I had a pretty frustrating experience at EWR today and was wondering if anyone has run into something similar.
I flew VIE to EWR to PWM on a business class (J) fare as a United Platinum and Star Alliance Gold member. My first flight was marketed by United but operated by Austrian Airlines.
When I tried to enter the Polaris Lounge at Newark, I was denied access because the flight was a codeshare operated by Austrian rather than a United-operated flight. The staff directed me to the regular United Club instead.
Unfortunately, I was denied there as well. The staff explained that even though my ticket carried a United flight number, it was still a codeshare, so lounge access wasn't included. I also mentioned my Star Alliance Gold status and that I was arriving from an international itinerary, but they said that once I landed in Newark, my trip was considered domestic and didn't qualify.
What makes this even more confusing is that a colleague of mine flew from Vienna through Washington Dulles on a similar itinerary and had no issues accessing the Polaris Lounge there.
Has anyone else experienced this with a codeshare itinerary? Is United intentionally limiting lounge access on partner-operated flights to encourage booking directly on United-operated aircraft?
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