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Flagship Lounge downgrade with bankruptcy? (began about JFK)

 
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Old Dec 5, 2011, 7:08 pm
  #1  
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Flagship Lounge downgrade with bankruptcy? (began about JFK)

Am sitting in the JFK Flagship Club about to board my flight to Sao Paulo. Last tie I was here was two weeks ago. Was shocked at the enormous downgrade of the food offering whaich i was told by staff here is a "permanent change of the menu". Gone are cheese, dessert, soup, salad choices replaced by a very empty buffet with a few pieces of tired chicken, some rice, and green beans. Very disappointing.
Clearly, this is a post bankruptcy move cost cutting targeted at AA's most loyal, premium yield flyers. I for one am not impressed. Anyone else notice the downgrade?
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Old Dec 5, 2011, 7:11 pm
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Another poster in this forum said he got no dinner when it was posted on a recent flight. We may have to get used to these cut backs for a bit.
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Old Dec 5, 2011, 7:12 pm
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Originally Posted by murbahn
Clearly, this is a post bankruptcy move cost cutting targeted at AA's most loyal, premium yield flyers.
I wouldn't expect the bankruptcy to have such an immediate impact. And, in fact, since the filing, AA has announced some pretty ambitious upgrades to aircraft and in-flight service. Which isn't to say that there hasn't been a downgrade, but I don't think you can blame the bankruptcy filing.
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Old Dec 5, 2011, 7:14 pm
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With Chapter 11, we may see some other changes in the near future. It's too bad they chose to do this, and I am waiting for other members to add their recent impressions at LAX and ORD, as far as domestic Flagship Lounges go, and LHR.

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Old Dec 5, 2011, 7:20 pm
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LAX FL is probably safe from the cutbacks, since QF pays for most of the lounge.

ORD/JFK/LHR.....could be significant cutbacks. (And frankly, when I visited the LHR FL I didn't find it to be mind-blowingly better than the AC. In fact, the offerings seemed quite similar.)
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Old Dec 5, 2011, 7:56 pm
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Originally Posted by ESpen36
LAX FL is probably safe from the cutbacks, since QF pays for most of the lounge.

ORD/JFK/LHR.....could be significant cutbacks. (And frankly, when I visited the LHR FL I didn't find it to be mind-blowingly better than the AC. In fact, the offerings seemed quite similar.)
With the exception of the free 'premium' liquor, for the people who care about that.
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Old Dec 5, 2011, 8:06 pm
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JFK FL food

I was through JFK the end of Oct and was disappointed in the offerings. To be fair, I was there about 7pm, so perhaps I was seeing the leftovers from dinner? That said, there appeared to be no one servicing the buffet as there were empty dishes and almost empty dishes that should have been removed. Ample liquor/deficit of food. I was looking forward to something decent so I could sleep into LHR, but I left hungry and had a quick meal on the flight. It certainly wasn't what I'd experienced before. The LAX FL that morning was menu as usual for breakfast. So, perhaps it's not connected to the BK? Just another data point.
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Old Dec 5, 2011, 8:06 pm
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Originally Posted by laxconnorw
With the exception of the free 'premium' liquor, for the people who care about that.
Perhaps so.....I would not have noticed, as I don't drink alcohol.
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Old Dec 5, 2011, 8:17 pm
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The JFK Flagship Lounge is just a gussied corner of a domestic club. It's almost embarrassing that there's one small buffet, frequently nearly void of food & one small bar area.

AA should have a fully separate space (not attached to the Admirals Club) with a beautifully catered and constantly stocked buffet and at least two drinks stations.

And more seats please!
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Old Dec 5, 2011, 8:30 pm
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Originally Posted by fastflyer
The JFK Flagship Lounge is just a gussied corner of a domestic club. It's almost embarrassing that there's one small buffet, frequently nearly void of food & one small bar area.

AA should have a fully separate space (not attached to the Admirals Club) with a beautifully catered and constantly stocked buffet and at least two drinks stations.

And more seats please!
Second post by me tonite but similar to the last re: ORD cutbacks in flights to Europe. As a 2mm I have been with AA for a long time but service/routing decreases have made me switch here in the midwest to DL. Not UA. DL connections transatlantic/transpacific INCREASING and overall service improving. JFK also really screws us here in the midwest. I reports here on quality of FL is not inspiring us!
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Old Dec 5, 2011, 8:56 pm
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There may be a bumpy ride for the 12 to 18 months of bankruptcy. After that, I expect to see AA increasing amenities and other hard-product standards as well as opening new routes/increasing frequency on existing routes.
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Old Dec 5, 2011, 9:24 pm
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Originally Posted by puppysara
I was through JFK the end of Oct and was disappointed in the offerings. To be fair, I was there about 7pm, so perhaps I was seeing the leftovers from dinner? That said, there appeared to be no one servicing the buffet as there were empty dishes and almost empty dishes that should have been removed. Ample liquor/deficit of food. I was looking forward to something decent so I could sleep into LHR, but I left hungry and had a quick meal on the flight. It certainly wasn't what I'd experienced before. The LAX FL that morning was menu as usual for breakfast. So, perhaps it's not connected to the BK? Just another data point.
Actually, I'd think that's when they'd be rolling out dinner seeing as all three South America 777s and two LHR flights depart after 9pm. In fact that's more than the # of pre-9pm flights leaving (two JFK and one NRT) to say nothing of the 9pm LAX flight which has no real dinner in F (I know, the FL isn't designed for transcon pax, it's just an added bonus).
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Old Dec 5, 2011, 9:29 pm
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In LHR FL today. Cannot comment as to recent changes, but it was nothing more than a separate Admirals club. There were some half sandwiches for food, either wheat or white bread. Nothing else. Similar to the ones I've seen in the BA Terraces club. Staff unfriendly. At least no one was on the cell phone.
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Old Dec 5, 2011, 9:34 pm
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Originally Posted by fastflyer
The JFK Flagship Lounge is just a gussied corner of a domestic club. It's almost embarrassing that there's one small buffet, frequently nearly void of food & one small bar area.

AA should have a fully separate space (not attached to the Admirals Club) with a beautifully catered and constantly stocked buffet and at least two drinks stations.

And more seats please!
Only Chicago has a truly separate FL at this point (MIA did, but we'll see where that ends up) but that makes sense seeing as it is AA's only int'l gateway where there is significant competition from another single carrier offering F service. UA has little presence at JFK, while DL has no F, MIA and DFW are fortress hubs and LAX sees less and less UA every day, particularly to int'l destinations. Also, ORD is the only location without transcon "freeloaders" so it is truly reserved for those on int'l flights (OW Emeralds on domestics aside).
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Old Dec 5, 2011, 9:42 pm
  #15  
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Originally Posted by fastflyer
The JFK Flagship Lounge is just a gussied corner of a domestic club. It's almost embarrassing that there's one small buffet, frequently nearly void of food & one small bar area.

AA should have a fully separate space (not attached to the Admirals Club) with a beautifully catered and constantly stocked buffet and at least two drinks stations.
And angels and unicorns.
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