No hot food, paper plates and no power points.
It’s all change (again) at Terminal 3 as BA makes its fifth lounge move in as many years. The huge Galleries lounge is a distant memory. The airline has ping-ponged between its original lounge, the Escape lounge, a short-lived space in the 1903 lounge, back to the Escape, and now to a brand-new lounge. Don’t get excited though, this is a space that’s been built in a corridor. And here’s a bit of a surprise – the lounge is shared with On The Beach.
What’s happening?
BA premium passengers and fliers with status had, up to the 9th May 2025, used the Escape Lounge at Terminal 3. It wasn’t the best, but it wasn’t the worst.
As a shared lounge (anyone could buy access to it) the Escape was never going to be the Qatar First Class lounge, but it was perfectly passable. I’ve had many a morning or afternoon in there, and as long as you could get a decent seat, then you were fine. The window seats were usually reserved for paying customers.
That Escape lounge has now closed. That space will be knocked into the original BA lounge and turned into a sports bar. MAN T3 is very leisure traffic heavy, and once BA move to Terminal 2, it will be exclusively for Ryanair. A sports bar makes sense, but only after British Airways moves out.
The closure of the Escape Lounge meant that BA had no lounge. In fact, it means there is no lounge in T3 at all. That causes problems for BA, but also On The Beach.
What exactly is the new lounge?
The new lounge is a space near a gate that has been converted into a room. It’s officially called The Hangar Lounge. Doors have been added to create an element of privacy, so it’s not just the end of a corridor but rather a whole new room that’s been formed.
On one hand, it’s a space that you can enter and eat food in. On the other hand, it does feel very “Manchester Airport” to turn what is effectively a corridor into a “premium lounge”. Needs must, and in this case, the need was to start work on the sports bar rather than focus on premium passengers.
What’s the food like at the new BA lounge?
Firstly, there are no hot food options. For breakfast, there is a selection of pastries, muffins, pots of fruit, and yoghurts. There’s also some overnight oats, filled croissants (cold) and fruit. According to early reports, you have to use paper plates.
For lunch, there’s a wide selection of sandwiches, salad pots, and crisps. For dessert, there are muffins, scones, and jam doughnuts. If the latter is the same as what they had in the old 1903 lounge, then they are very nice.
There’s a coffee machine, transplanted from the old Escape Lounge (it still has the logo on it). They served up a decent cup. Alcohol options include bottled beers, including Sol and Heineken Alcohol Free.
Where is the new lounge?
It’s located a floor below security and check-in, where gates 37 and 38 are. When you leave security, you’ll see a sign that says “Premium Lounge”. Normally, you’d turn right here to go into the main T3 departures area, but instead, turn left and go down the stairs. There’s also an elevator.
There is a set of security gates that you’ll need to use your boarding pass to access. These are similar to the ones you used to use when flying BA from the previous gates.
If you walk past gates 37 and 38, there will be a set of doors ahead of you, and a sign for “Hangar Lounge”, which is what MAN are calling the new space.
What does the new BA lounge at MAN look like?
Thanks to Flyertalk members Xenole and GCUK for letting me publish their pictures in this article.
Why have we ended up with a lounge at the end of a corridor?
Take your pick from:
- Poor planning from MAN
- BA was originally due to move to T2 by now, but has been held up by concerns about the terminal’s ability to handle domestic flights efficiently.
- This was the plan all along.
It’s not unheard of to have a lounge experience that’s just a roped-off area. When BA used to fly a business-class-only flight from London City to New York – an experience I really wanted to try, but they cancelled it before I had a chance – there wasn’t any room at LCY for a lounge, so they built a space.
However, it’s really not ideal. They have done the best they could, but is it really good enough?.
Who can access this lounge?
This lounge is not exclusive to BA, in fact, there are a number of ways you get access:
- British Airways passengers, either by cabin (Club Europe) or by status (Silver and above, or equivalent oneworld status)
- On The Beach passengers
- Priority Pass cardholders
- Via Lounge Key
- Dragon Pass members
- DreamFolks Club cardholders
- Diners Club
What’s the deal with On The Beach?
On The Beach is a provider of package holidays, utilising low-cost carriers like Ryanair, Jet2 and easyJet. One of the perks of booking with them is that you get lounge access. That means if you’re on a Ryanair flight with them, you’ll be in T3, but there are no lounges open.
OTB passengers will now be directed to The Hangar.
What happens after BA moves from T3?
For BA passengers, it should improve (after years of decline). The upcoming move to Terminal 2 will mean a new terminal and a new lounge to call home. The current rumours are that a new “airline invitation lounge” will be launching, i.e., a shared lounge between airlines, but without paid access, or via lounge membership schemes. Whether MAN could resist the temptation to monetise it via passengers is questionable.
For T3 there are no plans to have any lounge open in that terminal building. The old BA and Escape lounges will be converted into a sports bar, and the old 1903 lounge (which, in my opinion, was the best lounge in the terminal) will not reopen. In fact, the 1903 lounge brand is expected to cease altogether.
The BA/Hangar lounge will close. What is expected to happen is that T3 will connect to what is currently T1, and you will be able to access the lounge space within that.
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