Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport – BHM

I flew into Birmingham from visiting my brother in Chicago. I noticed how small the airport is. The baggage claim area was quite small and if you are not looking in the right direction, you will more than likely miss where your bags return as they do not have a number system or letter system to help identify where your bags are.

«I don’t think it was worth it»
the last thing Stanley said to me
Twenty four years then a bullet in the chest and
I still see him in my sleep
Fifteen dollars in the purse He could not save
His family didn’t buy a stone to mark his grave
«Give me a call, if you need a place to stay in Birmingham»
In Birmingham… in Birmingham
Most of my family came from Birmingham
I can feel their presence on the street
Vulcan Park has seen it’s share of troubled times
But the city won’t admit defeat
Magic City’s magic getting stronger
Dynamite Hill ain’t on fire any longer
No man should ever have to feel He don’t belong in Birmingham
Birmingham…
Drive-​by Truckers– Birmingham:
Oh, Birmingham. Dayamm. Yep. I pop in and out of here from time to time. I have mixed feelings about this airport for reasons that are personal as well as professional. It is true that the airport has been renovated and the upgrades seem to make things flow better even though this airport certainly has never been the most pretty it sure is efficient in my experience.
If I have my druthers I can actually save some time as opposed to going flying into Atlanta as Birmingham has a strong Southwestern Airlines presence. Also no Atlanta traffic issues here whether you park or rent a vehicle. It is about a 2 and a half hour drive to Atlanta from here on Interstate 20 which is about what you can spend sitting in Atlanta traffic on any given day at rush hours. So if you fly in here at 4pm you can take your time and grab a bite to eat somewhere until the Atlanta traffic dies down past 7pm.
Again the renovations do make it better here but sometimes the price paid for such things is sadly much higher than expected. You just don’t get «do-​overs» when this kind of thing happens and a 10-​year-​old child dies in the process. This kind of thing and this story really gets to me quite a bit. So yeah… just like a lot of things here there is a lingering sadness:
You just can’t say that it ain’t personal because it is personal. Settlements never seem to settle anything really. Nothing settled in a score that never really gets settled. It does not bring that which is lost back again and there are no words to measure the gravity. Ever.
Life, love and loss. These are the ghosts that linger here and elsewhere and to which our fool flesh seems heir. And these are the thoughts of madmen in airports as they stare with furrowed brows… briefly. before going on their way.

I have no complaints with this airport at all. It’s been more recently upgraded and it looks great! Free WiFi… I’ll take it! Clean facilities, helpful staff… I’ll take it. Great selection of food and drinks, local and otherwise… I’ll take it. It’s not the largest, most tech inclusive, fanciest… But I’ve definitely been in much worse of an airport in my day. Since it’s not extremely large at all, it’s super easy to navigate and doesn’t take long to walk from one end to the other. Great job Birmingham!

Small airport with plenty of seating and outlets. Only thing I really didn’t like? They shut the restaurants and bars down by concourse. We had a 5:30 flight out and wanted to get a Good People beer while we waited. However, that concourse’s last flight took off at 4:00 so it was already closed! Kind of a bummer! Especially since the airport is so small it’s hardly that far from one concourse to the other (a thirty second walk)!

This review is long overdue. The airport itself gets 3 stars because it is well organized and it is not chaotic. Although, it is a bit small, it still accommodates the patrons coming in and out on a daily basis.
This review is mainly to express my displeasure with the employees at the baggage check in at Southwest.
I have been to this airport several times when departing back to Tampa, and I have never had an issue until January 3^rd 2016.
I received an email that my flight was delayed by an hour, ok, no sweat because I really didn’t want to leave my babes. Sadly, the time whizzed by for me to head to the airport. He lives in Birmingham, so we did our normal routine. I turned in the rental and he met me inside. I’m sad and frustrated because I wasn’t ready to leave, but we laughed and tried to make light of the last few moments together. Well that laughter turned into pure anger once I walked to baggage check in.
There I was coldly summoned by Gloria to approach with my bags. There was a glitch in the system in which it didn’t allow Gloria to print the labels for my bags. Well Gloria wasn’t to happy about that. I am a big advocate for customer service, I have had previous jobs dealing with people on the phone etc. Customer service can be frustrating at times, so I attempted to lighten the mood and make a joke. Well Gloria wasn’t having it. Well moving on, as ALWAYS, my babes politely asked for an escort pass and Gloria asked how old I was, jokingly I said, «twenty one». In which she replied, «No, she has to have a disability or be in the military.» Neither one of those options pertained to me, however, my current job causes me to put my life on the line each night I work, I had my credentials readily available. However, that didn’t fly (no pun intended). Keep in mind rather, I’m departing from Birmingham or he is departing from Tampa, we have NEVER had an issue. I understand rules are rules but everyone should be on the same page and before this incident we were never informed on what qualifications you need in order to have an escort.
We requested a supervisor. Little did we know, the situation was going to get worse. Supervisor Jennifer R arrived. My babe attempted to explain the concern and before he could finish Jennifer R said, «No». Well of course we told her it’s never been a concern before, her response is what really upset me. Jennifer R. responded, «It has always been this way since September 11^th and I can’t believe anyone would have allowed you to have an escort pass». Lady, are you kidding me? Do you think we go around making this up? You may not have dealt with it because the guests may not have needed to speak with YOU! However, you don’t blatantly call a passenger a lie right to their face! I think that was rude and unprofessional. I informed Jennifer R that I would be filing a complaint and she didn’t seem worried.
Since the incident I have written an e-​mail and spoke with customer service. I just wanted my voice to be heard, but the representative I got saw my e-​mail and explained the procedures on when someone can receive an escort pass and when they can’t. Also, the military is case by case and up to the attendant at baggage check in. The representative provided me a $ 50 credit towards any future flights, that was a score! But I think Gloria and Jennifer both need to take some classes on professionalism!
Oh and might I add, when I finally got to my gate, there was someone that came through with an escort pass… IF ONLY I would have gotten there sooner or later, I would have never an any interaction with Gloria or Jennifer, I may have lucked up and dealt with someone on a professional level. NOW, ranting is done.
I digress!

Landed and took off from here, this is a small airport and has the rental cars in the parking garage which is EPIC. The staff here was friendly, the service was fast and very simple to navigate. Has a cool urban feel to it and lots of football/​race car type memeraboila to check out.
Starbucks, delis, and some shops to check out, not bad for in and out.

I like this newly rennovated airport. I definitely can tell it is updated compared to other airports I. have been in lately. I like the location of the parking deck and the ease of picking up and dropping off passengers. There are a few good restaurants (chick fil a, jim n nicks, and a Good People bar) but they are all on the same ends of the terminal so it is a bit of a walk of your plane is on the other side. I enjoy flying in and out of here.

A small international airport that is lucky enough to have Morgan Freeman do their recorded announcements. It felt like a penguin in Happy Feet as I waddled through the slow moving security line to the sound of Morgan Freeman telling me «If you see something, say something».

I use BHM multiple times during the year for business and leisure travel. The renovation of the terminal did wonders for my attitude toward this airport. Everything is clean and inviting. The security lines are never very long and the gate areas are comfortable. If anything I wish the Chick-​fil-​A was a little closer to the Southwest gates.

Typing this now as I sit waiting for my bag. The result of this interaction will decide if it’s five or two stars.
Woke up at 4am for a 6am Christmas Eve flight to ATL. Bad weather stopped us from landing so we are here in BHM. 30 people got off the plane for a transfer to Tampa. Me plus one other person asked to get off here because BHM is where we’d like to be anyway. They said yes but the bag is pending.
I walked to the desk and asked if they could get my bag pulled. I heard them talking on the radio about how far in the back it is. «Three deep, all the transfers were in the front.»
A few minutes have passed. I hear them ask about it again on the radio, at this point it’s obvious that the plane isn’t going to ATL any time soon so I guess they decided they might as well look. I’m looking out the window now and they have my bag! It’s on the truck!
Thanks bag guys, thanks Richard. Thanks all Southwest staff! My Christmas isn’t ruined!

A very nice airport that the city of Birmingham can be proud of!!! Very easy to get in and out of. Smaller so less wait for security. They have some really cool restaurants while you’re waiting on your flight. Being right beside the interstate makes it conveniently located as well.

Birmingham Shuttlesworth is a nice airport. There’s plenty of things to see and do here. There’s shopping if you want to buy something. Restaurants if you’re famished and would like some sustenance. If you don’t fancy any of that. An airport is an awesome place to people watch.
I like the décor here. There’s a ton of art on display. There’s some really interesting sculptures all around the hallways. I’m passing through Christmas as well, so their decorations are very nice. They even have dancing lights that go with the Christmas music. It really puts you in the mood for the holdays.
Anyways, no matter how you cut it. This is still an airport that sings and dances to its own beat. So please come early for your flight. This is your only responsibility. It’s not the airports fault that you came barely making it and there’s a giant line at ticketing and tsa. Trust me, the only thing they can really do is wish you a great flight. Follow these rules and you’ll be like me. Never ever had a bad experience ever.
Life is awesome when we follow rules. The point is to make it less harder for ourselves.
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I love this airport! It’s small, and easy to get in and out. Not many people there either. TSA is more of a pain there, but they’re just doing their job. Not much to say about a airport. I did however like the availability of power plugs to charge up your phone.

This is an easy to use small airport. Every part of it is relatively new or in very good shape. There are a decent number of food and shopping options for you. There are a lot of seating options. They could use more power outlets, but it is not bad.
Bags come out rather quickly. The security lines are minimal and move fairly quickly. I did not have to wait at all for a cab.
The lack of Über as an option is annoying, but I am not sure the airport is the cause of that issue in this case. If it is then I will have to take my review down at least one star.

I am not sure that any airport is capable of getting 5 stars. The inconvenience of traveling is always a hassle. And the prices are always very elevated. But in the grand scheme of things, BSA is not a bad airport to go through.
The thing I like most about it is that it never seems crowded. Airline lines, security lines, food/​drink lines are always short and quick. And with the new renovations being done, you can enjoy this lack of crowds in an updated atmosphere.
The parking is pretty simple. But I have certainly come across severe overcrowding in that department. Sometimes (while running behind) having to circle multiple floors trying to just find a spot. But that is also while some renovations were going on in the deck too. Hopefully when everything is done, that won’t be an issue.
Overall if I can get through an airport with little hassles and crowds, I am a happy camper. Also free wifi! Always a plus.

No one really enjoys dealing with the hassle of air travel. That being said, we have always had a pleasant experience leaving out of here. The renovations look great, and I am glad that there are some local food options now present inside. The lines are generally short and quick to move through, being a smaller airport. Nice that they also offered free Wi-​Fi.