American Airline Rant

I am exhausted. In fact, I just got up from a four hour nap. I intended to go to the art openings, but by 7 PM I just crashed. I managed to get a lot of chores done as I am cooking breakfast tomorrow morning and then doing an egg hunt and needed to pick up some things, but the evening was lost. I guess jet lag and going to bed at 2 AM killed me!

I have flown American twice in my life. I had a credit card with AA Miles (mostly from graduate school) and had earned enough miles to go to Santa Barbara. That was about 15 years ago, and you made a phone call, the agents found you the best flight, booked you, and that was it. There may have been a small fee, but I don't remember paying any money. On our trip back our flight was cancelled and we never received a phone call. Needless to say, we were pissed and they put us in first class the next flight home.

I have been trying to book tickets using my miles for 2 years now. There are seats for 25,000 miles, but there are never any to be found. This time I got disgusted and just booked my flight using 50,000 miles because I will be quitting this program after I use the rest of my miles.


I booked online. That was easy enough. Fees: 60.00. Hmmm.

2AM before I fly out, I am in a dead sleep. DEAD. The phone rings. An AA agent tells me my flight is cancelled. He is giving me a list of options and I can't even process the fact that they are telling me I will get in 4 hours later. My brain was slow, but all I could think was NO. In my half wake/dream state, I tell him to book my on the flight that will get me there at the earliest possible time, which is 2 hours later than my original plan.

The flight from Stewart to O'Hare ran on time, was in a small plane and for the most part uneventful. I was surprised that you did not get one ounce of food to munch on, unless you paid for it. The connecting flight was fine..the plane less than grand. No TVs for this 4.5 hour flight, and again, if you wanted to eat you had to pay for it. And I mean no pretzels or nuts either for free. I was a bit disconcerted.

The return flight was where it got really really annoying. I get to the airport and our flight boards on time, however, once we are on board we are told we have an hour delay because of the wind in Chicago. Why couldn't they have kept us in the terminal for that hour? Time after time it kept getting pushed up another 15, then another 15 minutes......Eventually we take off, and I breathe a sigh of relief that there is a TV on board. However, the movie was Rocky (the new one) and I gave him up years ago. UGH.

At O'Hare they make three gate changes after I got off the plane. At the second one they looked at me like I was crazy and said no, this flight is to Memphis. SO I say well, the board JUST said to come here. Then one of the agents snips "well, that is gate 9". I thought "why the attitude"? I was nice, just asking if this was the correct gate.

I finally find the gate, and sit FOREVER. Apparently no American flights are leaving the airport on time and we wait and wait and wait. Finally we leave and I get my ride home in a plane with NO leg room. The plane has been sitting on the runway and the seats are ice cold. No heat. We take off, and again, no snacks. This time I think...I will have a bloody Mary to celebrate my return home and the end of my trip. No vodka. OK, I will have some red wine. No red wine. White? NO. Beer only. They ran out of everything and did not restock.

Since I had the priveledge of sitting second seat from the front (there is no first class seat) I get to see into the Stewardesses serving "area". The handle is broken off the doors to where they keep the booze. It is opened with a tied plastic bag. WHen she goes in there it is a jumble of empty carboard boxes that used to hold the little bottles of wine and cans of beer.

The saving grace to the flight was the attendent who was a great woman who hung out and chatted with us for a long time.

We land in Stewart. Larry knew I was going to be late, but the airport never posted any of our flight information! In fact, it was not posted at all. it was like we never existed! He started to get nervous (there were only 3 flights arriving to the terminal at that time..lol)

It all ended well in the end, but when I think back on all the other flights I have taken, this airline's service was the worst. I am going to find a credit card that had miles with choice of airline now!!!!!!