Surprising Airports with no lounge access for AA elites
 

In this day and age of flight delays and cancellations, I find that having lounge access is a more important perk than ever. In the last two months I found myself in several situations where I didn't have lounge access and a longish wait for a flight.

So I propose a discussion of which airports that doesn't have lounge access. I have membership in the Admirals Club and have Priority Access and access to the Amex Centurion Clubs so I generally find access in most international locations, even in small airports in Chile; but the US is sometimes a different story.

First on my list is MCI (Kansas City). How many other NFL host cities have an "international" airport without any lounges?

Next on my list is SFO Terminal 1 when flying domestic on Alaska. While there is a BA lounge and another OW lounge, they don't allow access to OW Emeralds flying domestic. There isn't even a decent sitdown restaurant in the Terminal.

LAS would be on my list but for the fact that there is an excellent Centurion Club. (And there are other things to do - I once almost missed a flight because I won a jackpot on the slots and they had to find a manager to take my social security number for the tax form)

Any other suggestions?

No Admirals Club at IAD or YUL is annoying. Both have a decent sized AA operation.

Since AA is now using Term E for a number of Flights at DFW, I wish it had an Admirals Club.

The new MCO lounge is appreciated (though small), and the Terminal 5 lounge at LAX will be appreciated when it opens.

This!

Is there a ranked list anywhere of AA's busiest airports, there could well be a few surprises where small-ish sized US and AA operations have merged.

There was one at IAD up until about 2013. It was in Concourse B and almost adjacent to the BA lounge.

YUL would be nice, or at least a Priority Pass lounge, or something. All those transborder flights with no lounge access!

The only lounge in my new home airport of MSY (NFL: Go Saints!) is a Delta one, and even if you have that membership, it's in a different concourse from AA, not connected airside.

In the *for what it is worth* department, your American Express card comes with Priority Pass select which provides entrance into the quite lovely AFKL lounge at SFO.

Bad subject line...there is no "lounge access for elites" anywhere in the USfor domestic flights, using the FT meaning of the term (elite = someone with FF status). Unless you used "elite" in the colloquial sense of "rich person".

I think a lounge at DTW makes sense...they have the space for it and they serve...

PHX x 4
ORD x 7
DCA x 3
MIA x 3
LGA x 6
PHL x 6
CLT x 7
DFW x 6

Plus, for selfish reasons I could use it. 😂

BUF comes to mind. I'm sure I'm missing some as well.

LAS should have a club.

CMH has no NFL team.

Not to mention JAX, IND, and GRB! (I didn't actually double check those, but my point is that a number of NFL teams are actually in quite small cities. There are fewer MLB teams in small cities, I think.) And CVG, I'd guess.

MSP, CLE, and BWI also have no AA or AS lounges. Ditto OAK if SFO doesn't count for the Raiders.

A U.S. airport is termed international when its has customs and immigration facilities available. Don't wait for scheduled 777s to swoop in from NRT, LHR and EZE.

Here's one chart from the Bureau of Transportation Statistics. It shows domestic passenger count by operating carrier (so express carriers don't show under AA/DL/UA/AS). AA - left in the dust by WN. Can't even displace DL for #2 . Don't expect an Admirals Club in the country's 38th busiest domestic airport with stats like that.

http://i1154.photobucket.com/albums/...psbzwkowlr.png

Quito doesn't have a lounge for AA paxs. There is a pretty nice lounge there though where you can use Priority Pass.

Its good enough in Quito, not quite up to current AC standards IMO.

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