If this is what the American state is like at 36,000ft, thank god they are independent! (American Airlines)

Member Name: Zahooga

Product:	American Airlines
Date:	29/07/01 (347 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Err... can't think of any!

Disadvantages: Poor Customer Service, Rude staff, lost baggage,, More expensive fares

They may have "more room on coach" (but not on their Boeing 777's), but American Airlines still have a long way to go to catch up on the customer service culture of other leading airlines.

I was travelling to the U.S. on vacation, combining a short trip to New York with a longer visit to Fort Myers, Florida. The experience I have encountered with American Airlines (AA) has reversed any prior opinions I may have held of AA.

My outbound flights to New York, and then onward to Fort Myers (via Miami) were perfectly acceptable. However the return trip was far from acceptable, for the reasons set out below. To allow you to follow the events of what should have been a perfectly simple trip, I have broken this opinion into the individual stages as experienced.

Fort Myers to Miami

As I had to return my hire car at 10:00, I decided to check-in for my flights somewhat earlier than normal, to avoid the problems of carrying luggage around etc.

After I had checked in, I planned to meet a friend for lunch, before returning to her home to change and freshen up prior to my flight. My friend was somewhat late, and I was surprised to hear a tannoy call requesting my presence at the check-in desk.

Returning to the check-in desk I was advised that the flight upon which I was booked had been cancelled on the two previous days (due to weather and other operational reasons), and that the check-in supervisor would advise me to travel on the earlier flight. I advised that I had no problems with this, but would need to return to my friends to collect a few items of clothing before returning to the airport.

Upon return to the airport, another staff member advised me that I would have to standby for this flight. Unfortunately when the earlier flight was called for departure, the flight was full, and I was unable to board. Accepting this as one of the perils of air travel, I then waited for my next flight.

Tw
enty minutes AFTER my original flight was due to depart, it was announced that the flight was running late (the plane was in Miami and the pilot was still in Clearwater!)
We were told to speak to a staff member, to sort out onward travel problems.

As passengers already had already besieged the gate agent, I chose to go down to the check-in hall.

Upon arrival at the hall, I was aghast to see that one of my suitcases (of which I had two) was lying unattended in the middle of the check-in area, with a number of other cases and bags. So much for security!

When a check-in agent became available, I explained that I required to reach Miami, to catch an onward flight to New York JFK and then to London. She advised that the flight was expected within the hour, and that she would rebook me on a later flight from Miami to New York, which would allow me to still catch my flight to London.

I then returned upstairs, and was interested to hear a call for passengers making international connections from Miami to contact the gate agent (the same agent who had originally announced the flight delay). I duly did so and was rather alarmed to hear that there was no timescale for the flight to reach Miami, and that she had been sending other passengers who required connections at Miami by car to the airport.

When I queried the advice given by the check-in assistants in the hall (that a later flight from Miami would solve all of my problems), she said that this had never been the case and that I should leave Fort Myers immediately by car (provided by AA) to ensure that I could catch my flight.

I accepted this offer, sharing a car with a fellow passenger, and our collective luggage. The journey took some 2½ hours, meaning that I did not arrive in Miami until 18:30, some two hours after my scheduled arrival time.

Miami to New York

Upon arrival at Miami, I sought a check-in desk to return my luggage into your system
. As I had already checked in, and my baggage was fully tagged to London Heathrow, I expected that I should be able to approach a member of staff who might assist me.

The first member of staff I approached, whose name I did not record, advised me that I should join the queue for domestic check-in. Given that this queue was already a considerable length, and that my flight was scheduled to depart at 19:30, I enquired if there was any alternative, explaining my situation.

The staff member responded “can’t you just do what you were told and join the queue”. When I expressed my displeasure at his response, which I felt was not fitting for a staff member bearing a customer services badge, I was told that he “just gets all the flack because of the jacket” and if I wanted service I could join the queue.

Having done so, at 18:45, another agent came along the queue, enquiring when passengers were due to fly. When advised that my flight was in 45 minutes, she said, “what the hell are you doing in this queue?”. As a result she then expedited my baggage to the First Class check-in desk, and advised me to get to the departure gate or I would miss my plane.

At the departure gate there were no staff available, and little information was provided. Upon hearing a departure call for another flight to New York, I approached the departure gate for that flight, and enquired whether in the circumstances, I could switch onto the earlier flight to ensure I made my connection. However I was advised that as I had baggage this would for some reason not be possible.

The departure time came and went. A staff member then appeared and advised that the flight would depart at 20:09. This was later revised to 20:24; 21:00 (approx.); 21:30, and finally to 22:00. Throughout the whole process very little information was forthcoming from AA staff as to what the cause of the delay was and how precise the estimates of
departure were.

When it became clear that I was going to be unable to make my connection in New York, I approached a staff member who confirmed my opinion. He then rebooked me onto the next available flight from New York to London, which was at 08:30 the following morning. He advised that when I arrived at New York a hotel room would have been booked, and that a car would be waiting to take me straight to the hotel.

My flight eventually arrived at JFK at 00:30. Passengers who missed connections were advised to wait by the gate for further instructions. This I duly did.

It then transpired that hotel rooms had not been booked. Due to the late hour, no rooms were available at JFK, and we would have to be accommodated in Manhattan. By this point it had reached 01:00, and I was understandably tired.

We were then however advised that cars would not be available until 02:15. This would mean that we would not reach Manhattan until approximately 03:00. Given that I then required to return to JFK by 06:35 to check-in for my flight to Heathrow, it seemed pointless to go to Manhattan to sleep in a hotel room for less than 2½ hours.

On explaining this to the agent, she advised that we could sleep in a lounge at the airport, and kindly arranged for us to do so, providing blankets for our comfort. Unfortunately no showers were available, however it seemed sensible to stay in the airport rather than trudging to Manhattan for a couple of hours.

JFK to London Heathrow

Later that morning, having slept as well as one could in the circumstances; I felt the need for a shower. Travelling in the same clothes and sleeping in them is not particularly pleasant, especially when facing a further 8 – 10 hours.

At checkin, the agent said no showers were available for economy passengers - even one's that had been delayed!

I decided to try the Business Class lounge, knowing that they had such facilities
available.

I approached the staff at the lounge to enquire whether in the circumstances, I could use shower facility briefly to refresh before my next flight.

At first I was told (again) that as I was flying economy, there was no access. However I put forward my case, and after some frantic keyboard tapping she said they could let me in for a charge of US$55!

I wasn't happy with this, and flipped out a business card. My employers are a major US bank, and suddenly the magic doors opened, and I was allowed into the lounge, free of charge!

After showering, I went down to the gate for the flight. On finding a gate agent, I enquired about my baggage and she radioed the baggage handlers to check if the bag was on the flight. She advised me that someone would get back to me ASAP regarding both of my queries.

I still await a response to my query.

Arrival at London Heathrow

On arriving at London, surprise, surprise, no bags! They were (to quote the staff) "in New York, Miami, in the air, or in Dallas". How my bags might have got to Dallas, I have no idea!

They turned up 24 hours later, but only after a misunderstanding about when they were to be delivered....

Summary

In summary I am very disappointed with the service which I have received from AA, it’s staff and agents. I chose to fly with them on the grounds of reputation, and their membership of the Oneworld alliance.

The cost of this flight was not the cheapest fare on offer, as their fares were undercut quite significantly by one of their competitors. However I chose to pay the additional cost on the belief that I would receive a superior level of service from American. I was quite mistaken.

Throughout my entire journey, I was given poor information and advice. American's staff consistently failed to deliver even the most basic levels of customer service.

So if you're flying
transatlantic, don't fly the American flag - take BA or Virgin instead!

Summary: