LONG airport waits or layovers might not be so bad at Orlando International Airport after their brand NEW terminal opens!

For quite some time, the NEW South Terminal C has been in development at Orlando International Airport. This new space will feature a whole bunch of things including a new Disney store, a new restaurant from the folks over at Wine Bar George, and so much more. While we’ve seen concept art for this new space, today we finally got to get a first look INSIDE and see what construction looks like right now!

Recently, Greg Angel, an evening anchor on My News 13, posted a number of videos and photos on Twitter of the NEW terminal — South Terminal C — coming to Orlando International Airport.

As we noted above, we’ve shared a number of updates about this new terminal in the past, including a look at how it will utilize facial recognition and 3-story screens, an estimate of when it will open, and a peek at some of the new restaurants and stores (including some Disney spots or Disney-related spots) that will be available there.

Now, thanks to Greg Angel, we’ve got another look at this new space. According to Angel, certain members of the media were provided with an inside look at the new Terminal C. Construction continues to be ongoing in this space. The new building itself is 1.8M square feet and the project cost an estimated $3 billion.

The new terminal is expected to open this summer with 15 gates and JetBlue is set to be the primary airline for this terminal.

SNEAK PEEK: Media is getting an inside look at the new Terminal C at @MCO.

Construction is still underway on the 1.8M square foot building.

nearly $3B project to open this Summer.

JetBlue will be primary airline here.

Opening with 15 gates. Can accommodate even A380s. pic.twitter.com/fiURSBbJzL

— Greg Angel (@NewsGuyGreg) April 11, 2022

 

Angel shared that the MCO CEO, Kevin Thibault, said that this is just the “first phase.” The new Terminal C will be able to accommodate 10 million to 12 million passengers each year. But, there is space to add more gates and expand the terminal in the future. Ultimately, if it is expanded, Terminal C could end up accommodating 60 million passengers.

Angel also shared that the Terminal C bathrooms are larger. Gotta ask the important questions here!

The terminal is also pet friendly…

…and features a service animal relief area.

In terms of design, Terminal C is getting its own carpet design as well. Get ready to snap those airport carpet photos!

Angel also shared a view of what the ground crews at Terminal C will see once the space is open. Again, JetBlue is set to be the main airline based out of this new space, but Angel says that “work is underway to lure some international operations here too.”

Here’s the view ground crews will have once Terminal C gates open this Summer.

JetBlue will be primary airline based here, but work is underway to lure some international operations here too. pic.twitter.com/EDlLFS3vJp

— Greg Angel (@NewsGuyGreg) April 11, 2022

 

The fact sheet shared by Angel on Twitter shows that the terminal will have an “experiential media environment” with a few different areas. The fact sheet also says that construction is more than 90% complete on the project and the terminal is scheduled to become operational by the summer.

In terms of connecting this space to the rest of the airport, the fact sheet notes that the South Terminal C will offer “direct ground access as well as connection to the North Terminal Complex via Automated People Mover through the existing Intermodal Terminal Facility.”

The fact sheet also says that this was designed as the first LEED®v4 airport campus in the world and it “maximizes sustainability along with customer convenience.”

Even the TSA security checkpoint is getting an upgrade! According to Click Orlando 6, baggage bins will move on their own with a continuous conveyor belt. Finally — no more messy piles of bins! All 15 new gates will have a streamlined check-in process, too. Guests will be able to use new boarding pass readers and facial recognition software to speed up the boarding process, per Click Orlando 6.

Click Orlando 6 shared an inside preview of the luggage process, too! All luggage will be transported in large yellow bins (equipped with trackers for guests to follow their items) and sent to baggage claim at the top of the terminal. Based on what we’ve seen so far, it seems like this new section of the airport was thoughtfully designed from start to finish!

MCO has not made any official announcements about an opening date quite yet, but a recent Tweet from the Orlando International Airport revealed that the project is “more than 90% complete.”

Yesterday a small group of our local media outlets got a sneak peek at our beautiful South Terminal C. Our CEO Kevin Thibault, announced the project is more than 90% complete. pic.twitter.com/VV8qMVUA99

— Orlando International Airport (@MCO) April 12, 2022

We look forward to seeing this terminal once it is completely finished. Again, it is set to be operational this summer. We’ll be sure to share more updates with you as they become available.

Click here to see what to expect on the menu at Chef Art Smith’s new Orlando Airport Restaurant!

Are you interested in seeing this new terminal? Tell us your thoughts in the comments!