American Airlines' new Dallas/Fort Worth Flagship first class lounge

American Airlines’ new Flagship Lounge at Dallas/Fort Worth Airport is now open, bringing a significant upgrade not only for AA passengers travelling domestically and abroad, but also for eligible Qantas travellers taking the 17-hour journey aboard QF8 from Dallas to Sydney, who can also stop by.

Located in Terminal D near gate 22 – the same terminal used by Qantas and a short walk from the departure gates normally used by QF8 – the Flagship Lounge offers seating for 350 guests across a variety of zones, and there’s no shortage of natural light during the day.

A buffet dining zone serves up dishes like Texas brisket in adobo sauce and Korean-style chicken wings…

… with a rotating chef-action station also offering omelettes in the mornings and savoury pancakes later in the day, aside wine, Champagne, craft beer and other beverages.

The Flagship Lounge features two quiet rooms, individual work pods and eight showers, with access open to Qantas business class and first class passengers, along with Qantas Gold, Platinum, Platinum One, Chairman’s Lounge and other Oneworld Sapphire and Emerald frequent flyers.

This covers not only passengers departing on the evening QF8 flight to Sydney, but also those arriving into Dallas on QF7 and connecting onwards with American Airlines to one of 234 other destinations.

A section of the lounge is reserved exclusively for American Airlines’ own ‘Flagship First’ first class flyers – and occasionally by invitation, AA ConciergeKey members – branded as Flagship First Dining.

Similar to AA’s other Flagship First Dining facilities such as in Los Angeles, this 54-seat space serves as a complimentary restaurant for those eligible passengers, specialising in local crowd pleasers like slow-braised pork shoulder, double-smoked beef brisket and Texas pecan pie: not to mention, there’s Krug Champagne.

Qantas Club passengers who aren’t departing on or connecting from an international business class or first class flight – such as on a premium economy ticket to Sydney, or before an AA domestic flight – can instead visit a newly-renovated Admirals Club not far away at gate 23.

Here, guests will also find showers, power outlets, wine, spirits and craft beer, including from local breweries in Dallas, Fort Worth and Houston, with the combined footprint of these new lounges now 67% larger than the facilities they replace – equivalent in size to 1.5 football fields.

Both the Flagship Lounge and the Admirals Club open daily from 5am until 10:15pm, catering to QF8’s 10:25pm departure, with Flagship First Dining open from 8am to 10pm daily for eligible American Airlines passengers.

For more information about access rules for the Flagship Lounge – particularly for American Airlines’ AAdvantage frequent flyers travelling with American, where different rules apply – head to the AA website.

Also read: American Express opens new Centurion Lounge at Dallas/Forth Worth

Chris C.

Chris is a a former contributor to Executive Traveller.