American currently operates about 90% of daily flights at CLT. According to Bureau of Transportation Statistics data from the second quarter of 2026, the average domestic fare out of Charlotte was $531.83 — well above the national average of $445.26 and far higher than Raleigh-Durham's $406.63.

"What it costs to fly out of here — it's astronomical," council member Victoria Watlington said during the meeting. But she added, "We're not going to fix that tonight."

William McGee, an aviation expert with the anti-monopoly advocacy group American Economic Liberties Project, said the council missed a "golden opportunity" to use its leverage in lease negotiations to encourage more competition. He predicted the deal will have a negative effect on fares.

"There's no doubt that what happened … will have an effect on fares, but it's not the effect that anyone going to or from Charlotte is going to want," McGee said. "It's going to be awful, quite frankly."

Council member JD Mazuera Arias, one of two dissenting votes alongside Renee Perkins Johnson, told reporters Tuesday that the "political will" wasn't there to incentivize more competition.

Airport CEO Haley Gentry pointed to provisions in the lease meant to increase competition, including expanding the number of common-use gates from 10 to 17. Common-use gates are typically used by low-cost carriers, which can pressure major airlines to lower fares. Gentry also said the airport can reassign gates to other airlines if they are underused, with an annual review process.

But McGee disputed those claims, arguing that the proportion of common-use gates will actually decrease as more gates are built for American. He said the reassignment provision is unlikely to be used because airlines can simply claim they need gates for longer turnaround times.

"American is never going to say to the airport authorities in Charlotte, 'Oh, you know what? We got three extra gates. … You take them and give them to Frontier,'" McGee said.

The lease also includes airline funding for a $2.1 billion construction program that will expand Concourse C and build a tunnel to it. American will operate all gates in the expanded concourse, which sits in the middle of its hub. When council member Dimple Ajmera asked whether other airlines had requested gates there, Gentry did not answer directly, saying only that it would "provide more flexibility" elsewhere in the terminal.

The deal drew opposition beyond fare concerns. Service Employees International Union Local 32BJ opposed the lease, saying it did not meet demands for better working conditions at the airport.

"We showed up in good faith to be heard, only to be shown billionaires and corporations would once again be the only winners today. … This is a loss for every Charlottean who will continue paying astronomical ticket prices," the union said in a statement.

Business leaders from Atrium Health, Novant Health and the Charlotte Regional Business Alliance advocated for the deal during a public hearing before the vote. Outgoing Republican U.S. Sen. Thom Tillis had threatened to push for an independent airport authority if the lease failed.

American Airlines has argued that its hub brings more flights to Charlotte than a city of its size would normally have, noting that more than 70% of traffic at CLT is connecting passengers.

Still, examples of fare disparities have circulated widely. A presentation by lease opponents showed a CLT-to-Miami flight on American priced at $1,041 compared with $126 on Frontier. A Reddit post highlighted a nearly $700 American flight to Orlando while Frontier offered $58, with the user writing, "American has lost their minds."

Ajmera, who voted in favor of the lease, is now pushing for a "competition scorecard" to track whether residents actually gain more airline choices. McGee said the council should also study how much business Charlotte has lost because of high airfares.

"When you have a monopolized hub like this … that hurts Charlotte in ways they can't even measure," he said.