Amex Platinum dropping American Airlines and US Airways lounge access
Links on Head for Points may support the site by paying a commission. See here for all partner links.
UPDATE – JULY 2025: This is an old article, and the credit card information given is likely to be out of date.
To learn about current credit card bonuses, benefits, terms and interest rate information, take a look at our directory of the top UK travel credit card offers – please click HERE or use the ‘Credit Cards’ menu above. Thank you.
Keep up to date with new UK credit card bonuses by signing up for our free daily or weekly newsletters.
I have written a fair bit on Head for Points about the lounge access benefits of the American Express Platinum card. Indeed, my other post today reminds you that you can even use it to access Eurostar business class lounges.
The Cathay Pacific Gold card (= BA Silver) and the two Priority Pass lounge cards are also very useful.
There has, though, been another lounge benefit for Amex Platinum cardholders. You would receive access to lounges operated by American Airlines and US Airways if you were flying with them on an economy ticket.
This email was just received by Amex Platinum cardholders in the US though:
And, with Amex, what happens in the US tends to happen in the UK at the same time.
The pill has been sweetened for US cardholders with a $200-$500 cashback offer for the purchase of American Airlines or US Airways ‘incidental fees’ such as luggage charges or lounge passes. I doubt that will be available here, if only because cardholders would have made less use of the benefit.
Access to Delta lounges is still available, however, when flying Delta. And, according to the Amex Platinum UK website “bmi Business Lounges”. Good luck with that one ….
Amex also has, interestingly, ‘American Express Platinum’ branded airport lounges in Argentina, Brazil, India and Mexico. These can be used for free with your Platinum card – I did pop in to the Mexico City one about 8 years ago!
They have also recently started rolling out their own lounges at various US airports (eg Las Vegas) although it is not yet clear if UK Platinum card members can get access.
You can, of course, continue to gain access to American Airlines lounges for now with your Cathay Pacific Gold card. However, these are unlikely to be renewed beyond February 2015, given that Cathay will stop issuing them to new Amex Plats in March 2014.
PS. If you are not a regular Head for Points visitor, why not sign up for our FREE weekly or daily newsletters? They are full of the latest Avios, airline, hotel and credit card points news and will help you travel better. To join our 70,000 free subscribers, click the button below or visit this page of the site to find out more. Thank you.
Want to earn more points from credit cards? – July 2025 update
If you are looking to apply for a new credit card, here are our top recommendations based on the current sign-up bonuses.
In 2022, Barclaycard launched two exciting new Barclaycard Avios Mastercard cards with a bonus of up to 25,000 Avios. You can apply here.
You qualify for the bonus on these cards even if you have a British Airways American Express card:
Barclaycard Avios Plus Mastercard
Get 25,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher at £10,000 Read our full review
Barclaycard Avios Mastercard
Get 5,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher at £20,000 Read our full review
You can see our full directory of all UK cards which earn airline or hotel points here. Here are the best of the other deals currently available.
SPECIAL OFFER: Until 15th July 2025, the sign-up bonus on the Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card is TRIPLED to 60,000 Marriott Bonvoy points. This would convert into 25,000 Avios or into 40 other airline schemes. It would also get you at least £300 of Marriott hotel stays based on our 0.5p per point low-end valuation. Other T&C apply and remain unchanged. Click here for our full card review and click here to apply.
SPECIAL OFFER: Until 14th August 2025, the sign-up bonus on the Hilton Honors Plus debit card is TRIPLED to 30,000 Hilton Honors points. You will also receive Gold Elite status in Hilton Honors for as long as you hold the card. Click here for our full card review and click here to apply.
American Express Preferred Rewards Gold Credit Card
Your best beginner’s card – 20,000 points, FREE for a year & four airport lounge passes Read our full review
British Airways American Express Premium Plus Card
30,000 Avios and the famous annual Companion Voucher voucher Read our full review
The Platinum Card from American Express
50,000 bonus points and great travel benefits – for a large fee Read our full review
Virgin Atlantic Reward+ Mastercard
18,000 bonus points and 1.5 points for every £1 you spend Read our full review
Earning miles and points from small business cards
If you are a sole trader or run a small company, you may also want to check out these offers:
The American Express Business Platinum Card
50,000 points when you sign-up and an annual £200 Amex Travel credit Read our full review
The American Express Business Gold Card
20,000 points sign-up bonus and FREE for a year Read our full review
Capital on Tap Pro Visa
10,500 points (=10,500 Avios) plus good benefits Read our full review
Capital on Tap Visa
NO annual fee, NO FX fees and points worth 0.8 Avios per £1 Read our full review
British Airways American Express Accelerating Business Card
30,000 Avios sign-up bonus – plus annual bonuses of up to 30,000 Avios Read our full review
AndyGWP 
sandgrounder 
CV 
Mike 
James67 
Alan 
Volker 
Chris McBride 
invicta 
Nick Burch 
Nathan 
Lady London 
Comments (20)