Time needed to emerge from FCO after morning arrival

nancy, Will you have checked luggage? The time will vary, according to how many flights are arriving at about the same time, and how many Immigration officers they have on duty. I would allow at least 30-45 minutes to reach the Leonardo Express station. Of course, this is Italy so it's always necessary to factor in some extra time for "complications". I had to deal with those on my arrival in Rome in 2010. Happy travels!

We always plan an hour. Maybe ten minutes either way.

At FCO my bags have come out as soon as 15-20 minutes after the flight (meaning: I got off the plane, went through passport control, and by the time I got down to baggage claim they were just starting to appear, so it was like not having a wait at all); on another occasion, even by the time I had gotten down to the belt, it was a 45 minute wait for the bags to start coming. Let's just say that things don't run efficiently there in any sort of consistent fashion. The 45 minute wait time has been corroborated by friends who have flown through on other occasions. I think that one case where the bags were practically there waiting for me when I got to the belt was a miracle :) Ordinarily, apart from these extremes, plan on it taking probably 10-20 minutes to get to baggage claim (what with passport control and everything), and then another 10-30 minutes to collect your bags, depending on how busy the airport is, how many workers are taking their smoke break, etc. etc. etc.... Enjoy Italy!

FCO and the Athens airport are the two biggest arguments for taking only carryon luggage. Both can be utter chaos. Try not to check anything. We never do, except occasionally on the flight home when we're tired and we know we won't be in a hurry to get our luggage.

Yes, as mentioned by many, checked luggage will probably be the most time-consuming segment of your arrival from the USA. There are multiple planes arriving around 08:30 so as Ken says, you'll have to "compete" for a spot in line at Passport Control. Hopefully they'll have numerous booths open for NON-EU passengers. (Many a time I've been in line at FCO passport control with only 1 or 2 counters available). This article, on arriving at T3 from the a Non-Schengen country, will give you some maps, photos, and hopefully some preparation to the FCO experience. Good Luck!