Connecting Time
The scheduled time gap between a traveler's arriving flight and their next departing flight at a connecting airport.
Connecting time is the window between the scheduled arrival of an inbound flight and the scheduled departure of the onward connection. Adequate connecting time is critical to ensuring travellers make their second flight comfortably, with enough margin to transit the terminal, clear any border controls, and reach the departure gate before boarding closes. The minimum acceptable connection time depends on the airport, the terminals involved, the type of connection, and whether border controls must be cleared.
Why it matters
Booking itineraries with insufficient connecting time is one of the most common and costly mistakes in travel planning. When an inbound flight is delayed — even modestly — a tight connection becomes a missed one, triggering rebooking costs, accommodation, and substantial disruption. Programme managers who set minimum connection time standards by airport type and connection category give travellers a realistic buffer and reduce the volume of disruption-related claims and exceptions.
How it works in practice
Every major airport publishes a Minimum Connection Time (MCT) — the shortest officially approved gap between an inbound and outbound flight at that facility. MCTs differ by connection type: domestic to domestic is typically shortest; international to international in different terminals can require 90 minutes or more. GDS systems use MCTs to filter itinerary options, though some booking scenarios enable tighter connections that technically comply with the MCT while leaving no real margin for operational delays.
The takeaway
MCT is a floor, not a target. Build travel policy guidelines that add a realistic buffer above MCT — typically 30 to 60 minutes depending on the airport — to account for runway holds, late gate assignments, and terminal transit times. Travellers who miss connections on tight itineraries that met MCT but left no practical margin are a predictable expense that good connection time policy prevents.