As noted by Head for Points, Aer Lingus is in the process of switching terminals at JFK, and this has some implications for the passenger experience, including for connections and lounge options.
Continue reading: Aer Lingus Moving To JFK Terminal 7, Using Former Concorde Room
Share your questions, experiences, and thoughts below.
I wonder if this move is to help Aer Lingus expand its partnership with Alaska Airlines? Alaska operates out of terminal 7 and lost same terminal trans-Atlantic connectivity at JFK when BA moved to Terminal 8.
What a shame. Terminal 7 is a dump. It has lousy retail and dining options, very dated, and cramped. The only advantage to EI being there is that with US pre-clearance already in place in Ireland, the walk from plane to curb at JFK T7 is fairly short.
T7 will be torn down once the first phase of the new T6 is completed. The second phase of T6 will be built on the footprint of T7.
Doubt it. With the exception of Portland and San Diego, aer lingus flies everywhere from Dublin that Alaska does from nyc. Aer lingus makes more money flying passengers to San Francisco or Seattle and having them transfer to Alaska in those cities to get to Portland or San Diego, and Alaska displaces fewer local, higher yielding customers out if nyc by doing it that way too. Jet blue probably just told them to get out as they needed the gate space, and their lease was up. I wouldn’t read anything more into it than that.
I find this interesting overall. While there are some connections to/ from JetBlue, the majority of passengers are going to/ from JFK. Despite T7 not being quite as nice as T5, I dont think this is really a huge issue.
You also mentioned the following as a negative aspect of this move:
"Aer Lingus has formally joined the oneworld transatlantic joint venture, yet the integration is very strange; Aer Lingus hasn’t joined oneworld, and doesn’t even have reciprocal mileage earning or redemption, or reciprocal elite perks, with airlines like American"
Not sure how this has anything to do at all with the terminal move either way, despite it definitely being a great observation about how weird the JV with BA And AA functions.
Also, will this lounge in T7 still be called the Concorde Room, or will they rebrand it to an Aer Lingus lounge like they had in T5, meaning that it'll simply be using the space that the former Concorde Room occupied?
Finding Aer Lingus business class award space to/from JFK is virtually impossible. So, hard pass.
I wonder if this will lead to JetBlue opening a Mint lounge in JFK, to become more competitive on TATL routes. They won't neef to change the color palette of the lounge all that much...
Most likely this has something to do with making room for the upcoming T6 redevelopment. JetBlue will temporarily lose some parking spots between T5 and T7. By moving Aer Lingus to T7 this gives JetBlue more gate capacity in T5 to make up for the loss of a couple hardstand spots.
Eventually (if everything holds between EI/B6) Aer Lingus will rejoin B6 under the same roof once T6 is done.
Given Air Lingus' substantial footprint that provides flights to DUB from tons of markets, this would seem to be primarily a New York issue. And, yes it sucks for New Yorkers - but they're already pretty used to suckiness given where they reside. Everyone else can simply fly to DUB from one of the many US markets served by the airline and connect onward from there.
It would make sense for jetblue to build a lounge over there. Did they ever manage to fill that position for the Sr Analyst? Do we know who took the role?
"Will this be turned into retail, or will this finally be JetBlue’s opportunity to create a lounge for JetBlue Mint passengers?"
Not likely that it will be turned into retail since the lounge is all upstairs from the concourse level. I expect it will either be turned into a B6 lounge or retained for EI in some form for when they return to T5. EI has quite a bit of money invested in that lounge, but it's hard to not see this becoming a B6 lounge, finally.
B6 needs a lounge at JFK for sure, for the MINT product and the international long haul network.
My bet is Priority Pass takes over the old EI lounge. Its likely too small to interest Chase, C1 or Amex and B6 have no interest in lounges. If they had, they would already have negotiated access with existing operators.
EI operated a handful of flights a day out of T5 and its lounge is sized accordingly. If B6 wants lounge space for for Mint customers on transcons, London and Paris, it will need much more space.
If EI ever gets around to properly joining OW, their newly re-instated BDL flight would be go-to choice for crossing the Atlantic.
Aer Lingus needs to formally join OneWorld already. Kinda ridiculous the other members haven't forced it yet.
Unlikely that it would still be called the Concorde Room; that's a British Airways trademark. Probably just using the space. We'd have to wait and see how it's furnished, if any of the former CCR furniture still remains or not.
Biggest mistake that the Irish Fianna fail/ PD government made was to sell off
our National airline .
It was done by people who follow Thatcher without question .
Ireland needs its national airline which benefits the country as a whole and not just a few rich stockholders.
Why exactly was that a mistake? The airline has gone from strength to strength in recent years, and it’s not as it it was raking in money for the government. Governments have no business running airlines. Please name any successful airline run by a Government in Europe?
Airline required unsustainable amounts of government subsidy throughout its State ownership. Fares were extremely expensive and flying was for business or rich individuals mainly up to late 1980s. I’d When Ryanair and other budget airlines arrived they changed the business forever. Losses accumulated at Aer Lingus, and it was facing collapse. There is no way it would have survived and expanded routes to the extent it has. It would also have added to the tax burden.
What is not mentioned is where JetBlue will be moving to. If the same terminal with Air Lingus then it will be convenient.