ESpen36

That's an excellent point. I suspect a dues increase is on the horizon, and it basically means that we non-drinkers will be subsidizing the drinking habits of others.

swag

How do the current AA club fees stack up against the other domestic airlines with comped alcohol in their clubs?

AAerSTL

I hope AA doesn't use the lame excuse "oh we've run out" just like they were out of champagne and Sam Adams on my recent ORD-FL visit. Hopefully they can get some new selections such as regional microbrews or Goldstar.

I doubt AA will be starting a self-service bar but if so I say great. It seems what they will be doing is just like CO. My understanding is the bartenders will stay to process the sales for premium liquors at the bar and will continue to card customers at the point of sale. DL has tested the self service bar concept at several locations (mainly PM-NW locations the new LAX club) but I think some customers prefer having a bartender mix their drinks and they serve as a gatekeeper for minors and prevent others from overindulging.

Agreed, I'd like better food options from a national carrier like Whole Foods and would welcome a self service option. It seems AA has promoted other products/services before in the clubs-Citibank, Art of Shaving, Zicam, Lincoln (Ford Motor Co) had a display the ORD club years ago offering sandwiches and literature on their vehicles.


I don't think it will become a problem and the vast majority of AC patrons are disciplined enough and would not get severaly intoxicated at the airport. Hasn't been a problem at DL, CO and other lounges with self service or open bar.

Azulcactus

You could say the same about anything else though. Those of us who don't use WiFi subsidize those that do. Same for the children's lounge, smoking room, shower, snack mix, soda, AAngles, etc. Some of those have hard costs based on consumption (snack mix, shower water), others have cost for real-estate based on anticipated usage (whether used or not). In the end, you're buying a package.

I doubt AA will raise costs. Last time I checked, AA's rates were in line with the others (if I recall, rates on the low end of the elite pole were higher with AA, but flipped once you got around PLT and AA was cheaper for PLT and EXP but not by much).

I'm happy for the benefit. I was previously thinking on letting membership lapse, but this completely turns it around for me. Definitely not a lush, but a free $5 drink or two is nice.

I agree with the earlier comment on the unfortunate color of the red wine in the email. It is a lovely shade of light brown. Yum.

kebosabi

For alcohol keep it at the bar, but for non-alcoholic drinks I hope they set up self-serve machines like the one they set up at the ORD "G" AC. I don't want to go near the bar to ask the bartender for a complimentary Diet Coke amongst other drunken people, nor would I imagine the bartender would want waste time with someone who's not gonna get drunk (tip). I can fill up a glass of Diet Coke myself.

scubadu

This is a VERY slippery slope and frankly a worthless one to pursue.

Taking this logic to it's extreme, there are a number of things in ACs that are "susidized" for a small number of users.

Believe it or not, many, many AC members/users never use showers in ACs. Aren't they subsidizing those that do?

Believe it or not, many, many AC members never us Wi-FI in the club. Aren't they subsidizing those that do? (This is true, if you don't believe it, look around a club sometime at peak hours, note how many people are NOT on a Wifi device, it's more folks than many realize. There seems to be a baseline assumption on FT that all AC members are using WiFi; they are not)

Believe it or not, many many AC members/users do not watch TV in the club? Aren't they subsidizing the cost of televisions, the electricity to operate them, the cost of cable/Satellite feeds and equipment for those that do?

Believe it or not, many, many AC members/user do not have children and do not use or have a need for the dedicated child rooms/play areas that are in some ACs. Aren't they subsidizing the cost of that dedicated space, the various toys, computers/TVs, etc. that fill those rooms and must be occasionally replaced?

The list could go on and on. Facilities like this exist precisely because they can share economies of scale to offer an array of benefits to a large number of folks that have different needs and priorities.

So, before all the teetotalers queue the violins to whine about this, take a good long look around an AC like LAX or DFW next time you are there, and you'll like see a number of drunks NOT using amenities such as Wifi.

Regards

diaspora04

Indeed, I recall the ORD "G" AC to be an orgy of heavy drinking and hard drug use as it is -- a true opium den. Fights, bodies heeped about the floor, random drunken mayhem. I don't doubt that free booze will only fuel this crowd's lust for excess and contempt for innocent Diet Coke consumers.

DataPlumber

Awesome! Thanks!!

kebosabi

I think the poster's intention was that alcohol, in contrast to other stuff like WiFi or showers, is that alcohol is a consumable item that needs a specific re-order cycle. WiFi and showers are things that can be set up with an one-time "setup fee" and marginal cost maintenance cost per month which can be "subsidized" over lots of people with very little unit cost per person whether they use it or not. Kinda like how we all "subsidize" free air, water, the restroom, the squeegie and the windshield wiping papers at gas stations so to speak.

In contrast, booze is a fairly expensive (compared to carbonated sugar water or juice) consumable item that has to be re-ordered every-now-and-then. There's a big difference in cost to "subsidizing" WiFi and showers that can cost somewhere along $100 per month to maintain, versus booze which could in effect may cost $100 x number of variety of booze per day to replenish.

I dunno, I have my doubts about this. Being a seldom drinker, if I had a choice I'd be happier to subsidize something like free tuna sandwiches at the Admiral's Club over free booze.

ugorightigoleft

This made my day. We all spend enough on the tickets, and this is a really nice gesture. They must be modelling after BA/IB, and I will take it. Now, if only the FL had a Galleries First-style champagne bar....ok, ok, ok, I won't be greedy!

Hoc

Ditto here. I would much rather that they come into compliance with the BA and IB lounges food-wise. Are they still going to charge for bottled water? Because that's what I drink when I'm there.

brp

I sure hope so if it can help to reduce the plastic waste from all the bottled water ^

Since much of the "bottled" water is just tap water put into bottles, I'm happy to drink from a fountain and avoid the waste

Cheers.

Azulcactus

I then end, it's all really speculation since none of us know the true costs. I think you're significantly under estimating the cost of AAngles and rent for various spaces in the AC, but I don't have hard numbers. I hypothesize subsidizing perishable goods would be even more costly, that tuna sandwich doesn't keep a long as the keg of beer. And I don't want to subsidize your tuna sandwich either, I don't like tuna.

It is what it is! All we know is most other airline clubs have survived for years (and decades) in this fashion, and are comparatively priced and don't have too many occurrences of drunken orgies happening!

nrr

About 8 years ago when I was flying with DL and NW, their clubs had self service liquor, ditto for AA's foreign lounges.
Last Sunday, 9/19, I was in the AC club in LAX, and they had free sandwiches (turkey or ham, with cheese and tomato).

scubadu

Uh, well of course that is what you think; you're only willing to see this issue through your own personal prism of being a non-drinker. You seem to be unwilling to view the situation through the eyes of the drunk who hates tuna.

Further, below is just one very, very small example of how hard it is for a large company like AA to create policies and procedures that satisfy Americans. We are a completely polarized nation at this point; be it politics or anything else.

For every guy that wants free bottled water there's someone that wants to save the planet.

For every drunk that wants the taps open for free there is a teetotaler that is offended at having to "subsidize" them.

For every person that wants free Wifi there is someone that does not want it because they have an Aircard.

And whether you like it or not, I suspect the vast, vast (likely by orders of magnitude) majority of AC members want complimentary (that's the classy word for "free" ) alcoholic beverages. AA is responding in a capitalistic manner to a perceived market need. That's actually a beautiful thing.

Couple disclosures:

1) I really drink very little in the AC and could honestly care less either way if they offer it complimentary or not.

2) I'm not taking a position on the bottled water remarks below, merely trying to point out the difficulty in making everyone happy in today's very, very complicated world.

Regards