Background
1.8-million-square-foot
Terminal with 5 concourses and 114 gates
54 million passengers
Served
annually
1,400+
Arrivals and departures daily
194 destinations
Nonstop service across 30 countries
200,000 tons of freight
Major cargo hub handled annually
Needs
As CLT expanded – including a 366,000-square-foot Terminal Lobby Expansion (TLE) and a 230,000-square-foot addition in Terminal A – the airport required a future-ready digital infrastructure to support a wide range of critical users simultaneously.
From passengers waiting to board and navigating connections to aircraft arriving at the gate, connectivity is mission-critical across every stage of the airport journey and its underlying operations:
- Pilots and airline staff require reliable connectivity for real-time communication, updates, and operational coordination
- Passengers – from families and leisure travelers to business users – expect seamless access to rideshare apps, streaming, messaging, and travel information upon landing
- Travelers increasingly expect high-capacity, on-demand connectivity to support video and data-intensive applications
Beyond user experience, the network also had to meet complex technical requirements. The infrastructure needed to support all sub-6 GHz spectrum bands – including 3.45 GHz (DoD) and C-band – on a single platform, while leveraging a Fiber-to-the-Edge (FTTE) architecture to deliver high-quality coverage, simplify deployment, and reduce long-term operational costs at scale.
Solution
Following a comprehensive year-long evaluation, Wireless Services selected Airspan’s MobileAccess (MA) 6000 as the foundation for CLT’s wireless modernization. The MA6000 is a Digital DAS (Distributed Antenna System) platform that converts RF signals into digital format at the source and distributes them over fiber – delivering greater precision, lower signal loss, and reduced interference compared to traditional analog systems. Purpose-built for large, high-traffic venues, the platform’s digital architecture and compact footprint made it ideally suited to the airport’s complex environment.
Key deployment specifications include:
- Neutral host, 2×2 MIMO architecture supporting 700, 850, PCS, AWS, 2300, 2500, 3.45 GHz (DoD), and C-band – enabling multi-carrier support on a single system
- 270 low-power remotes across public areas and 105 medium-power remotes delivering targeted coverage in back-of-house zones
- Integrated support for DoD and C-band in an integrated platform, reducing hardware complexity, rack space, and total cost of ownership
- Fiber-to-the-Edge (FTTE) architecture enabling wide-area coverage, high capacity, efficient deployment, and effective scalability as the airport expands
Outcome
The initial phases of the MA6000 Digital DAS deployment have delivered early, measurable improvements across CLT’s upgraded areas, significantly enhancing the wireless experience for both operational users and passengers. Key results to date include:
- Average download speeds increased from ~50 Mbps to over 300 Mbps – a 6-fold improvement
- Peak speeds exceeded 800 Mbps in upgraded zones, supporting high-demand data applications
- Upload capacity increased more than 3x, maintaining stability during peak travel periods and heavy network load
- Seamless, reliable connectivity now extends across expanded terminal areas, enabling instant access upon arrival
These early results have reinforced confidence for the City of Charlotte and carrier partners. With indoor deployment underway, a large-scale outdoor DAS (oDAS) expansion is planned for 2026, extending high-capacity coverage across the broader airport campus as the project continues to scale.
