American Airlines will build a new Nashville Admiral’s Club, replacing its current 7,000 square foot Admirals Club with a new 17,400 square foot space.
The new Admirals Club will have outdoor terraces as well as an interior balcony overlooking the airport concourse. It’s exciting both for the larger space, and because it’ll mean a lounge in the airline’s new aesthetic which is a tremendous upgrade. Construction on the new space should begin next year.
Pages 17-19 of the Nashville airport finance committee packet for May 13, 2026 includes details for the project that weren’t released with the announcement last month.
Here’s a layout of the new lounge space:
And here’s a comparison of annual rent expense for the current versus new lounge:
It’s fascinating that American Airlines is borrowing the money to build out the club. They estimate a construction cost of $17,760,000 (at $1,200 per square foot) with the airport covering $5.1 million, and the airport lending $12.6 million to American at 5% interest to be paid back over 10 years, beginning upon the earlier of beneficial occupancy or 12 months after the airline gains access to the construction site.
American Airlines is planning new lounges (including new business class Flagship lounges) in Charlotte and Miami. Charlotte gets its first business class lounge, while Miami gets a new one, allowing the D30 Admirals Club to expand into the old space.
Washington National E Concourse Club
They’re refreshing the Chicago O’Hare Concourse L lounge and the Washington National airport D concourse lounge, and building a new lounge in Austin to replace the current one. Plus, the new terminal F at Dallas – Fort Worth will have a lounge complex.
Rendering of New Austin Club
That’s a much more robust pipeline of lounges than we’ve seen from American in a very long time, and American’s lounges that have been debuted over the past five years have been significantly nicer than the ‘modern hospital’ aesthetic they were using since 2017.
American Airlines Philadephia A West Admirals Club
That is both a premium play and also a Citibank revenue play as their Citi premium cobrand becomes worth more as the Admiral’s Club lounge network becomes larger and nicer.
Is adding to debt an attempt to make the airline less attractive to takeover?
With all the bank cards offering premium lounges why would anyone want an admirals club membership? Phoenix club has all the charm of a car wash and it’s jam packed at the least the car wash and gas stations have self serve options without having to wait on a line to order drinks
They are forced to make their crappy lounges nicer as even Southwest is building clubs
Wow
Excellent! Long-overdue. The existing AC is not ideal. If AA can upgrade BNA, I’d hope they upgrade PHX next, and finally open one at FLL.