter airline operating across the United States with headquarters in Palm Beach, Florida. Southern Airways Express, commonly referred to as 'Southern', acts as a local service airline for dozens of cities across ...

. The terminal opened as "Satellite 6" and "Ticketing Building 6" in November 1963 and marked the conclusion of the initial phase of passenger terminal construction at the airport. When it originally opened, it was a common use, multi-carrier terminal that supported the operations of

Continental Airlines Continental Airlines (simply known as Continental) was a major airline in the United States that operated from 1934 until it merged with United Airlines in 2012. It had ownership interests and brand partnerships with several carriers. Continen ...

, Delta Air Lines,

Pacific Air Lines Pacific Air Lines was a local service carrier on the West Coast of the United States that began scheduled passenger flights in the mid-1940s under the name Southwest Airways. The company linked small cities in California with larger cities such ...

and

. The original building was capable of handling six planes at one time. In the early 1970s, Continental and Delta built the "Satellite Extension" to expand Satellite 6, adding additional gates to the south end of the building and reconfiguring the existing structure to accommodate the new "jumbo jet," the Boeing 747. When the project was complete, Satellite 6 was able to simultaneously handle eight planes: two 747s, four wide-bodied tri-jets, and two smaller planes such as the Boeing 707 or 727. Four of these gates have two jetways, which can accommodate large aircraft. In 1982, Continental sponsored the Connector project, which joined the Ticketing Building to the Satellite and the Satellite Extension, adding additional gates and facilities. Prior to October 2014,

used the connector gates, supplementing its base at Terminal 7. Delta also leased some space from the Airport in Terminal 6, in addition to its base at Terminal 5. Most rotunda gates can feed arriving passengers into a sterile corridor that shunts them to Terminal 7's customs and immigration facility. On November 6, 2014,

moved

flights from Terminal 3 into Terminal 6, taking 4 gates in the Connector Building. On January 31, 2017, American Airlines relocated these 4 gates to Terminal 5 as part of the larger LAX Terminal relocation program. In April 2011, Alaska Airlines agreed to a deal with Los Angeles World Airports to renovate Terminal 6 and build an Alaska Lounge for first-class passengers. The airline moved its flights to Terminal 6 on March 20, 2012, and

was relocated to Terminal 3. In July 2021, construction began on another round of refurbishments to the terminal. On the customer-facing front, the gate areas, departure lounges, Border Protection, and TSA Security areas are being refurbished/upgraded, and new jet bridges will be installed. Additionally, a drive-through bus gate will be added to ease transfers to other terminals. On the operations front, the apron paving, fuel lines and other airfield infrastructure will be upgraded. As construction progresses, different areas of the terminal will be closed to passengers, starting with the three gates at the southeast end. Construction is scheduled to conclude in 2023. There are two lounges in the terminal: an Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge and an Alaska Airlines Lounge. Former tenants of the terminal include American Airlines, Continental Airlines,

Copa Airlines Compañía Panameña de Aviación, S.A., branded as Copa Airlines, is the flag carrier of Panama. It is headquartered in Panama City, Panama, with its main hub at Tocumen International Airport. Copa is a subsidiary of Copa Holdings and a member o ...

, Delta Air Lines,

Great Lakes Airlines Great Lakes Airlines was an American regional airline operating domestic scheduled and charter services. Corporate headquarters were in Cheyenne, Wyoming, with a hub at Denver International Airport. As of November 2013, Great Lakes Airlines r ...

Hughes Airwest Hughes Air Corporation, doing business as Hughes Airwest, was a local service carrier from 1970 to 1980 in the Western United States. It was backed by Howard Hughes' Summa Corporation. Its original name in 1968 was Air West and the air carr ...

Lufthansa Deutsche Lufthansa AG (), trading as the Lufthansa Group, is a German aviation group. Its major and founding subsidiary airline Lufthansa German Airlines, branded as Lufthansa, is the flag carrier of Germany. It ranks List of largest airlin ...

, National Airlines,

Republic Airlines Republic Airlines was an airline in the United States that operated from 1979 until it merged with Northwest Airlines in 1986. Republic was formed by the merger of North Central Airlines and Southern Airways on July 1, 1979. Their headquar ...

, Swift Aire Lines, Ted,

Wardair Wardair Canada was a privately run Canadian airline, founded by Max Ward in 1952 under the name Wardair Ltd, before formally changing its name to "Wardair Canada" in 1976. The airline was acquired by and merged into Canadian Airlines in 1989. ...

VivaAerobus Aeroenlaces Nacionales, S.A. de C.V., trading as Viva (formerly Viva Aerobus), is a major Mexican low-cost airline headquartered at Monterrey International Airport, in Apodaca, Nuevo Leon, Mexico. Measured by passenger numbers, it is Mexico's ...

, and

Terminal 7

Terminal 7 has 13 gates: Gates 70A, 70B, 71A, 71B, 72A, 72B, 73, 74, 75A, 75B, 76A, 76B, and 77. , this terminal, along with Terminal 8, serves as a hub for

. The terminal opened in 1962 and was expanded to accommodate widebody aircraft in 1970. The terminal was expanded in 1982 with the addition of a connector building, which today consists of gates 70A-70B and 71A-71B. Four of these gates have two jetways, which accommodate large aircraft. The interior of the terminal was renovated between January 1998 and June 1999 at a cost of $250 million, was designed by

HNTB HNTB Corporation is an American infrastructure design firm. Founded in 1914 in Kansas City, Missouri, HNTB began with the partnership made by Ernest Emmanuel Howard with the firm Waddell & Harrington, founded in 1907. One of the most trusted U. ...

, and was constructed by

Hensel Phelps Construction Hensel Phelps Construction Co., located in Greeley, Colorado, is one of the largest general contractors and construction managers in the United States, ranked consistently among ENR's (Engineering News-Record) top 20 Contractors by revenue. The c ...

. Added were new gate podiums, increased size of gate areas, relocated concessions, expanded restrooms, new flooring, and new signage. Also, the roof of the terminal was raised, and new, brighter light fixtures were added in order to provide more overall lighting. In 2017, Terminal 7 underwent another renovation, with significant changes to concessions. The terminal also contains a United Club and a United Polaris Lounge. The terminal has a customs area on the arrivals floor, used by international United flights and

flights in adjacent Terminal 6. United Airlines has two lounges in the terminal: one United Club and one United Polaris Lounge. Former tenants of the terminal include:

Aspen Airways Aspen Airways was an airline carrier and regional affiliate of United Express and based in Hangar 5 in Stapleton International Airport in Denver, Colorado. Aspen ceased operations on April 1, 1990, when separate portions of the airline were acq ...

Imperial Airlines Imperial Airlines was a United States commuter airline that operated from 1964 to 1986. Imperial served a number of cities in Southern California and for a brief period several cities in Arizona. History Imperial was founded as Visco Flying Se ...

Independence Air Independence Air was a low-cost airline, owned by FLYi, Inc., headquartered in the Loudoun Gateway Corporate Center in Dulles, Virginia, United States (near Washington, D.C.) that operated from 1989 until 2006. Its route network focused on the ...

Leisure Air Leisure Air was an American airline based in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Beginning as a charter airline, the company expanded to offer scheduled service to major cities as a discount carrier. It operated from 1992 until 1995, when it filed f ...

Los Angeles Airways Los Angeles Airways (LAA) was a helicopter airline founded in October 1947 by Clarence Belinn and based in Westchester, California, which offered service to area airports throughout Southern California. History Los Angeles Airways commenced ai ...

Texas International Airlines Texas International Airlines Inc. was a United States local service carrier, known from 1940 until 1947 as Aviation Enterprises, until 1969 as Trans-Texas Airways (TTA), and as Texas International Airlines until 1982, when it merged with Contine ...

Shuttle by United Shuttle by United was an "airline within an airline" operated as a subsidiary of United Airlines from 1994 to 2001 along the West Coast of the United States. It operated from San Francisco International Airport and Los Angeles International Ai ...

, Ted, and

Terminal 8

Terminal 8 has eight gates: Gates 80–85, 86A, and 86B. , the terminal, along with Terminal 7 serves as a hub for United Airlines. Terminal 8 was originally called Concourse 8 or Satellite 8 because it does not have its own passenger processing facilities (ticketing, security checkpoint or baggage claim) and relies on the facilities located in Terminal 7. The building was redeveloped in 1982, ahead of the

1984 Olympics The 1984 Olympics may refer to: *The 1984 Winter Olympics, which were held in Sarajevo, Yugoslavia *The 1984 Summer Olympics The 1984 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXIII Olympiad and commonly known as Los Angeles 1984) were an i ...

Tom Bradley International Terminal (Terminal B)

The Tom Bradley International Terminal (TBIT), also referred as "'Terminal B'", has 40 gates: Gates 130–225. The terminal hosts more than 45 airlines, primarily foreign carriers. The massive terminal is separated into five different areas: * North Concourse (9 gates: 130–135, 137, 139, 141) * South Concourse (10 gates: 148, 150–157, 159) * West Gates (15 gates: 201A, 201B, 202–208, 209A, 209B, 210A, 210B, 221, 225) * Bus Gates (6 gates: 136, 138, 140, 142, 144, 146) * Bus Port The Bus Gates, located off the North Concourse, are used to shuttle passengers between Terminal B and nine satellite gates located on the west side of the LAX airfield. The Bus Port, located at the West Gates, is used to shuttle passengers from the remote check-in areas at other terminals to Terminal B. The main Tom Bradley International Terminal has nine lounges. Three are operated by the major airline alliances (

Oneworld Oneworld (Computer reservations system, CRS: *O, stylised as oneworld) is a global airline alliance consisting of 14 member airlines. It was founded on 1 February 1999. The alliance's stated objective is to be the first choice airline alliance f ...

and

Star Alliance Star Alliance is an airline alliance headquartered in Frankfurt, Germany. Founded on 14 May 1997, it was the world's first global airline alliance. Star Alliance has 25 member airlines that operate a combined fleet of over 5,000 aircraft, servi ...

), while the rest are operated by American Express, Emirates, Etihad Airways, Korean Air and Qantas, alongside the independent "Los Angeles International Lounge." The West Gates building has space for lounges not yet in use.

History

Known as the "West Side Terminal" during construction until its renaming after completion, Tom Bradley International Terminal opened on June 18, 1984, just weeks before the start of the

. It is named in honor of Tom Bradley, the first black and longest-serving (20 years) mayor of Los Angeles, and a champion of LAX. The building was added to the west end of the passenger terminal area between Terminals 3 and 4. Prior to this, Terminal 2 was the primary international terminal. By the early 2000s, airport managers grew concerned about LAX's future as an international gateway. The international terminal was aging, and many carriers had reduced flights to LAX in favor of more modern airports, such as

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

and Seattle/Tacoma. By 2007, LAX lost 12% of the seats on its weekly international departures. At the same time, the airport was concerned that it would not be able to accommodate future larger commercial aircraft, the

Airbus A380 The Airbus A380 is a very large wide-body airliner, developed and produced by Airbus until 2021. It is the world's largest passenger airliner and the only full-length double-deck jet airliner. Airbus studies started in 1988, and the pr ...

and

Boeing 747-8 The Boeing 747-8 is the final series of the large, long-range wide-body airliners in the Boeing 747 family from Boeing Commercial Airplanes. It is the largest model variant of the 747 and Boeing's largest aircraft overall. Following the intro ...

. Airport management gave the old terminal a minor facelift in September 2006, adding new paging, air conditioning and electrical systems, along with new elevators, escalators and baggage carousels. Meanwhile, the southern-most runway, 7R/25L was shifted to the south to prepare it for the additional width of the Airbus A380 and add a parallel taxiway between the adjacent runway. Runway 7R/25L reopened on March 25, 2007, and the taxiway was completed in 2008. On March 19, 2007, the Airbus A380 made its US debut with simultaneous landings at LAX and John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City. Commercial service with the Airbus A380 started on October 20, 2008, with Qantas service between LAX and Sydney. Because the original Bradley Terminal was too small to accommodate the jet, the plane was serviced using the satellite gates located on the west side of the LAX airfield. The Bradley Terminal was heavily modernized and expanded in phases between 2008 and 2021. LAX Midfield Satellite Concourse interior

LAX Midfield Satellite Concourse interior

The design by Fentress Architects in association with

was unveiled on November 17, 2008. The first phase of construction began on February 22, 2010, and included the demolition and replacement of the north concourse gates and the construction of the "Great Hall" with dining, retail shopping and large airline alliance lounges. Work on the first phase was completed in 2013 and crews began the second phase, which included the replacement of the south concourse and the expansion of the security, customs and immigration processing areas. The second phase was completed in 2015. Of the 19 gates in the modernized terminal, 9 are equipped with three jetbridges to accommodate the largest commercial aircraft, the

and

. The third phase would be a new mid-field concourse and construction began on February 27, 2017. The concourse, later renamed the West Gates at Tom Bradley International, opened on May 1, 2021. Two of the gates in the West Gates concourse can accommodate the A380.

Regional Terminal

The Regional Terminal has nine gates: Gates 52A–52I, although Gate 52B is a bus gate. The terminal is used exclusively for American Eagle flights, earning it the nickname "the Eagle's nest." It serves as the remainder of American Airlines, American's hub operations in Los Angeles, supplementing Terminal 4 and 5. The terminal is located on the southeast side of the LAX airfield, east of Sepulveda Boulevard from Terminal 8. As it is physically separated from the other terminal buildings, passengers access the Regional Terminal using a system of shuttle buses. Buses operate between the Regional Terminal and Terminal 4 or Terminal 5, which house American Airlines' other gates. The Regional Terminal’s gate numbers (52A–52I) are meant to encourage passengers originating their travel from LAX to enter the airport through the less congested Terminal 5 and board the bus at a stop located at Gate 52. But as the majority of American Airlines' mainline fights at LAX operate out of Terminal 4, a separate bus service is additionally operated to that terminal to minimize connection times. The terminal has a covered walkway and ramp at each gate for access and egress to the aircraft instead of jet bridges. The terminal features restrooms, seating areas with power outlets, and a concession stand, concession area. American Airlines has one Admirals Club in the terminal. The terminal originally handled United Express flights (gates 71C-71K) until it was vacated in 2005. American Eagle flights were relocated to the terminal in January 2010 from a remote terminal which was west of Terminal 4 that would later be demolished.

LAX Automated People Mover

As part of the Landside Access Modernization Program (LAMP), Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA) is building the LAX Automated People Mover, which consists of approximately of elevated guideway and six stations. Headways are expected to be as low as two minutes between trains. Construction started in 2017, and is anticipated to be completed by December 2025. The three westernmost stations will be located in the Central Terminal Area (CTA) located near the parking structures and connect to their respective terminals via pedestrian bridges: * West CTA station, serving terminals 3, 4, and B (the Tom Bradley International Terminal) * Center CTA station, serving terminals 1, 2, 5, and 6 * East CTA station, serving terminals 7 and 8 The LAX Automated People Mover will connect the CTA to transportation options: * LAX West Intermodal Transportation Facility, an economy parking structure with access to the LAX City Bus Center and nearby hotels *

(also known as the ITF East), connecting to the

system, scheduled to open on June 6, 2025 *

, which will house 21,000 rental vehicles for all of the major rental car companies that operate at LAX

Proposed terminal renaming

In 2024, LAWA launched a plan to improve wayfinding at the airport in anticipation of the opening of the People Mover and the flood of visitors expected for the 2028 Summer Olympics. This plan includes a proposed renaming of existing and planned terminals, and renumbering of gates: *The new concourse planned for construction to the east of Terminal 1, generally referred to as Concourse 0 during planning, will be part of Terminal 1. The Concourse 0 gates would become the A Gates, with their gate numbers prefixed with the letter A, while the existing Terminal 1 gates would become the B Gates. *The existing Terminals 2 and 3, already combined in many ways by the major renovations completed in 2022, would be rebranded as Terminal 2. The old Terminal 2 gates would become the C Gates, while the old Terminal 3 gates would become the D Gates. *Tom Bradley International Terminal B would be rebranded as Tom Bradley Terminal 3. The original Bradley terminal gates would become the E Gates, while the existing and planned midfield West Gates would become the F Gates. *Terminals 4, 5, and 6 would retain their current numbers, though their gates would become the G, H, and J Gates, respectively. *The existing Terminals 7 and 8 would be rebranded as a single Terminal 7. Existing Terminal 7 gates would become the K Gates, while existing Terminal 8 gates would become the L Gates. *The new terminal planned for construction to the east of the current Terminal 8, generally referred to as Terminal 9 during planning, would take on the Terminal 8 name, with its gates being called the M Gates. These proposed changes were part of a proposal to the LAWA board. A spokesperson for the agency said that a final decision on numbering had not yet been made as of 2024.

References

{{Los Angeles International Airport Los Angeles International Airport Airport terminals, Los Angeles International Airport, Terminals of