I flew on American Airlines just last week. Compared to other airlines (Delta, United, etc.), it is definitely no-frills. I had a 4 hour flight followed by a 3 hour flight -- no movies, no free snacks (not even pretzels), and snacks were by purchase only (and they ran out). Fortunately, this doesn't bother me, and the price was right.
I will say that their customer service was very good. I had booked a flight from Tucson to Boston via Chicago with a 2 1/2 hour layover. Due to weather conditions emanating from the central part of the country, the plane that would take us from Tucson to Chicago was going to be 2 hours late. I was concerned about making my connection, so the ticket agent gave me a ticket for a later flight out of Chicago, just in case. I ended up having no need for it.
I had no delays on the way from Boston-Tucson via Dallas/Fort Worth. I still think I got lucky.
I'd fly them again, but would leave at least 2 to 3 hours for connections (especially if a regional jet is involved as they leave from other terminals), and would bring a few snacks and reading material onboard.
Just think how much you could make selling pretzels at half the price. I sometimes buy those little bottles of scotch or vodka to take with me and add to the "free" soft drink. Oh dear, is that akin to bringing booze on the ship?
We have found AA to be fine.. but maybe that says more about British Airways
We thought Delta was better than AA... so if you think Delta are poor, watch out!
AA used to have a great seat pitch in coach class... they took out a few rows of seats when there were less passengers after 9/11, but all those rows are back in the plane now.
To be honest, all airlines have good days and snafus. It's often just your personal experience that differs them. Of course, first class air travel is way better, but I would rather travel coach and take more cruises.
You're only on the airplane a few hours.... hopefully
I guess I need to add my two cents to this discussion! RCCL booked us on American for our cruise last November. The flights home were a nightmare (no fault of RCCL). Get this--we arrived at Ft. Lauderdale airport and got our boarding passes and then went to eat lunch. Our daughter noticed that AA had us on a flight that would arrive at O'Hare (our connecting city) ten minutes AFTER our connecting flight departed! Unbelievable that neither the computer nor the ticket agent picked this up!
We called RCCL and they worked with AA to get us on a flight leaving out of Miami in about 90 minutes. We had to get a taxi to Miami, pay the driver a huge sum to get us to the airport within 1/2 hour, rush through security, run to the gate, only to find out the flight had been delayed 2 hours!!! As it turned out, after all this, our connecting flight in Chicago was also delayed and we made it, without our luggage of course!
We received no snacks on the flights. They ran out of box lunches, and we were thoroughly disgusted with the whole thing. We have frequent flier miles accumulated on AA, but they are certainly not our airline of choice. According to reports we have read, Northwest has one of the highest incidences of lost luggage and late arrivals, so I guess we just aren't impressed with the major airlines!
Our favorite airline? AirTran! They are fantastic. Rarely are the planes late, you receive free snacks on each leg of your trip, the employees are extra friendly, and the planes are very clean.
As with any business, there are going to be people who prefer one company over another, but if you can fly AirTran, I would highly recommend them!!
Thank you. I "do" plan to do a LOT of praying, and not let my friend KNOW what I have been reading, for then they might get too excited , or or upset, and I can't let that happen.
I'm back again. I'm almost SCARED to fly American Airlines, but there is no way we can change plans, this late in the game.
I can do without snacks......lots of "gum" chewing.
How in the world do the loose luggage so easily??? If you have your luggage marked good, like I do, how can this happen? Are the people who take care of putting on/taking off the luggage careless or what???
According to this article, AA is on time 67% of the time. If you are a surgeon that is a bad percentage. If you are retail, that is a good percentage, an airline is mediocre. Let's just call them average and not terrible.
Don't worry, brneyes you got the prayer thing going for you.
we always fly delta or comair. cincy is delta's 2nd largest hub. it is also the most expensive airport to fly out of. i rarely have any trouble with delta. i use my skymiles 90% of the time when i fly. for our next cruise in 6 days! i did buy my tickets this time. @700.00 for the two.( couldn't find any good flights with my skymiles). of course the flights have changed a number of time and i have called a couple of time to have them (flights) changed and now i have direct flights each way! they have always been great to work with. the key to less hassle is to book as far in advance as possible. you get the best prices and flight that way. you still need to check prices from time to time because they do change just like cruises. the same can be said for hotel rooms also. remember airline post flight 331 days in advance. this is good to know if you use skymiles.
or upset, and I can't let that happen.
to fly American Airlines, but there is no way we can change plans, this late in the game.
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