American Airlines: A Business Traveler’s Nightmare
Once again I have been forsaken by American Airlines. This is the third flight in a row where my agenda has been utterly destroyed. It is also the third time (in two months) that I have seen what happens when unhappy workers have to deal with the inefficiencies of a sub par service business.
The worst part of all of this is that no one who works here really cares, and as such business travelers are continually turned off. It is becoming impossible fly American Airlines; as every time we fly American, we lose money (due to lost meetings, time etc.) and we get a little bit older due to the stress of trying to fly on an airline where the staff is working against you, instead of with you (notice I did not say for you, even though they should work for us as we pay our hard earned money. I would settle for working with me at this point).
I have said this before but, I hate American Airlines. Not just for wasting my time though. American Airlines represents everything I hate about the state of air travel and service businesses at large in America.
Note To American Airlines Execs:
Have you guys given up? I know the industry is rough right now, but that does not mean that you should shut down all customer relations and service and scrape along the bottom giving the bare minimum to your customers. As a marketer (and consumer), I know the power of positive perception, and how much a mere acknowledgment can mean.
Tags: American Airlines, I hate american airlines, AA
May 07, 2008
I hate to fly. That being said I can only give opinions as I have little to no experience with flying, let alone with multiple airlines. I feel a lot of the problems with airlines is a lack of competition, specifically from international players. Open up the market and let the worthy companies run a respectable business because what we have is embarrassing.
Jul 05, 2008
I hate American too! They are an old behemoth and they do, indeed, represent everything wrong with air travel in the US. If they are struggling, it’s their own fault, and they DESERVE to go under, as they largely treat their customers with disdain. Also, their on-line check-in is a great mystery. About 2 out of the 3 times that we fly American, we are not allowed to select seats or check in on-line. When we quiz American staff, they treat us with disdain, telling us that we are not flagged or on any FAA list, but they can offer no explanation. This does not happen to us on ANY other airline, EVER. ONLY on American. I hate them!!!
Jul 06, 2008
Robert
Thanks for the comment!
What is truly amazing is that I have posted about this many times and still get a lot of comments on the first post over a year ago, and guess what, no word from American!
I used all my AA miles on a hotel room and will not try to never fly with them again.
Jul 18, 2008
I had been building up my AAMiles and accumulated enough to redeem them for 2 not so free seats to Paris. On the day of our departure, my wife was pregnant and wasn’t very mobile that day, plus the traffic on the way to JFK wasn’t the best, but at the end of the day we got there 55 minutes before the the flight was scheduled to depart. they didn’t make any exceptions and booked us another flight later that day. I was pissed! 5 minutes late and you go and do this to me. I’ve flown over 250,000 miles on AA, but it didn’t matter. IT GETS BETTER. on the flight the head flight attendant, a short bald, little jerk, was completely out of line and I could have easily knocked his teeth in but of course I wouldn’t dare because who wants to be arrested on Federal Charges. I think that they know that they can get away with being rude, abrasive, just intolerable. Anyway, I got up out of my seat to go to the restroom and as the little snot went down the aisle he stopped next to where I was sitting and placed his foot on my seat as he reached for something in the overhead compartment. My wife was there and said that someone was sitting there and then he mumbled something under his breath that got a chuckle from his mates. When I came back and later confronted him, he turned around and said that his shoes weren’t dirty and said that he already apologized.
This behaviour is completely unacceptable and AA has not given me any satisfaction after I’ve lodged a complaint with them. They don’t care. So I am never, ever flying them again, unless I know for sure that that little prick is on the flight. I have a score to settle.
Aug 29, 2008
We will not travel in America Air Lines again for any reason and we will not recommend anyone, we didn’t get any of our baggages yet, we loose 6 of them.
Sep 01, 2008
Adam – I too have had horrible experiences with American Airlines. I recently wrote about it – http://barfieldtravel.com/main/?p=13 and when looking for an image to use I came across your site. I tried to contact the CEO and discuss things with him as I own a business consulting company as well (barfieldmanagement.com). But, you guessed it, he would not play ball and I believe that they are giving up. Too bad. They once were great.
Sep 25, 2008
OK, here is my little story: I flew to MIA and back from DFW today on AA and it was worse than usual. The flight out was uneventful but the stewdardess were their usual rude, grouchy selves. I had an aisle seat and must have had them smack me with their asses about 10 times during the flight and never once did any of them even say “excuse me”. But we did get in on time and that makes it at least tolerable.
Now here is where the real fun starts. I go to leave MIA this evening and get the rental car dropped off arive at the airport exactly 1 hour prior to scheduled departure. The security check in is backed up almost to the door. This is right in front of the AA ticket counter, so their employees know it is taking forever to get through, but they don’t bother to try and hold the flights. I make it through security and get to the gate 12 minutes BEFORE the scheduled departure time and the gate agents are gone, and the jet bridge door is closed. The plane is still there, but no one is there to let me and a couple of other customers on {please note that I say CUSTOMERS and not passengers}. Well I go over to the next gate and ask what happened to the Dallas flight and the little jerk behind the counter starts to very rudely explain that it is my fault for not being there on time. I try to explain that I am on time and still now have 10 minutes left before scheduled departure. This gets me his little tirade that boarding starts a half hour before departure but he is going to DO ME A FAVOR and book me on the next flight and not charge me the 100 dollar rebooking fee. I ask him if he is going to upgrade me to first class for the next flight and this just sets him off! he starts in again that it is my fault and that I was late and if I am not happy with just being rebooked for free then he will cancel the rebooking and charge me the 10 dollars. Now things start going from bad to worse. I ask to speak with the supervisor and he informs me that he is the supervisor. So I ask for his manager and am just told no. I ask for his name and he will only give me his last name. He probably would not have given me that but it was on his little name tag. Well, long story short, after a few more minutes of us arguing back and forth he gave me my boarding pass for the next flight and I swore to fly any airline but AA even if it means going 10 hours out of my way! These guy’s really do need to start an internal campaign reminding their employees that we are not just passengers there to bother them while they attempt to work, but that we are the customers who pay their bills!
Sep 25, 2008
quite a story!
Oct 08, 2008
I don’t think anyone can hate American Airlines more than me. This happened today! My husband is a reservist in the TX National Guard. He was recalled to active duty in July 08. About a month ago his unit was informed that they would have a few days off in November and would be allowed to fly home (at thier cost of course). The same day my husband called me I called American Airlines and booked a flight for my husband and one of his buddies. I was given a confirmation number and even seat assignments. I gave them my Credit card number and thought our transaction was complete. I just recieved my credit card bill with no airline tickets on it so one month after I booked the flight and one month before the flight is scheduled to leave I called the airline to confirm. I called them and they had cancelled my flight because I HAD NOT PAID FOR IT! So I tried to rebook the flight and what cost $478.00 last month for 2 round trip tickets now cost over $1600.00. They would not give me the price that I booked the flight for and confirmed – because hey they gave me a confirmation ##!!!!! I asked for the supervisor and got a rude unhappy female named Debbie!!!! I explained how important these tickets were to my family and I. My husband is an American Soldier headed to war and this is our last chance to see him and American Airlines could care less. I was told that it was “Corporate Policy”. I said ok give me somebody at corporate – OOOH noooo they don’t give that number out then I was told corporate does not take calls!!! Southwest was more than happy to book my husbands flight. It cost me about $200.00 more and of course no direct flight but at least I will see my husband one more time. I’ll walk before I ever use American Airlines.
Oct 08, 2008
Lila
That is quite a story. Thank you and your husband for your service to our nation!
I am glad that everything worked out in the end and I am glad I was able to provide a sounding board for you. Now go give your husband a kiss
Jan 17, 2009
As an employee of AA I have to say,”Sorry for the horible experiences while flying with us.” I have been with AA for almost two decades. Our leadership has been worthless since Crandal left. Our new CEO has proven that all he cares about is his and his cronies compensation. They care nothing about the customer, shareholder and employees. There is another round of bonuses coming too. $350,000,000 goes to upper management all the while the front line employess continue to work under concessionary agreements. In short, its gonna get even nastier as the company has dragged it’s feet to step up and negotiate collective bargaining agreements with all of AA’s labor groups. All of which have been amendable for quite some time. I have a little advice when dealing with corporations though. Stop writing letters to the CEO. Instead, become a shareholder. Just one share will give you the right to attend the annual shareholder’s meeting and you can voice your complaint face to face with the CEO. I tried it and I had the satisfaction of watching another person squirm.
Jan 18, 2009
I just flew AA from Boston to London and Back. The flight was empty going over and thank God it was… the seats are so jammed together on their 767 that if it werent empty it would have been miserable. Many of the flying waitresses were riding their high and mighty attitudes… I wont fly them again. It has been ten years since I had and now I remember why I didnt like them.
Jan 18, 2009
Sorry to hear that Scott!
Glad you are home safe
May 28, 2009
Here’s my AA horror story: I saved for 2 years to take a dream trip to Peru to hike the Inca Trail. The flight out of Miami to Lima was fine. Once we got to Lima the fog prevented us from landing. Okay, I can’t fault American on that. We were diverted to a little town north of Lima called Chiclayo. Why we weren’t diverted the approximate distance south to Cusco – where 3/4 of the passengers, including my group, were headed and where an actual international airport exists, is beyond me. Upon landing in Chiclayo the reverse thruster broke. (I overheard about a different AA flight in the states that had broken down too…) Since we were essentially in Mayberry, Peru at a LITTLE local airport, there were no qualified mechanics on staff. We had to stay the night in Chiclayo. We left the next morning (several hours later than we were originally told) and missed our connection out of Lima to Cusco. Again, we had an unplanned overnight stay in Lima. (They did put us in a nice hotel, but as we had to get up at 2:30am to catch the first flight out of Lima – which, surprise, ended up being delayed 6 hours – it didn’t mean much.) All in all, we were 55 hours late getting to Cusco and I missed the trek entirely. All I’ve gotten from AA at this point is a well-written form letter … the same damn letter others in my group have received! I know AA can’t control the fog, but is it too much to ask they send out serviceable planes and make a better effort at prioritizing customers who have time sensitive arrival times? Two year of planning and saving down the drain …
May 28, 2009
thanks for sharing Erin! There sure are a lot of horror stories out here
May 28, 2009
I was supposed to fly from San Francisco to Miami via LA and after a short and somehow decent flight, i arrived to LA. Shortly after they announced that 1520 flight was canceled along with 3 other flights to Miami.
The airline did nothing to accommodate us in other flights, the only alternative was flying 12 hours later with 2 connections. I have never seen a rudest and uninterested in helping bunch of people. This is my second AA nightmare trip in 3 months. This airline deserves to go down and leave other companies that care do this job. Such a disgrace!!!
Aug 05, 2009
Worst airline I have ever flown with, will also be the last time I fly with AA, your article really sums up their mentality.
Sep 17, 2009
American Airlines cannot help themselves. It is truly a large legacy run airline. Leadership is blind to improvements necessary. Without government assistance they would have folded years ago. If we ran our business or households they way they do, running into the red, I would be forced to file bankruptcy…
They have are handcuffed to the Unions and not willing to work towards improving the airline…
Oct 01, 2009
I hate american airlines too as I sit on the tarmack for 30 minutes waiting to pull up to the gate.
Oct 03, 2009
I had the misfortune of flying AA twice this week. Every single leg of my flight has had a delay. Right now is the second time where there have been maintenance issues with the plane.
I fly all the time, and manage to have no problems with any other airline but AA. Their substandard service and operations amaze me. The reliability and accountability are not prevalent.
So frustrating, and I join the ranks of those who hate AA
Nov 16, 2009
I have been flying American Airlines for over 20 years since when I lived in Dallas. I was Plantium or Gold for many years. In the last two year I have tried to keep my status by buying up or doing a challange. Well, they will only let you do that once (even though I had cancer and could not travel for a time period). I have had 3 horrible experiences and wrote to their online compliant(only way you can complain). I never had any any response. An agent gave me the headquarter number and I talked to a lady and she was as rude as can be. She told me to send in everything again and I said I did not have the time. I tried to explain her my issues, but she would not even let me explain she said there was nothing they could do for me. I told her that my company uses American Airlines as their preferred carried, but I could fly another carried. Guess what, I will NEVER fly American Airlines again. It pretty bad when you crappy customer service to your business travelers. I will buy one share of stock and will be showing up to the next board meeting.
Dec 01, 2009
American Airlines is corrupt. All I wanted was to change my flight by ONE day. I wanted to fly out one day later. The ticket for that day was LESS than the one I had originally purchased. They wanted to charge a 150 dollar change fee to alter my flight. I would have to pay 70 dollars and some change once the price of the ticket was calculated. I didn’t want anything but that 70 dollars waived. Yet! The supervisor refused to accommodate me. I will never fly American Airlines AGAIN! I urge everyone to not fly American Airlines again. There are other airlines that provide excellent customer service. For a nonrefundable ticket, the cost is twice the amount. There are other airlines that simply charge 15 dollars upfront in case the reservation needs to be changed or cancelled. Never again will I choose to fly American Airlines versus these other companies.
Dec 17, 2009
I will NEVER fly AA again!
I’ve been in DFW since 10AM and am still hoping to get out at 9:30pm!
My schedule was to leave Austin at 7:50 AM, and connect in Dallas, and be in Cincinnati at 1:45PM.
There was an accident, and I ended up missing my Flight out of Austin (I was at the Airport 25 minutes before my flight, but was not able to checkin on time. No big deal, plenty of flight to DFW, and a number to Cincinnati. I got on the next flight to DFW on standy, but didn’t make my connection. I’m told to go to gate A8, that’s the next flight to Cincy – I wait until my flight is supposed to be boarding, and nothing – I finally look on the board, and the gates been change! NO ANNOUNCEMENT!!!! I guess that I fot there before they expected anyone to be there – so there was no need for an announcement! I run from gate 8 to gate 23 and am able to watch the door close. Next flight to Cincy from A21. I wait and am first on standby list. I get called up and get seat A10, but as I’m walking down the gangway, I get called back, my seat is now gone. Now I’m told the next flight is at 8PM out of gate 8A again. It’s 3PM, I go to gate 8A to wait. At about 7:30 there is no activity, so again I go to the board – the gate has changed again!!!!! It’s now at A21 – AGAIN!!! I run down to A21 and am told the flight is delayed till 9:30!
I’ve been in DFW for 11 hours, and have been running back and forth between gates trying to get on a dang flight – with no help from AA in the least! I doubt that when I get to Cincinnati I will be able to pick up my rental car – more money AA is costing me!!!!!
Dec 29, 2009
February 2009 American Airlines charged me $125, for each leg of my trip (a total of $250), to carry the sporting equipment I required for my holiday, it would be reasonable to assume they would take all due care in delivering it to the tagged destination. At the time of this charge, no one ever suggested I would have to produce receipts for the ownership of my personal equipment if it were lost or damaged; however, the agent refused to check said baggage unless I paid the additional fee. The fact that American Airlines was negligent in caring for the items entrusted to them, and there by ruining my vacation, I have not submitted these damages as part of my loss claim, however perhaps I should. I will speak to my solicitor on that point. In fact, the hard sided carry case was smashed beyond repair and the fishing rods inside were missing as witnessed by the Agent in Baggage Claims at the Miami Airport. The one rod that remained in the case was damaged beyond repair. All this was examined by an AA Agent in Miami on arrival.
As American Airlines charged me for the transportation of my fishing poles, in addition to my personal airline fare, it is reasonable to presume American Airlines assumed responsibility of the equipment and therefore are responsible to ensure it was properly insured for its safeguard and delivered to the destination tagged.
Eight months later and several letters AA Management advised me if I cannot produce receipts for my property then the incident never happen. Now that is what I consider client abuse and a management philosophy that condones their employee’s theft practices. I have always believed that you treat others as you wish to be treated and that what goes around comes around. They lost a lot more than just my property they lost my respect.
Jan 12, 2010
Cindy, Debra, Stuck and Gary
It never ceases to amaze me how this post still gets attention with non word from AA.
I am sorry to hear about your experiences–may we all fly in peace on delta or elsewhere