Arrival
My positioning flight from BUF arrived in gate B42 near the far end of Terminal 4. Good news is I would have to pass a Delta Sky Club on the way to my Virgin Atlantic gate that evening. This particular Sky Club has a unique open air “Sky Deck” which I have been wanting to check out.
After a quick walk from my gate I found the Sky Club halfway up the B Concourse. I receive access to the Sky Club as a benefit of my American Express Platinum card anytime I’m flying Delta on a same day ticket. Delta also introduced a process where if you Platinum card is linked to your SkyMiles account you don’t need to show your physical card.
When I entered the bottom level of the club several agents were scanning boarding passes and as soon as mine was scanned I was confirmed entry and ushered upstairs. This was a large club and there were several spacious seating areas which ample seating available. This was good since like most lounges there were ample crowds at mid day.
Immediately to the right of the service desk at the top of the stairs was a spa area, something fairly unique to Sky Clubs and lounges.
Since spas really aren’t my thing, I quickly made my way to the bar area. This Sky Club had a tended bar with a robust selection of liquor and beer on tap.
Food & Drink
That area was also crowded but I was able to grab a table. I got a beer and some lunch from the fairly well stocked buffet.
The food was a bit better than your average Sky Club and even came close to Centurion Lounge offerings. Of course there was the staple hummus and flatbreads which paired nicely with my IPA. A Spanish style rice and chicken was also a solid offering.
Sky Deck
After filling up on a hearty lunch I made my way to the crown jewel of the lounge, the Sky Deck. This is one of two open air lounge areas in the Delta network. The other being the Concourse F Sky Club at ATL.
Unlike the scene inside, this exterior seating area was considerably less crowded. It seemed to be younger solo travelers like myself or a few families with children. The fact that it was about 85 degrees in July might have kept the crowds down.
The Sky Deck was a great place to hang out and a plane buff’s dream to view the action around Terminal 4. I was able to find some shade near the wall and relax for a bit until proceeding to my next stop in Terminal 4, the Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse.
Overall Impression
While the club was quite crowded in the mid afternoon, the large size insured that I wasn’t fighting to find a seat like in some other smaller lounges. The food and drink offerings were above average for an airline lounge and the Sky Deck was a neat diversion on my extended layover at JFK. When flying through JFK on Delta I will definitely make a point to stop at the Sky Club in Terminal 4 again.
In Points We Trust 