Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) is one of the busiest airports in the United States, having served nearly 30 million passengers in 2017. The airport is a major hub of domestic and international operations for American Airlines. The airport has seven terminals: A East, A West, B, C, D, E and F. Passengers can reach all terminals airside, and will not need to pass through security when changing between terminals.
Airlines & Terminals
I have compiled a list of airlines and their associated terminals for you here. Please check with your airline for the most up-to-date information on terminal and gate assignments.
- Terminal A East — Aer Lingus, American Airlines, Frontier Airlines
- Terminal A West — American Airlines, British Airways, Icelandair, Lufthansa, Qatar Airways
- Terminal B — American Airlines
- Terminal C — American Airlines
- Terminal D — Air Canada, Alaska Airlines, Delta Air Lines (check-in at Terminal E), Delta Connection (check-in at Terminal E), United Airlines
- Terminal E — Frontier Airlines, JetBlue Airways, Southwest Airlines, Spirit Airlines
- Terminal F — American Eagle
For domestic flights, it is recommended that passengers with disabilities check-in two hours prior to departure. For international flights, please arrive three hours prior to departure.
Special Assistance Services & Accessibility at Philadelphia Airport
Disability assistance services should be requested prior to travel and through your airline. Consult this list of wheelchair assistance contacts at major airlines. If you are traveling with a personal wheelchair, it is possible to gate-check the device, whether it is manual or powered.
Each of the airport’s 47 bathrooms are wheelchair accessible and outfitted with ADA compliant stalls for wheelchair users and people with disabilities. Private companion care restrooms are available and located alongside the majority of the 47 airport bathrooms. These private bathrooms are designed for use by wheelchair users and their attendants.
All seven terminals feature service animal relief areas in the following locations:
- Terminal A East — Near Gate A-1
- Terminal A West — Near Gate A-16
- Terminal B — Near the B side of the A-B walkway
- Terminal C — Near the C side of the C-D walkway
- Terminal D — Near the D side of the C-D walkway
- Terminal E — Near Gate E-1
- Terminal F — Just beyond the security checkpoint (airside)
More information on accessibility and disability assistance is available on the Philadelphia Airport website.
Accessible transportation to/from Philadelphia Airport
Arrived at the airport and ready to start your vacation? There are many choices of accessible transportation at the Philadelphia Airport, from wheelchair taxis (including UberWAV and Lyft Access) to public transportation. If you do opt for a wheelchair taxi, allow up to 30 minutes for your ride to arrive. Taxi stands are available outside of each terminal.
If you prefer to ride public transit, an accessible light rail train runs from the airport to Downtown Philadelphia every 30 minutes between 5 a.m. and 12:30 a.m. Tickets cost $6.75 each way and you’ll be downtown in less than 25 minutes.
SuperShuttle also offers wheelchair accessible transportation from the Philadelphia Airport to hotels in the city. I’ve detailed my experience riding SuperShuttle as a wheelchair user in this blog post.
