Still tricky
I lurked on this thread since scheduling DFW to NCE vis LHR, two of us in AA Flagship First and two in business on the Dallas flight and all in Club Europe from LHR to NCE.
My experience:
1) The only way to use CCR by flying AA first is flying into T3 and out of 5.
2) I first tried to get in through the secret door. Chap was so off-putting about it being BA only that I didn’t even bother arguing.
3) We went down and all the way under and back up. We first went to the first lounge. We had a self-announced newbie but she definitely was open to suggestion. At first she didn’t even want to let us in there but I insisted we were allowed and she looked it up and agreed. I then suggested we should also get CCR and she was willing to look it up. She opened her iPad and found the right page with a long “if-this-then-that” algorithm. I wish I snapped a photo! There is a fine print under AA flagship first to treat as BA first and specifically says to allow CCR. I had to read it to her and explain slowly before the light went on. She then confirmed with her colleague who clearly had no interest in the whole affair but agreed and suggested she walk us to to the CCR to explain which she kindly did. She even had to show the iPad to the CCR attendant who said “They are always changing this”, scanned the two flagship first BPs and let all four in.
Take homes:
1) As said before over and over, you can’t get to T5 without a boarding pass
2) DO NOT THROW AWAY YOUR AA FLAGSHIP FIRST BP
3) Be polite but suggest to look on the iPad as “They always change it, but it’s in there”
4) I wish you luck. I could easily see being denied even after all of the above. The whole idea is clearly very foreign to them
5) If worse comes to worse, ask CCR attendant to scan our BP. I noticed when she did that it let us right in. It was just a challenge getting to that point haha!
6) If you fly AA first into LHR T3 and any BA flight out of T5, it’s worth the effort. It was really quite delightful.