What Are the Biggest Slot Jackpots Hit at the Airport?

What were the biggest jackpots ever hit on the slot machines at the airport?

Michael J. Gaughan Airport Slot Concession, Inc., has been operating the gaming machines at McCarran International for the past 34 years (since 1985). There are nearly 1,500 machines at the airport. In 2018, the airport made $36 million in revenue from them. As far as we know, the biggest slot jackpot at McCarran occurred in January 2005, when a player hit for nearly $4 million on a 25-cent Wheel of Fortune machine.

IGT operates the machines at Reno-Tahoe International and has for the past 26 years (since 1993). The nearly 250 machines at RNO earn approximately $1.1 million a year. In 2010, an airline passenger hit the Megabucks jackpot at the airport for $10.4 million. That's the largest jackpot we know of at an airport anywhere.

The airports claim that slot machine profits help to lower operating costs, so they can charge the airlines less. In turn, the airlines can lower airfares.

What were the biggest jackpots ever hit on the slot machines at the airport?

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rokgpsman Dec-26-2019

Airport slots

Too bad the agreement to allow slot machines at the airport didn't stipulate that the airport profits from the slot machines had to be used to reduce or eliminate all the extra rental car fees that get tacked on. I doubt the airlines are passing on any lowered operating costs to the passengers.

Steve Dec-26-2019

Uncle Buck

Second biggest win was in July of 2001, $68 and 12 cents

Dave in Seattle. Dec-26-2019

Airport slots.Smoke areas.

The forward thinking people in charge provides a SEPARATE slot area for smokers. It sure is handy to avoid going all the way outside(Past the TSA) to have a smoke.No such room at Sea Tac in Seattle.
  Go out in crappy weather? You had better really need to!
Other air port hubs have these?

David Sabo Dec-26-2019

Bill breaker and ticket breaker machines

Reno has them and Vegas airport doesn't. I enjoy the speed of using the machines. Why is Vegas purely human touch for redemption?

Edso Dec-26-2019

Reno Airport

My wife hit a diamond hopper for $400 in August 2001 while I was getting our rental car.  Start to to great weekend.  Upgraded room at the Reno Hilton, saw Sinbad in concert, I hit a quarter Royal, and we saw Ray Charles.

Jeffrey Small Dec-26-2019

"Work them off"

In the old PSA terminal at LAS I hit a jackpot--$200 I think.  Back then the machines paid in gaming tokens.  Suddenly I had 200 of them.  When I asked the attendant to cash them in for me she said "work them off"--put them back in the machine and lose them!  I told her that my flight was leaving shortly (true!) and I really didn't have time, so she angrily handed me holders--I had to stack the coins in rows to get her to cash them in!  Then I ran to the gate to (just barely) make my flight!

Question of the Day - 26 December 2019

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