As we all have experienced at one point or another, flying can be somewhat stressful. From ensuring that you’re at the airport early enough to ensure that you don’t lose your boarding pass, there’s a lot to take care of before you even board the plane.
If you have a connecting flight, your travels may be even more of a nuisance. After all, there are few things worse than having to kill a few hours in an airport with nothing to do. While online casinos websites, like those reviewed on Slotsource.com, have helped make time go by, phone battery and reception may render even this joy unattainable.
Thankfully, some airports have tried to dull this boredom while raising funds. To achieve this feat, they have installed slot machines in terminals. These let you spend your time waiting while doing something fun and having the chance to win some extra spending money.
Below are some of the biggest jackpots ever won at an airport slot machine. While some of these certainly don’t measure up to the insane jackpots paid out at casinos in Sin City, they are nothing to smirk at.
- $10.4 million
Unsurprisingly, the largest recorded jackpot was won at Harry Reid International (formerly known as McCarran International). This location is the main airport in Las Vegas and has over 1,500 different slot machines for passengers to play.
This big win occurred in 2010. After hitting the Megabucks jackpot, the lucky player was shocked to see they’d won a staggering $10.4 million. That was definitely enough to cover the winner’s travel tickets!
Sadly, because the win happened over ten years ago, there is very little other information about the win. This includes how much the lucky player bet, who the player was, or where they travelled to or from.
- $3.9 million
Also occurring at Harry Reid International in Las Vegas, the second-biggest recorded jackpot was won in January 2005. While there is no mention of the big winner, records state that it was a female passenger.
The insanely lucky lady cashed out winnings of $3,961,585.14. She won this impressive amount by playing on a simple 25-cent Wheel of Fortune machine. This machine, still one of the most popular in Vegas today, gave her a generous travel allowance for just a few cents.
- $1.6 million
In 2017, after arriving at the airport too early for her flight, Sandra A. decided to try her luck. Flying from – you guessed it – Harry Reid International in Las Vegas, the Californian decided to try her luck on the Wheel of Fortune Pink Diamonds slot machine.
With a simple $5 bet, Sandra managed to win the jackpot, scoring an impressive $1,618,184.28 in winnings. After speaking to the press, she announced that she would return to her work in a salon, grateful for her life-changing win while waiting for her flight.
- $933,080
Also occurring at Harry Reid International in Vegas, one passenger struck it big in 2015 while waiting for her departing flight to begin boarding. The Vegas local was playing on one of the many famous Wheel of Fortune machines when she hit the $933,080 jackpot.
There is no information about the winner other than she put a quarter in the machine and then won big. What is certain is that she must have rejoiced in landing her big windfall before flying out.
- $875,000
Seeming to share the luck of the city it is located in, this next jackpot win also occurred at the Harry Reid International airport in Sin City. The win, which graced a fortunate Californian woman, took place in July 2020.
Playing yet another Wheel of Fortune machine while at the airport, the lucky lady was betting $5 on the penny machine. She struck it lucky and hit the jackpot, claiming a decent $875,000. Unfortunately, not much else is known about the passenger or what she planned to do with her windfall.
- $873,511
Occurring in July 2020, Californian resident Kaoru H. decided to try her luck shortly after landing at Sin City’s Harry Reid airport. She placed a $5 bet on the Wheel of Fortune 4D machine and won an impressive $873,511.
The airport congratulated her on her big win, but there was no other information about what she planned to do with her winnings.
- $328,655
Identified only as William J., the next lucky winner was also travelling through Las Vegas’ Harry Reid International airport when his luck took a significant turn. Playing an undisclosed bet amount, William won $328,654.93 on the (apparently very) popular Wheel of Fortune machine.
William’s great win occurred in March 2022 and proved that anyone passing through the airport could win big.
- $302,334
Happening yet again at Harry Reid airport in Las Vegas, Megan H. was the winner of a sizable jackpot in February 2021. While waiting for her flight to begin boarding, Megan decided to try her luck on the now-famous Wheel of Fortune slots in the airport terminals.
As a fantastic gift before she left Sin City, the slot awarded Megan a jackpot of $302,334.86. The airport soon announced her win on social media, and a video of her excited reaction to her windfall went viral after being posted by Las Vegas Locally on Twitter.
Conclusion
Airport slots have become a popular way to pass the time while waiting for your flight. However, they also allow airports to raise funds to operate. These additional funds allow airports to charge airlines less and, in turn, become discounts that you get to enjoy as a passenger.
More than this, however, the slots at airports give you the chance to win big, even if you’re just passing through. While every win on this list occurred in a Vegas airport, more airports are modernizing the air travel experience and contemplating installing slot machines, which will give you more chances to win the next time you travel.