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Covid-19 : BA network lounge closures, effective 17 March

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Old Mar 18, 2020, 2:47 am
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Last edit by: Tobias-UK
This Wiki may be out of date and some of the information may be inaccurate. Please see the following topic for the most up to date information:

BA lounges : reopenings in July, & closures again In November



Latest update: 4 July

London airports
London Heathrow Terminal 5
T5A Concorde Room : CLOSED
T5A Galleries First : reopened 4 July
T5A Galleries Club South : reopened 4 July
T5A Elemis Spa: CLOSED
T5A Galleries Club North : CLOSED
T5B Galleries Club : CLOSED (including Elemis Spa)
T5A Galleries Arrivals : CLOSED (Elemis Spa CLOSED)

London Heathrow Terminal 3
Galleries First : CLOSED
Galleries Club : CLOSED
Elemis Spa : CLOSED
--
AA International First Class Lounge: CLOSED
AA Admirals Club : CLOSED
AA Arrivals Lounge : CLOSED
CX First Class Lounge: CLOSED
CX Business Class Lounge: CLOSED
The Qantas London Lounge : CLOSED

London Gatwick South
British Airways First Lounge : CLOSED
British Airways Club Lounge : CLOSED


Outstations
Aberdeen
British Airways Lounge : CLOSED

Amsterdam Schiphol
British Airways Lounge : CLOSED

Berlin
Terraces : CLOSED

Bermuda
First Lounge : No data
Executive Club Lounge : No data

Boston
British Airways Lounge : CLOSED (including First and Club Dining)

Brussels
Galleries : CLOSED

Cape Town
British Airways Lounge : OPEN

Chicago O'Hare
First Lounge : CLOSED
Terraces : CLOSED

Dallas Fort Worth Terminal D
AA Flagship Lounge : CLOSED (including Flagship Dining)
AA Admirals Club : CLOSED

Dubai
British Airways Lounge : CLOSED

Edinburgh
British Airways Lounge : CLOSED

Geneva
British Airways Lounge : CLOSED

Glasgow
British Airways Lounge : CLOSED

Hong Kong
The Wing First : OPEN
The Wing Business : CLOSED
The Deck : CLOSED
The Bridge : CLOSED
The Pier First : CLOSED
The Pier Business : CLOSED
Qantas Hong Kong Lounge : CLOSED

Houston
Galleries First : CLOSED
Executive Club Lounge : CLOSED

Johannesburg
British Airways Lounge : OPEN (including First Dining)

Lagos
British Airways Lounge : CLOSED

Los Angeles TBIT
Qantas First Lounge : (closure expected end of March)
oneworld Business Lounge : (closure expected end of March)

Manchester
Terraces : PERMANENTLY CLOSED

Miami
AA Flagship Lounge : CLOSED (including Flagship Dining)
AA Admirals Club D30 : CLOSED
AA Admirals Club D15 : CLOSED

Milan Linate
British Airways Lounge : CLOSED

Newcastle
Terraces : PERMANENTLY CLOSED

New York JFK
Concorde Room : CLOSED
British Airways First Lounge : CLOSED
British Airways Club Lounge : CLOSED

New York Newark
Galleries : CLOSED (including First and Club Dining)

Philadelphia
Galleries First : CLOSED
Galleries Club : CLOSED

Rome Fiumicino
British Airways Lounge : CLOSED

San Francisco
British Airways Lounge : CLOSED (including First Dining)

Seattle
First Lounge : CLOSED
Terraces : CLOSED

Singapore
British Airways Lounge : CLOSED
Qantas First Lounge : CLOSED
Qantas Business Lounge : CLOSED
Qatar Airways Lounge : No data

Vancouver
Galleries First : CLOSED
Galleries Club : CLOSED

Washington Dulles
British Airways Lounge : CLOSED (including First and Club Dining)




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Covid-19 : BA network lounge closures, effective 17 March

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Old May 8, 2020, 5:44 am
  #91  
 
Join Date: Sep 2013
Programs: BAEC Gold, EK Skywards (enhanced Blue !), Oman Air Sindbad Gold
Posts: 6,399
Originally Posted by Genius1
...............and even then some lounges at Heathrow where there are multiple lounges may not all open if demand is low.
Anybody’s guess I suppose - but suspect you are correct.

I would go even further and say that I wouldn’t be too surprised if lounges remain closed for the rest of this year. They are, after all, about as low down the priority list as you could imagine, certainly when compared to profit-making businesses, whether at airports or around the country, at risk of total collapse and whose owners will understandably soon be ‘begging’ the authorities to be allowed to re-open.

Once there is (to use a word seen elsewhere !) a ‘meaningful’ return of air travel, it would make sense to minimise close contact points between travellers whilst at the airport. Perhaps the initial low demand may itself prove a sort of self-regulation ; or perhaps lounge access may be limited by number ..... much like the policy often used by some third party lounge operators.
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Old May 8, 2020, 7:26 am
  #92  
 
Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: YVR/LBA
Programs: BA Exec Club (Gold)
Posts: 329
Originally Posted by Genius1
That’s correct. I imagine UK lounges at least will remain closed until restaurants/cafes/pubs open again for ‘eat in’ service, and even then some lounges at Heathrow where there are multiple lounges may not all open if demand is low.
I'm currently in Dubai where we are now on our way out of lockdown and are following the same route as many other countries which have handled this in such a way as no to cause mass deaths and prolonged economic pain (ignoring the lack of tourists!).

Measures sensible countries are taking for bars/restaurants/cafes would all seem to be apply to an airport lounge. Some are possible but others are going to be difficult and give a very different experience.

e.g. easy to operate at 30% of capacity with 2m spacing between tables with each table sanitized between guests. More difficult will be to operate a model with all touch points removed e.g. no buffets, no free pour alcohol, no access to fridges with soft drinks / water etc.

Everything here must be table service and served on disposable plates / plastic knives and forks, you aren't allowed to approach the bar etc. The cost of staffing such a model in the galleries lounges at LHR would never wash its face even in the good times. I can however see the CCR room reopening and being viable under system, trips in First may suddenly become highly sought after for those with essential business travel needs!
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Old May 8, 2020, 8:00 am
  #93  
 
Join Date: Sep 2013
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Posts: 6,399
Originally Posted by Blenz101
...................... I can however see the CCR room reopening and being viable under system, trips in First may suddenly become highly sought after for those with essential business travel needs!
Hmm ..... a couple of thousand pounds or so extra fare, for the benefit of a couple of hours or so in an airport lounge / waiting-room

Perhaps you’re not serious .... but if so ..... you’ll have to excuse my scepticism. I’m inclined to think that even those on (previously) generous expense accounts might have a problem with that ; not least those employed by corporates who could well find themselves tightening the travel budget in the wake of months of lost revenue / profits.
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Old May 8, 2020, 8:51 am
  #94  
 
Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: YVR/LBA
Programs: BA Exec Club (Gold)
Posts: 329
Originally Posted by subject2load
Hmm ..... a couple of thousand pounds or so extra fare, for the benefit of a couple of hours or so in an airport lounge / waiting-room

Perhaps you’re not serious .... but if so ..... you’ll have to excuse my scepticism. I’m inclined to think that even those on (previously) generous expense accounts might have a problem with that ; not least those employed by corporates who could well find themselves tightening the travel budget in the wake of months of lost revenue / profits.
C-suite spending shareholder cash would balance being able to work vs. staying in terminal.

Our travel budget was set pre CV-19 and has gone unused for months.

Not saying this would apply to all sectors but if I was BA I would be marketing lounge access available to ticked First class ticket holders as a benefit rather than reconfiguring the Galleries lounges to let a small % of CW customers in and hiring extra staff to serve them individually.
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Old May 8, 2020, 10:56 am
  #95  
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Programs: BA Lifetime Gold. GGL/CCR.
Posts: 13,248
Originally Posted by Blenz101

Our travel budget was set pre CV-19 and has gone unused for months.
It's likely that it will be reappropriated.
golfmad is offline  
Old May 9, 2020, 3:37 am
  #96  
 
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Newcastle UK
Posts: 1,114
I've checked a number of future bookings on MMB and what I see sort of makes sense. I suspect that seeing as there will be low passenger numbers for some time, that BA will have one lounge open in each location. That lounge being also the one that's more suited to table and bar service, without self serve anything.

I have silver (was to be Gold end June but hey ho!!) and have numerous club bookings that also include CE domestic and all show CCR ex LHR. My bookings ex LGW all show the F lounge.

Maybe this is not a glitch and maybe it's the way forward temporarily. It actually makes lots of sense, all things considered.
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Old May 9, 2020, 4:00 am
  #97  
 
Join Date: Sep 2013
Programs: BAEC Gold, EK Skywards (enhanced Blue !), Oman Air Sindbad Gold
Posts: 6,399
Originally Posted by northeastflyer
............. I suspect that seeing as there will be low passenger numbers for some time, that BA will have one lounge open in each location. That lounge being also the one that's more suited to table and bar service, without self serve anything.


Maybe this is not a glitch and maybe it's the way forward temporarily. It actually makes lots of sense, all things considered.
Well, apart from just a very small number of stations, there has only ever been one lounge available anyway. But I certainly see the logic of your fundamental point.

The very idea of people being happy to touch or handle bottles / utensils / drinks machines / toasters etc etc, previously touched by hundreds of others, is pretty much unthinkable in the current climate ; and for that reason it’s hard to imagine self-serve lounge facilities being safely restored for a long time.
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Old May 9, 2020, 4:09 am
  #98  
 
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Newcastle UK
Posts: 1,114
Originally Posted by subject2load
Well, apart from just a very small number of stations, there has only ever been one lounge available anyway. But I certainly see the logic of your fundamental point.

The very idea of people being happy to touch or handle bottles / utensils / drinks machines / toasters etc etc, previously touched by hundreds of others, is pretty much unthinkable in the current climate ; and for that reason it’s hard to imagine self-serve lounge facilities being safely restored for a long time.
When I said one lounge open I was only referring to LHR and LGW, as in one in LGW South and one in T5.
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Old May 10, 2020, 6:18 am
  #99  
 
Join Date: Jan 2016
Location: Malvern
Programs: BAEC Gold, VS Red, HH Gold
Posts: 93
Lounges at T5
Like many others I now see my lounge access as CCR in my booking, despite not travelling in F or being a CCR cardholder, is this a suggestion of which lounges will be reopened later in 2020 with reduced passenger demand (Galleries T5B is also listed)

Hypothetically (and I know this is like poking the wasps' nest with a cattle prod) Could all premium (Bronze and up, Club, First) checkin and security be moved to the First wing, with only South security being open for everyone else, effectively shutting off the north end of T5A?
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Old May 10, 2020, 9:12 am
  #100  
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Originally Posted by stampcollector
Like many others I now see my lounge access as CCR in my booking, despite not travelling in F or being a CCR cardholder, is this a suggestion of which lounges will be reopened later in 2020 with reduced passenger demand (Galleries T5B is also listed)

Hypothetically (and I know this is like poking the wasps' nest with a cattle prod) Could all premium (Bronze and up, Club, First) checkin and security be moved to the First wing, with only South security being open for everyone else, effectively shutting off the north end of T5A?
CCR showing as the lounge for non-F/CCR cardholder travel is more than likely an MMB error.

Currently, North Security is closed completely (with the exception of connections) and all passengers are consolidated into South Security. Fast Track is not operating here (there is simply no need with so few passengers). In time, as demand increases, I would expect North Security to re-open when required. The First Wing will probably be one of the last elements to reopen.
Last edited by Genius1; May 11, 2020 at 5:57 am
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Old May 11, 2020, 3:37 am
  #101  
 
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: Lincoln, UK
Programs: BAEC Gold, IHG Spire Ambassador, Hilton Diamond, Starbucks Gold
Posts: 1,266
Originally Posted by Genius1
The First Wing will probably be one of the last elements to reopen.
With not a day passing by without Alex Cruz thinking about cost cutting, what is the betting that service commences slightly later than is reasonable. BA must be saving a kings ransom in airport fees from fast track / Gold Wing being closed, lounges closed, minimal food and beverage on board. I have no idea about a daily cost of running all of those areas, but keeping them closed as long as possible after flying resumes more normally may well be high on the wish list for Alex Cruz.
HarryHolden68 is offline  
Old May 13, 2020, 2:00 am
  #102  
 
Join Date: Jun 2017
Programs: BAEC Gold
Posts: 383
Originally Posted by subject2load
Well, apart from just a very small number of stations, there has only ever been one lounge available anyway. But I certainly see the logic of your fundamental point.

The very idea of people being happy to touch or handle bottles / utensils / drinks machines / toasters etc etc, previously touched by hundreds of others, is pretty much unthinkable in the current climate ; and for that reason it’s hard to imagine self-serve lounge facilities being safely restored for a long time.
If this is the fear, and I'm not saying it isn't unfounded or unrealistic, then will lounges ever open again?
webstereo is offline  
Old May 13, 2020, 2:10 am
  #103  
 
Join Date: Oct 2019
Programs: BAEC Silver, Volare Executive / Skyteam Elite+
Posts: 672
If that's the fear in a lounge, what about the airport terminals in general and the planes.... I think once you've determined you'll be stuck in a small tube with a load of people for several hours, that's higher risk than anything likely in a lounge (especially if you pop to wash your hands as needed, easier in the lounge than on the plane...)
the810 likes this.
drwook is offline  
Old May 13, 2020, 2:30 am
  #104  
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Originally Posted by webstereo
If this is the fear, and I'm not saying it isn't unfounded or unrealistic, then will lounges ever open again?
Of course they will. The buffets may be replaced with pre-packaged items or may be serviced rather than self-serve (for a limited time), but other than that there's no difference between a lounge and a restaurant or pub - the latter two of which are scheduled for phased re-opening from July in the UK.
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Old May 13, 2020, 2:39 am
  #105  
 
Join Date: Sep 2013
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Posts: 6,399
Originally Posted by drwook
If that's the fear in a lounge, what about the airport terminals in general and the planes.... I think once you've determined you'll be stuck in a small tube with a load of people for several hours, that's higher risk than anything likely in a lounge (especially if you pop to wash your hands as needed, easier in the lounge than on the plane...)


Not so sure about that ! I reckon I have spent more time waiting to use the washrooms (due to their totally inadequate and ill-conceived set-up), on busy days at the F lounge at T5, often purely to wash my hands, than queueing to visit the loo when actually flying in premium cabins.

But the wider point in my previous post was that lounges are not an essential part of the air travel process - whereas navigating your way through an airport terminal and then on to an aircraft self-evidently is.

if there are ways to minimise contact with surfaces used by others in close proximity, then that would be a welcome change going forward. And for that reason, the traditional arrangement within a self-serve lounge environment is just the sort of thing that could be changed ..... and that change might - stress, might - involve a prolonged period (stretching beyond 2020) of suspension of such facilities.
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