PREVIEW: From Third World to First World: The Rest of Delta’s Terminal 3

You may remember we visited the new Terminal 3 Delta Air Lines Sky Club in April and saw three recently-open T3 gates in action in May.

Most of the remaining Terminal 3 gates open to the public on Wednesday, October 5, and Thursday, October 6. But Delta Air Lines held a special media preview Thursday of the next phase of its Delta Sky Way project at LAX. And Eye of the Flyer was there to check it out!

(All images copyright of Eye of the Flyer.)

LAX T3 Security: Worse Than Before

Press members must go through TSA before entering secure areas whenever we attend media events.

But we’re always directed to the general security lanes. CLEAR and TSA Pre√ don’t apply to us.

And the general security lanes at LAX T3 are a nightmare.

The line organization was a disaster. There were fewer than ten people in front of me. It took between 10-15 minutes to clear security. (And the officer in charge of the baggage screening line was less than pleasant.)

At the very least, get TSA Pre√ if you plan to travel somewhat regularly through LAX — or anywhere, really. (Several credit cards offer statement credits for TSA Pre√, Nexus, and Global Entry application fees.)

Once Inside T3

Our first impressions of the gates opening next week?

It’s very different from the old Terminal 3. (Here’s a reminder, if you dare.) I found the area somewhat similar to the new LaGuardia gates. Lots of natural light and a decent amount of space. I told some Delta’s corporate staff this could be the first holiday season I actually look forward to flying out of LAX.

Between each seat are two electrical outlets, a USB-A port, and a USB-C port.

Interesting that there’s an HDMI port, yeah?

Oh — look happened to be in the neighborhood 😉 . As part of the preview, Delta had a couple of A321neo First Class seats for people to try.

(This was Rene’s first time sitting in the A321neo’s First Class seats. I experienced them “in the wild” during  Delta’s first A321neo revenue flight earlier in the year.)

Behind these barriers are escalators that will take passengers to baggage claim. (I sense disappointment for those of us who take advantage of Delta’s Bags on Time guarantee!) They’re not quite ready for prime time but will be sometime soon.

Los Angeles hosts the 2028 Summer Olympics. Delta is the event’s official carrier and also unveiled its branding for the 2028 games.

There are waterbottle refill stations, too.

The bathrooms are pretty nice.

Also on display were Delta’s Someone Somwhere amenity kits.

In October, some Delta One passengers will receive pink amenity kits in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

Interesting T3 Tidbits

A Delta corporate representative told us that flights to hubs will likely be the first flights to operate from the new T3 gates.

Also, some of the gates aren’t necessarily equipped for 757s because of their wingspans. Plus, some of the A350s will need to occupy the space of two gates.

When I asked about Delta using two jet bridges to board a single plane at both the front and back of the aircraft, the rep indicated that this wasn’t necessarily high on the to-do list.

Terminal 2 Plans

The T2 gates will get some love soon.

A Delta corporate rep told us that soon after the new T3 gates open, some of the T2 gates will temporarily close. They’ll get a little refurbishment while T3 assumes some of the workloads.

I specifically requested that PA announcements be louder and clearer in the gate areas.

The TBIT Connector

Behind this wall is where passengers will be able to walk from T2 and T3 to LAX’s Tom Bradley International Terminal.

An LAX source told us the airside walkway should be completed sometime before the end of 2023.

Apparently, there are various infrastructure surprises that present themselves every 20 feet or so. And all the LAX terminals were supposed to be connected more than half a century ago. (Classic California over-regulation and tax fund misappropriation. But that’s another story, another time.)

Here’s a view of it from T3.It won’t be some boring walkway, though. Another LAX source told us several concessionaires will be located in the passage.

Final Approach

Delta Air Lines opens nearly all of its T3 gates at LAX next week. The new gate areas feature more natural light and much better gate houses than the previous iterations. Please comment below when you travel through the new T3 gates!