jill_h

From DFW to Providence, most connecting flights on American go through Chicago with anywhere from a 30 minute to a two hour layover. What is the minimum layover time recommended for Chicago? I have never been to Chicago so don't know anything about the airport or the possibility of flight delays. The other option is to go through St. Louis with a 35 minute layover. Any input regarding St. Louis? Because of commitments at the Providence end, we cannot afford to miss the connecting flight - must arrive in Providence by early-mid afternoon!

kkj

A 30-minute layover at any airport is insane. It can take you 10 to 15 minutes to just get off a plane. O'Hare airport is huge and you could have a hike to your next gate.

I hate rushing and don't like any connection at less than one hour.

I don't know what the possiblity of a weather delay is when you are going. But anything is possible.

A 35-minute layover in St. Louis doesn't sound that great. What happens if your flight is late pulling into the gate?

At least Chicago would have more flight options available.

J_Correa

Chicago is notorious for flight delays due to weather, but the up side is that since so many flights go in and out of there, even if your flight is cancelled, you can usually get another one out the same day.

If you absolutely MUST arrive at your destination by a certain time, I would not take a chance. I would fly in as early as possible, even the day before to avoid the possibility of a late or cancelled flight.

And as for the 30 minute layover, I wouldn't do it. Chicago is huge and just because you both flights are with the same airline is no guarantee that the gates will even be in the same terminal.

Last month flying from Newark to San Jose though Chicago, my gates were very far apart. It took me the better part of a half an hour just to walk from one gate to another.

AAFrequentFlyer

I would say that 30 minutes should be ok for ORD, but 45 minutes would be better. The reason being is that you could end up getting into gate in the K concourse, something like K18 which is at the end of the K concourse and connecting at gates in concourse H, also high number like H18. If that were to happen, it's a nice walk. It would probably take about 15 minutes at a good pace. If you're in coach and in the back of the plane, it could take about 10 minutes to disembark. So you could see how easily a 30 minute connection could go wrong very quickly.

Flight delays are unpredictable, so there is really no way you could plan for that possibility. If something were to go wrong with your first flight it could very well be into hours of delay, so having a 2 hour connection time wouldn't help you either. Fortunately there are multiple flights throughout the day to and from your origin and destination points. If you really, really need to be at your destination at certain time, I would suggest taking the first morning flight available. Two reasons. First, the early morning flights usually fly on time, because the equipment is already at the gate, so it's not coming in from somewhere else. Lessen the chance for delays. Second, if you are delayed for some reason, and you miss your original connecting flight, there is always hope to make the next connecting flight out of Chicago, which would still get you to the destination on time.

And finally, if you have to guarantee and your life/job depends on being there at certain time, fly the day before. It's the only way you would be guaranteed to be there when needed.

Flying is not an exact science and many things could mess up the schedule very easy. You should always be prepared for that. In about 95% of the times it works wonderfully, but there is always the other 5%.

patg

Can I assume you will be on American Airlines for both flights? The concourse gates at O'Hare are grouped by airline. If you have at least 45 minutes to change planes, and are staying in the same concourse, you should be fine. The time of day on arrival at O'Hare will also make a difference. Since O'Hare often has "stack-ups" waiting to land in the afternoon, the airlines often add 15 minutes or so to their expected arrival time. But, as AAFF has said, there are no guarantees; Chicago's weather is terribly unpredictable.