Hollywood Burbank Airport Just Moved Its Front Door to the Other Side of the Runway

Hollywood Burbank Airport opened a brand-new passenger terminal on Tuesday, October 13, 2026, with the first flight departing at 7 a.m. The 355,000-square-foot building replaces a 232,000-square-foot complex whose original buildings date to 1930. The airport keeps its 14 gates, so the change is about the experience rather than capacity: higher ceilings, new restaurants and shops, wireless charging at gate seating, expanded security screening areas, and three new baggage carousels. Local coverage describes it as one of the first fully electric terminal operations in the country.

The biggest adjustment for travelers is geography. The new terminal sits on the opposite side of the airfield from the old one, and the main entrance moves from Thornton Avenue to Winona Avenue and Hollywood Way. Lot E has closed permanently. Anyone with muscle memory for the old approach should plan extra time on their first trip, and rideshare passengers now use a new pickup lot near the terminal rather than the curb they knew.

Parking and ground transport have been reshuffled too. A new parking structure serves the terminal, and valet service has moved with it. Rental-car customers take shuttles to the consolidated rental-car facility across Hollywood Way. The Burbank Airport-North Metrolink station connects to the terminal by a pedestrian path and an on-demand shuttle, which keeps one of the airport’s longtime selling points, easy rail access, intact for travelers heading to or from Los Angeles.

Not everything is new. Passengers still board and deplane outdoors, without covered jet bridges, a throwback that some travelers say they will miss alongside the charm of the 1930s building. One longtime traveler told local reporters the new terminal feels like a neighborhood airport. Project cost was not given in the coverage reviewed, so travelers should check the airport’s website for current directions, parking rates and shuttle times before their next flight.

Sources: ABC7, Inside Flyer