Got complaints about American Airlines? Share them here.
This is the first in a series of posts to harness the desire of people on the internet to have their load, complaining voice heard. If you came here with a beef about American Airlines’ service, its punctual nature, the pilots, the flight attendants, the ticket prices, the seats, whatever — you’ve come to the right place. Post a comment with your complaint below.
See the rest of the Airline Complaints series here.
More from Flight Blog
- Got a complaint about United Airlines? Share it (and see others’ complaints) here
- Share your complaints about Qantas Airlines
- Dear Continental Airlines (great flight horror story)
- United Airlines vs. musicians, round two: Bass Guitar
- Complaint of the Month: United Airlines calls police on traveler who complains about service
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- Been a while since I rapped at ya’, (Joe, Write!)
- Plan: Awesome Summer (Joe, Write!)
- Fruitful thought experiments (Joe, Write!)
- Frontier Airlines: Same "different animal" (Carrying On: Travel Blog)
- Disney World: The Magical Land of Forced Fun (Mile High Mamas)
- Our American Girl Adventure (Mile High Mamas)
Related Posts:
- Got praise for American Airlines? Share it here
- Complaints about Spirit Airlines? Get in line … er, share them here
- Got complaints about Northwest Airlines? Share them here (and see what other people are complaining about)
- Got complaints about ATA Airlines? Share them here (and see what other people say)
- Got a complaint about United Airlines? Share it (and see others’ complaints) here
January 16th, 2008 at 6:51 pm
Dear All, PLEASE READ ALL OF IT I KNOW ITS LONG BUT I AM SURE YOU HAVE SIMILAR STORY TO LOG!
If you can avoid traveling on AA flights please do so..We were supposed to fly from Maimi to London Stansted via JFK last week Thursday 9 Jan 08. Departure time was 2.20pm. When we got to the airport we were told that the plane is delayed and now we should be leaving at 4.25pm. We decided to check-in (another story! nightmare at miami airport) my husband and 9 year old son had lunch at Burger King while i only had a cup on tea since i was not too hungry…
After lunch we went thru security checks, and headed towards our departure gate. when we arrived at the departure gate we were told by a very rude agent that the departure Gate had now been changed and we must to go to a different gate! I asked the agent why we were not told this at the time of check-in ETC, he rudely replied saying this was not his fault and the announcement had been made several times, it was not his fault if we didnt hear him.. PS.WE WERE NOT THE ONLY FAMILY/TRAVELERS HE WAS SAYING THIS TO!!!
So, once again we were on our way to a new departure gate, it took us about 20mins to reach this gate …BY THEN PEOPLE HAD STARTED BOARDING THE PLANE.
By the time we sat in our seats we realised that we may miss our connecting plane from JFK to London which was to depart at 7.45pm! In a panic i asked a flight attend , she flatly told me that there is another flight from JFK to London, so if we do miss our flight they can re-protect us!
Well, now the real horror begins! we were told that we were not going to fly at all! there was something wrong with the plane and that they are trying their best to rectify the problem……..during this time, we were not offered any drinks! not even a glass of water!
Finally the plane took off 7pm, at this time the trolly dollies offered hot and soft drinks!!!
Since we departed around 7pm, we knew that we will definately miss our fight. We were assured by flight attendent that upon our arrival to JFK their agentd will take care of us and will get us on another plane to LONDON, i said to him that we wanted to go to LONDON STANSTED, he said to me that he didnt know which airport the next flight is going to all he knows is there are 2 planes leaving when we get to JFK and they are to fly to LONDON..
We finally arrived at JFK i think around 9.15pm, and all 55 to 60 people who had now missed their connection to London were running around, looking for someone to help us! we were finally told to go to gate no.4, there we should see their ground staff….
when we arrived at gate 4, there was a crowd of people, all wanting to get on the flight which was departing at 10pm and was going to Heathrow. My husband went to the desk and tried to get a reply from one of the staff who told him that we were booked on the next flight, this flight was going to also Going to Heathrow, and was due to depart at 11.45pm.
When the rush was over , around 15 of us were left, my husband asked the agent to check us in to the flight leaving at 11.45pm, she entered our name in the computer and told us that we were NOT BOOKED ON THE NEXT FIGHT, WE WERE BOOKED ON THE FLIGHT LEAVING AROUND 8.45 AM NEXT MORNING, at this time I lost my cool and told her we didnt want to go tomorrow morning, we wanted to leave tonight….she just screamed at me and told me she cannot do anything about this, its not her problem and she is no longer on duty ..if we need help we must now go to GATE NUMBER 2, 11.45pm flight departs from this gate and the agent is to take care of her..she sighed out of her system and left us standing there along with other stunned people!!!
By this time AMERICAN AIRLINE STAFF did not even offer us any food or even a bottle of water! my 9 years old son was starving and so was my husband and I. there were 1 bar and 1 resturant, i said to my husband that we should get something to eat when we have sorted out our fight…as we were discussing this we saw shutters coming down and the bar and resturant were about to close!!!!!
We managed to go to a shop and got few packets of crips/chips, water and some juice..
When the agent finally appeared at gate no.2 we begged her to put us on this flight, she told us we would have to go as STANDBY. We were to hang around until 11.30pm and only then she can help us since we were not a PRIORITY.NOTE: WE BOOKED AND PAID FOR THIS TRIP 4 MONTHS PRIOR TO OUR DEPARTURE..
We were finally allowed on the plane but our seats were not together, i begged her to give us at least 2 seats together do that our son and I can sit together. I was told that was not possible and we should be greatful that we are now going home!
as we were boarding the plane, i asked one of the attendent to help me get a seat near my son, i was told to do it myself, they are not going to ask any one on my behalf…
I then asked a very kind man, explained the situation to him and he gave uo his seat so that i could sit next to my 9 years old son, my husband was sitting right at the back.
They started serving dinner around 1am, (THE FLIGHT THAT WE HAD MISSED WE HAD REQUESTED SPECIAL MEALS) i asked the attendent if they had any kosher or vege meals, his reply was NO, since you didnt pre-order we dont have anything for you, he said just eat the roll and salad (few leaves snd s quater tomato) By then i wanted to cry, i was starving but my son was even more hungry! but i guess they couldnt do anything for us…
I am waiting for my mobile phone bill to arrive because i had to call my family several times to update them and to given them information about our new flight number and change of airport.
We finally reached home at around 4pm-London time on friday, it felt like we had lost 2 days….
We have told this story to all our friends and family, and do hope they dont ever fly with American Airline.
THE END
January 22nd, 2008 at 9:38 am
You are not alone with AA problems..
Since Qantas does not respond to our attempts on ..contacting you. We have now activly spent the weekend blogging all over the internet in the US, Europe and Asia about our experiences. We now have posted the message below on 41 web sites.
We have also filed formal complaints at the US Departement of Transportation (http://airconsumer.ost.dot.gov), and at a variety of massivly used web sites such as aircomplaints.org and airsafe.com as well posted the message at several web sites used by trail lawyers looking for consumer fraud for possible class action law suits.
We have also written to your board members personally at their home addresses and will start with the media next weekend.
Do you want to do what is right, or do you want a prolonged public fight before you are forced to do it anyway?
Dr. Berg
——————————————-
After spending almost $10,000 on plane tickets to Austalia for our family vacation, Quantas refused to give a single frequent flier mile to our American Airline accounts (they are one-world alliance partners).
However, after the travel is completed, Quantas instructs American Airlines, that the flights does not “qualify for frequent flier milage”. No such stipulations were made when we booked the tickets, after confirmation, nor is it printed on our intiniary, tickets, boarding passes,emailed confirmations or receipts.
Only after travel is completed and paid for do they refuse credits. Quantas, also does not respond to emails nor direct contacts.
DETAILS:
We bought the tickets (5 of them) on Qantas web site (not American Airlines) and paid Qantas. The ariline never told us that miles was not awarded during the search, booking process nor the payment process. When we added our frequent flier miles numbers nothing was told, when the flight was rebooked by the airline, nor when we flew, they never provided any information in any confirmation, ticket, boarding pass or receipt.
It was only after the flight was completed that they refused any credits.. We paid almost $1,800 per ticket and was basically defrauded. Here is what Qantas sent us as confirmation when we booked on-line at their web site (see if you can find any reference to no ff miles beside the ‘N’ class which they later told us meant we got nothing)..
INITINARY 12JUN IAD LAX
——————————————————————————–
QANTAS ITINERARY ABN 16 009 661 901
QANTAS AIRWAYS CONTACT CENTRE USA 14JANUARY07
2801 E. ELVIRA BUILDING B
TUCSON AZ 85706 PH 1 800 227 4500
BOOKING REF: Z65AWB
YOUR ITINERARY AND TRAVEL DETAILS:
QANTAS AIRWAYS QF3082 ECONOMY CLASS (N) CONFIRMED
DEPART 12JUN07 WASHINGTON/DULLES INTL 1745
ARRIVE 12JUN07 LOS ANGELES/INTL 2020
OPERATED BY AA AMERICAN AIRLINES
ARRIVES AT TERMINAL 4 5:35 DURATION
AIRCRAFT : BOEING 757-200/300 NON SMOKING
SEATS (SUBJECT TO CHANGE) : 15A 15B 15C 15D 15E
—————————————————————-
QANTAS AIRWAYS QF12 ECONOMY CLASS (N) CONFIRMED
DEPART 12JUN07 LOS ANGELES/INTL 2230
ARRIVE 14JUN07 SYDNEY/KINGSFORDSMITH 0605
DEPARTS FROM TERMINAL 4
ARRIVES AT TERMINAL 1 14:35 DURATION
AIRCRAFT : BOEING 747-400 NON SMOKING
SEATS (SUBJECT TO CHANGE) : 52H 52J 52K 53J 53K
—————————————————————-
QANTAS AIRWAYS QF11 ECONOMY CLASS (N) CONFIRMED
DEPART 08AUG07 SYDNEY/KINGSFORDSMITH 1325
ARRIVE 08AUG07 LOS ANGELES/INTL 0945
DEPARTS FROM TERMINAL 1
ARRIVES AT TERMINAL 4 13:20 DURATION
AIRCRAFT : BOEING 747-400 NON SMOKING
—————————————————————-
QANTAS AIRWAYS QF3003 ECONOMY CLASS (N) CONFIRMED
DEPART 08AUG07 LOS ANGELES/INTL 1415
ARRIVE 08AUG07 WASHINGTON/DULLES INTL 2200
OPERATED BY AA AMERICAN AIRLINES
DEPARTS FROM TERMINAL 4
4:45 DURATION
AIRCRAFT : BOEING 737-800 NON SMOKING
January 31st, 2008 at 7:19 pm
You know what, all airlines are the same! They are taking you from one place to another…. under the same federal regulations! So consider that the next time you fly! I travel ~250 days out of the year on every airlines you can think of. So when you travel only once or twice a year and do not get your way because you did not get your FREE bottle of water, think of me… I put up with delays and unexpected transfers all the time. Next time when the airlines dosen’t treat you like royality… remember you are only going to spend ~$1500.00 a year with them when I will spend that with them in a WEEK! Quit acting like airlines needs to treat you like something special; you are only paying for a public bus ride in the sky…….they only owe you a ride from one place to another!
February 3rd, 2008 at 12:04 pm
Happy AA Customer, get over yourself. You are probably an employee of the airline. There are so many website that talk about how poor American Airlines’ service is, including poor attitude of the pilots, FAs, baggage problems, etc.
If you want to spend $1500.00 on American Airlines a week, when you could have money in your bank account by finding a lower fare with better service, you are crazy. The airlines are a business like every other business and if customers are not happy they have a right to take their business elsewhere. Come on, admit it–you work for AA. In the promotions department maybe?
February 4th, 2008 at 11:57 am
I totally agree with the author of “what a load if CRAP” i think the “Happy AA Customer” is working for AA or if not has family working for them……and for the record i didnt not spend USD 1500.00 the fare was much higher… and yes when ever you pay for something you expect a good service….
February 5th, 2008 at 8:59 pm
I suggest the following…
Caveat Emptor
Let the buyer beware..
Dr Berg above said he spent $10k on tickets and didn’t get a ff mile…
BooHoo.
I spend more than that on ONE flight for ONE person.
And I travel at least 3-4 times a month.
I know the system and I check everything.
If you were so concerned about FF miles wouldn’t you check to make sure you were buying the right fare class. QANTAS and AA both publish the fare class eligibility tables on their websites.
Also all of this happened in JUNE of 2007. Bit late Doc….Shoulda started sooner.
get a clue before you whinge.
February 6th, 2008 at 5:18 pm
Mr. “Regular Flier”….What a jerk!! Do you work for Qantas (if not you certainly qualify with that ignorant rude basterdly attitude).. The fact that you are as stupid as your are pretentious ($10K per flight,… look at me). Remember others fly 100+ flights each year also…
This case has ran for 5 months and will not go away. Look at my new web site http://www.qantassucksworld.com where I am getting even…
February 6th, 2008 at 5:22 pm
After Qantas ignored me and did nothing to help with my FF milage issue I got even. Here is the new web site where customers can tell their stories publicly about Qantas (not a blog)
http://www.qantassucksworld.com
February 22nd, 2008 at 4:24 pm
I missed a flight from Dallas to Seattle because the security check line was too long, so I was put on standby for the next flight, my bad, the airline was nice so far. However all the flights for the rest of the day were running full and I needed to get to Seattle urgently so I got myself a one way ticket to Seattle from the airport. I called AA just to make sure I still have me seat for the return flight although I missed my outgoing flight. The operator said no I dont and that I have to pay an extra $100 to keep the seat. I said let me get this straight – Im already screwed having to buy myself a one way ticket, and to add insult to the insult to the injury you are cancelling my return reservation unless I pay you more? I did the whole talking to the supervisor thing, but to no avail, and had to end up paying those extortion artists the hundred bucks. I think this policy is ridiculous and someone aught to sue them for it.
Another sour encounter I had the misfortune of having with American is when I was flying from Chicago to New Delhi. When meals came they were telling everyone that we have a choice between beef with macNcheese and a veggie meal. The indian lady sitting in the seat ahead of me enquired what was in the veggie meal. She was curtly informed that they do not know. When my turn came for the food, I asked for the beef and mac, and I said to the steward that it would be nice to know whats in the veggie meal too. He acted like I had killed his cat and rudely took out a veggie meal, shoved it in front of me and asked me to figure out myself whatever it is. I said I cant tell for sure from the way it looked but if he did not know the menu there must be some way for him to find out, it would benefit all passengers. He said if I have a problem I should talk to customer service. I decided not to pursue that any more since we were not getting anywhere, but the incident did leave a bad tasted in my mouth. I think it is basic courtsey for an airline to inform passengers what they are being given to eat, but maybe thats just me…
February 24th, 2008 at 6:01 pm
All I know is that whenever I fly to USA I would rather spend those extra pounds and fly with another airline NOT AA EVER EVER EVER AGAIN. they are cheap but not chearful to say the least………… MY ADVISE IS SPEND EXTRA CASH AND FLY WITH SOMEONE OTHER THAN AA….
March 15th, 2008 at 3:38 pm
Hi all.
A few days ago, I purchased tickets from AA.com (LAX-DFW-LHR-JFK-LAX) for myself and a friend at about AUD600 each. According to my credit card statement and AA.com, I have paid for these tickets and they have been “ticketed”.
Imagine my surprise to find that AA.com have now charged me twice for the same tickets! Clearly an administrative error (no surcharges, taxes, etc – it’s the same tickets that have been billed twice).
I keep calling the Indian call centre, and only speak to staff who seem to have no idea what I’m going on about (and also, couldn’t give a damn).
I will be in America from Australia in two weeks time, and I suppose I can get it fixed up at an AA ticket counter while I’m there – it just strikes me as being REALLY dodgy that they can charge you twice and not even know about it. But not only that – it’s a massive pain in the arse to have the funds on my credit card tied up when I need them for something else. The inconvenience to me has been huge.
Does anyone know of a number I can call to get results? And do you think I’d be pushing my luck if I asked for some kind of compensation for the inconvenience? Perhaps a cabin upgrade?
No, on second thoughts, I’m not that kind of person. I don’t want something for nothing – I just want things to go right. It’s my first time with AA, and probably my last – they can’t even sell me a ticket without stuffing up…
March 29th, 2008 at 4:07 pm
Hi Steve,
Best of luck mate, i do hope u get ur money back from them!!! why dont you try to dispute the amount that u didnt authorise to pay? i am sure you will get it back from your credit card company prior to leave OZ ????
Also, dont bother asking for compensation or a free upgrade! they simply dont give a shit about us…as you can see above from my blog!!! ….
December 31st, 2008 at 5:56 am
All I can say is that I LOATHE American Airlines. The fight staff is rude beyond belief, for no reason whatsoever. They act like the stereotypical cocky young policeman—really over whelmed and abusive of his/her “power” over the consumers who pay their salaries. This one flight attentdant shrieked at my 15 year old daughter to turn off her cell phone– the attitude was clearly unnecessary. Another male flight attendant walked by me, and I TAPPED him on the back to get his attention, and he refused to talk to me, claiming I wasn’t allowed to poke him (little baby). My husband then heard him saying to his fellow attentand that “I could be arrested” for touching him. What a jerk. A glorified waitress. I will NEVER EVER fly on that messed up airline again. I told the captain, but what does he care. They all probably think of the passengers as “the enemy”. A truly sick bunch. Next time I go to the Carribean, or anywhere else, I will find another carrier. PS– what is the point of posting these entries if AA doesn’t see them?
February 21st, 2009 at 9:48 am
I took flight 280 for the past two times few month ago. I have noticed that the flight attendants should have restriction in wearing perfums. I have alergy and I been sick taking that flight. I would never take AA again……I will let all my friends about this
February 21st, 2009 at 9:48 am
I took flight 280 for the past two times few months ago. I have noticed that the flight attendants should have restriction in wearing perfumes. I have allergy and I been sick taking that flight. I would never take AA again……I will let all my friends about it.
February 21st, 2009 at 4:32 pm
My family took a trip from England to Vegas from 7th to 14th Feb 09 with American Airlines. The flight out from Manchester, England was pretty good. The air crew were polite and helpful. The way back was a totally different story. Half of the flight crew slept in their comfortable seat/sleep areas for the 7 hours flight back. I would not begrudge anybody this, if the rest of the crew were able to carry out their duties for such a large flight adequately. Alas, they were not. The air con was clearly faulty on the middle section of the plane. People were almost fainting. We kept asking for water or to be allowed to walk around to the back of the plane to at least cool down (we were stripped down to clothes that were touching on decency, but still people were overwhelmed by the heat). I sneaked to the back of the plane in the ‘crew seats’ near the bathroom (these are passenger seats only not on this prticular flight!) to try to cool down for 10 minutes and was treated like a criminal for daring to sit somewhere in the plane that was not like a suana. The trolly dollies put on the seatbelt sign, shouted at me to return to my seat and approx an hour later circulated with teany glasses of water for passengers. By this time i was absolutely sweltering. It resulted in me having a panic attack, leading to an asthma attack – none of which they were equiped to deal with. They shephareded me to a back row seat (where i’d being trying to cool down initially) with my sister on hand to deal with me. They were completely uninterested and not once did they come to see if i was okay once i’d returned to my own seat having had just a short 10 mins in their precious seats to cool down – this was all i needed, as did many in that middle section.
The cabin crew themselves were appalling – i honestly expected someone to jump out and scream that we were all on candid camera, it was so terrible. They were surly, unhelpful, rude and left all of my family (there were 8 of us travelling) feeling we were being a nuisance by simply asking for a drink of water to prevent from passing out, asking for the temperature to please to be sorted out, or even getting out of our seat and explaining we needed to go to the bathroom. This was my 3rd visit to the States from the UK – first with American Airlines and certainly the last. I have flown with Continental and Delta previously and both were infinately better than the motley crew at AA. Given today’s economic climate, you would think that airlines (as all company’s) need to look after their customers in order to survive. If this is the attitude of AA, they deserve to loose out in these difficult times. Their flight crew would then, and only then, have reason to be so surly, rude and seemingly cheesed off at the world!
Sam
March 3rd, 2009 at 4:28 pm
I will never fly American Airlines again! Their policy of charging a $150 fee to rebook when fares go down is extremely customer un-friendly. (By contrast, you can rebook on Southwest for free.) Also, they could not explain why the taxes shown on the e-ticket confirmation were $20 more than shown on the itinerary screen. Do yourself a favor and call stay away from American!
March 3rd, 2009 at 4:29 pm
I will never fly American Airlines again! Their policy of charging a $150 fee to rebook when fares go down is extremely customer un-friendly. (By contrast, you can rebook on Southwest for free.) Also, they could not explain why the taxes shown on the e-ticket confirmation were $20 more than shown on the itinerary screen. Do yourself a favor and stay away from American!
May 12th, 2009 at 8:57 am
With displeasure and annoyance we have to inform our friends and sponsors of a damage to the View e. V. (The View Society) caused by American Airlines.
Until today American Airlines did not bother to send an apology for their disgraceful behaviour, or even refund the outstanding amount of 226 USD, which had to be paid from donation money of the View Society.
Please consider the unbelievable behaving of AmericanAirlines when you book your next flight. Next time it might be you to suffer from the ignorance and sloppy work of American Airlines.
The letter to American Airlines has been attached at the website.
http://www.view-ev.de/aa.html
June 1st, 2009 at 7:49 am
As of last night, American Airlines has managed to lose my bag for the third time in 2 months! Twice in 2 weeks!! Counter people at airport don’t try to help you. They barely even look at you once you get upset. Called 800# last night three times. First lady hung up on me when I stated asking questions. Others sounded like they were reading scripted information. Miami is approximately 120 miles from Ft. Myers. They said next available flight is not until Monday night at 6:pm and then they get a 4 hour window to deliver. Well, this morning I have another trip for business and need contents of the bag. Also, have other business things in there. I understand things can happen. I understand maybe I should not check things. But 3 times in 2 months, and not so much as a sincere apology or offer of any compensation or anyone taking time to help find a solution that would make me feel better?? They could ground transport if theywanted to or re-route bag through a different city to reach Ft. Myers earlier. In the bag claim folder it says that “our baggage service department will contact you periodically to keep you informed of our progressinlocating your baggage.” I landed at 10 pm last night, it is now 9:40 am and nothing from them yet. The three people I spoke with made it very they would not be contacting me until it was ready for delivery tonight. One operator frankly replied to my request that they call me when it is located that”any joe blow out on the tarmac is not going to stop and call me when they find my bag. just not going to happen” I could go on and on. If this is how they treat “Advantage Priority” customers I would hate to see how everyone else is treated. I welcome suggestions on how to get the word out about how this has been treated.
June 2nd, 2009 at 8:30 am
[...] This American Airlines horror story comes courtesy of the comments on the (quite active) American Airlines complaint thread here: [...]
March 17th, 2010 at 6:30 pm
Mexican airport security doesn’t allow you to carry bottled water on any flights. On a flight from Cabo Mexico to Chicago (4 hour flight),3/15/10, AA would not sell me a bottle of water. Beverage service did come by once, but that little Dixie-cup size of bottled water they serve in an open plastic glass was not enough for such a long flight, plus you have to keep your eye on it so it doesn’t spill. Why don’t they have the individual size bottles of water for sale? Incredibly annoying.
July 16th, 2010 at 11:26 am
I am furious about the way how AA handle mistakes when reported to them. First of all I booked my ticket originally for the 24th of July, from Boston to Port of Spain, but when I heard that my mom was dying of cancer I needed to get there sooner than I thought, so I called in to change my ticket date to an earlier flight, which was paid for and dated to the 19th. The agent confirmed my email address and said I would recieve an email. This change took place on 7/7/10. I kept checking my email and there was non until today 7/16/10 finally checked and saw my itinery. when I opened the itinery the the flight arrival location was changed by the agent from Port of Spain to Port Au Prince. I was very angry because #1 what if I had just showed up at the airport to find out about this dilema. Anyway I called AA right away to report this mistake and I was told I had to pay an extra fee for them to change it back from Port Au Prince to Port of Spain. OMG. The state of shock that I was in. I did not recieve the service that I requested and paid for and on top of it I had to pay for a change in location that was no fault of mine. The supervisor was very rude. Not once did she apologized for the mistake that was made by the employee. She came off as if it was my fault. Never again will I fly with nor recomend my friends and family members to American Airline. This was very poor service and an apology would have helped but there was none. Just poor customer service on the whole.
August 11th, 2010 at 10:15 am
I flew from Palm Springs to London via LAX and even though I checked in all the way at Palm Springs, when I got to LAX they told me the flight was full. When I complained they said they would compensate me with $400.
When I got the $400 it was a voucher worth $400 of another AA flight and had an expiry date on it!
September 17th, 2010 at 5:00 pm
Facts:
I had a direct flight to JFK from SFO on Thursday 10:50 pm – flight 18 – American Airlines
I took the red eye flight just so that I can be in New York for the whole day on Friday to see my friends leaving the day after – on Saturday
Our 10:50 pm flight was delayed to 11:25 pm
Then the flight was delayed to 1:00 am
Then the flight was cancelled without giving any reasons for cancelling the flight
Only two counters were opened for “helping customers” – the whole flight was in line
A number was distributed so we can call and “reschedule”
I called the number to talk to a representative
The representative offered me only AA flights – the only nonstop being at New York at 10 pm (about 15 hours later than I planned to)
When I told him I can see other flights online he refused to work with me on finding another flight – online flight searches showed plenty of flights out of SFO in the morning – some getting to NY as early as 3:40 pm – at least saving part of my day
The agent I talked to asked me to make a decision right now giving only two AA flight options – one with a connection (a 9 hour trip) and one direct flight but being there at 10 pm
When I asked about other options he told me that there are no other options
I asked to talk to a supervisor and she told me they already looked at other options and there are no other options
I was very professional and polite during my conversation despite being very tired (1 am in the morning) and spending the last 4 hours waiting in the airport
When my turn came to talk to the agent on the floor she was a lot more willing to help and she did look at the other options
She booked the Continental flight I found online – however refused to put me on a Virgin America flight leaving earlier
I was given a hotel voucher and meal coupons for the night
I reached the hotel room at 3 am (again the original schedule was to depart at 10:50 pm)
I slept for 4 hours to be back at the airport at 7:30 am
Continental charged again for the checked baggage (AA knew about the baggage but did not mention refunding the money at all) and told me there is nothing they can do about that
I am spending my vacation day flying to NY wide awake but incredibly tired and typing this message on the Continental flight to NYC – arriving at 5:00 pm instead of 7:00 am –
Conclusions:
It is hard to believe that American Airlines is in the service business – or still is in the business of what ever they think they are doing. I received insincere apologies from the agents I talked to last night – the same sentence being repeated like a broken record. More importantly, American Airlines agents were only trying to help the airline to get away with minimal cost to the company instead of really helping and looking out for the customers. They have done this to the extent of being dishonest and rude which I conclude to be deeply ingrained in the culture of American Airlines by looking at the consistent incompetence across agents. This was not my first bad experience with American Airlines, however their flights were “cheap” enough that I got this one from them. Apparently they have compromised from customer service while trying to cut costs. Fortunately there are plenty of airlines which still offer great service with competitive pricing such as Southwest Airlines and Virgin America. It is my hope that the market plays out faster so that the incompetent players in the airline industry drops out and gets replaced sooner than later. I hope that you will not have this horrible experience to decide for your self; my personal conclusion is to avoid flying American Airlines whenever possible. I don’t think that is going to be hard at all for me…
October 30th, 2010 at 6:23 pm
As of last night, American Airlines has managed to lose my bag for the third time in 2 months! Twice in 2 weeks!! Counter people at airport don’t try to help you. They barely even look at you once you get upset. Called 800# last night three times. First lady hung up on me when I stated asking questions. Others sounded like they were reading scripted information. Miami is approximately 120 miles from Ft. Myers. They said next available flight is not until Monday night at 6:pm and then they get a 4 hour window to deliver. Well, this morning I have another trip for business and need contents of the bag. Also, have other business things in there. I understand things can happen. I understand maybe I should not check things. But 3 times in 2 months, and not so much as a sincere apology or offer of any compensation or anyone taking time to help find a solution that would make me feel better?? They could ground transport if theywanted to or re-route bag through a different city to reach Ft. Myers earlier. In the bag claim folder it says that “our baggage service department will contact you periodically to keep you informed of our progressinlocating your baggage.” I landed at 10 pm last night, it is now 9:40 am and nothing from them yet. The three people I spoke with made it very they would not be contacting me until it was ready for delivery tonight. One operator frankly replied to my request that they call me when it is located that”any joe blow out on the tarmac is not going to stop and call me when they find my bag. just not going to happen” I could go on and on. If this is how they treat “Advantage Priority” customers I would hate to see how everyone else is treated. I welcome suggestions on how to get the word out about how this has been treated.
December 3rd, 2010 at 8:06 pm
Lesson for the wise:
——————————
Dear Stefania Meyer,
First off, at least let me say Thank You for giving me a response.
Having been denied a flight on Thanksgiving, I have already checked your pet policy and have seen that the dog breed is now on there. Let me start by saying that my past experience has led to my personal decision NOT to fly your airline again. I do not believe offering me a ticket that I have no inclination to use is even close to compensation for the experience nor is it resolving any issue. Furthermore, your well groomed email with no substance also does not attempt to resolve any issues your company failed to address that day. This is extremely disappointing in your capabilities to help and I reject your response as a sufficient resolution. I now demand that your supervisor or manager make a significant effort and set up a time to call and discuss these short comings. I have no faith in this generic electronic wall you have set up.
Lets begin with the pet policy as a response to your email. I will not argue what you can have on your policy, but you should be informed that my dog is not a snub nosed dog and in fact flew on your airline only four months ago, during the hottest season, when it is most dangerous for a snub nose dog to fly. This is a direct contradiction to your statement that your policy change is for the safety of the dog; otherwise the policy would have been changed over the summer. Also, you should know that United had no problem taking my business the following day and transporting my dog.
The REAL issue is that your policy changed with NO notification to customers that there is a policy change. Let me be very clear, when I bought my ticket on September 20th, I checked your pet policy and followed the website to ensure completing all steps for a smooth trip with my pet. Changing the policy, a week before I fly does NOT constitute a lack of preparedness on the customers part. Let us assume that in the hypothetical case where I instinctively knew that there was a change in policy and I called the airport and asked if my dog could fly, which was the suggestion of the ticket agent at the counter (if I knew why would I call?), I would have needed to clearly and specifically ask if my dog was on your restricted breed list (again, why would I call then?). It just does not make sense! I would also like to add, if your agents are going to give nonsensical advice such as this, at least let them back up their statements with something on the website that a customer should have followed. For example, please contact American four hours prior to flying. With no notification, there is no way I would know that there was a policy change, and the airline industry is not set up to allow me to just go to a competitor and simply get the same fare and travel on the spot. You need to be held accountable for such irresponsible behavior as this.
Let us talk about losses, both monetary and personal, that resulted from your lack of customer service and responsibility. Transportation back home was $67, a very tasteless Thanksgiving dinner at a restaurant without family was about $100 ($50/ person set course dinner), purchasing United tickets took 50,000 miles and additional $220 for two seats, $100 for the difference between a checked-in-pet-price on United and American, $60 for parking since we parked when we flew out on Friday. All because you would not take a dog that traveled with your company four months prior. I consider, at a MINIMUM, the monetary loss of $550 sufficient.
Finally, I can not tell you how disheartening it is for me to read this email. You clearly did not pick up on your faults, you give me a generic apology, and frankly it seems as if you do not care. I reiterate my complaint to you once more in more detail for you to understand:
* Your policies changed with no notification to the customer.
o I was not informed that the policies have or will change prior to my flight. I was not told that I needed to monitor American Airlines and their policies.
* Your agents at the desk provided ZERO customer service.
o It was indicated that it was my fault for not calling before arriving at the airport. There was nothing they can do.
* Your customer service does not resolve issues when they need to be resolved. (i.e. getting people on flights when they should be on flights)
o I need to email customer service that will not respond within 72 hours when I need to fly now?
* The management at the counter offered ZERO customer service.
o The management at your counter would not even come out to talk to resolve the situation. How and what do they honestly manage?
* American Airlines considered it a sufficient resolution to leave my girlfriend, my dog, and myself stranded at the airport.
o How can you as a service company consider this reasonable?
* Your customer service can not keep the promise of when I will receive a response.
o I was told 72 hours and it has taken you 144 “business hours” or 192 consecutive hours. At best, its still bad.
* Your responses lack sincerity and a genuine willingness to resolve the issue.
o I have now taken an additional 2 hours because you have not addressed any of my concerns and complaint.
In conclusion, I expect a complete response, and I expect a phone call. I have also contacted the BBB as well as the FTC and filed a complaint. I am looking into avenues for legal recourse and making my experience available to any media outlet.
Date: Thu, 2 Dec 2010 16:19:10 -0600
From: AmericanAirlines.wecaare001@aa.com
To: msn.com undecided_thrice@msn.com; undecided_thrice@msn.com
Subject: R2010/11-28549-00290-001-00
December 2, 2010 Dear Mr. Cooper:
We are in receipt of your email dated November 25 and apologize for the delay in our response. It is disheartening to learn that you were unable to travel to St. Louis with your dog as planned for Thanksgiving.
For their safety, we do not allow brachycephalic or snub nosed dogs and cats to be transported as cargo. For a complete list of breed restrictions, please visit http://www.aa.com/pets.
We are truly sorry that you were not aware of the change in our pet policy until you arrived at the airport. While we do not cover monetary expenses in such situations, as a gesture of goodwill and to encourage your continued business, we’ve made arrangements for an eVoucher (see details below) for you to use toward the purchase of a ticket to travel with us.
Mr. Cooper, it would be our pleasure to welcome you on board future flights. Please choose to travel with us again soon.
Sincerely,
Stefania Meyer
Customer Relations
American Airlines
May 22nd, 2011 at 3:35 pm
American Airlines is an all around poor performing airline. The flights never seem to be on time and the customer service is horrendous. I called in to reschedule a flight due to a surgery that I will undergo, and the smug reservations supervisor (Elizabeth Clayton) basically read me off the pro forma language on the site. I completely agree that this stuff needs to be looked at on an ad hoc basis. It’s not like the trip needed to be rescheduled because I wanted to sleep in that day. AA really needs to terminate Elizabeth Clayton for her duly condescending and dismissive service. Just because you hold some authority doesn’t mean that you are allowed to be a horrible heartless human being. How do the Elizabeth Clayton’s and the Margie Foster’s of this world have jobs in today’s tight airline industry? American is operating their airline with their eyes closed and ears shut.
October 8th, 2011 at 1:38 pm
I’ve been flying American/ AmEagle for 25+ years to the Caribbean. These aren’t just vacations; I have family there and fly for funerals, birthdays, etc. On our second trip in 2008, we were connecting through San Juan (from Miami) onto Am/Eagle for the last leg of the trip. As we were lining up for boarding, around 10:30 PM, an Am/Eagle employee came up and told the passengers we had to leave our carry-ons on the tarmac for loading elsewhere on-board. We’ve never been asked to do this before, and one man asked why. No good reason offered. (He refused to give up his laptop case- smart guy. They let him take it on.) When we reached our destination island, our carry-ons were waiting at the bottom of the stairs as we disembarked. (I saw them being placed there by Baggage.) As soon as we arrived at our cottage, I opened my carry-on– only to find my jewelry case gone. It was very late; the AA counter was closed when we arrived at the airport. The next morning I went back to the airport to report the theft. I was told I had to do the reporting in SJU. I called, emailed and wrote a paper letter to AA; a reply email (form) informed this stupid, novice flyer that I should “keep my carry-on with me at all times” and that I should “always pack valuables in my carry-on”. REALLY? First time I’ve heard that!! An AA rep who returned the first call said she’d never before heard of passengers being asked to give up their carry-ons, and wasn’t that odd… There are thieves working in baggage everywhere, I know, but please be especially cautious when travelling through PR. The airport is a DEN of thieves masquerading as employees. I’ve never had a theft this large before, and should have refused to hand over my carry-on. I lost some irreplaceable items, and some woman in San Juan is walking around wearing my gold and silver, either from her AA baggage-BF or the pawn shop.They would have been safer in my checked luggage. AA simply scolded me for doing what an airline employee asked me to do, then acted as if the theft was my fault, and I never heard anything different, after repeated contacts to AA Complaints Dep’t. Haven’t flown them since.