An American Airlines passenger boarded to a biohazard – and was forced to clean it themselves. The airline only reluctantly supplied gloves to do the dirty job.
The one good thing that was supposed to come out of Covid was we were going to get better cleaning and ventilation of public spaces. But we never really did ventilation of filtration of buildings, hotels stopped cleaning rooms as often to save money on housekeeping, and airlines stopped handing out sanitary wipes and keeping up their cleaning regimens.
Pressed to keep planes in the air – they don’t make money when aircraft are on the ground – they schedule very little time between aircraft arrival of one flight and departure of the next. That leaves very little time for cleaning crews to tidy. And you often see messes from the previous flight just left for the next customer:
Hey @AmericanAir do you normally force your passengers to clean the shit off their seat that they paid extra for? Literally had to ask the attendant for gloves so I could clean this up myself. 10/10 customer service pic.twitter.com/p8Bih5s1Wp
— banished meg (@megsfrompluto) August 23, 2025
Customers really are left on their own. It’s not the flight attendant’s job to clean (except on Southwest!). ‘Clean it yourself’ is not an uncommon take on American Airlines.
This was waiting for me in my seat on my last @AmericanAir flight. I guess they do not clean anymore. pic.twitter.com/KUZMzxDYGU
— David Schwartz (@SchwartzMaster) July 22, 2025
The inflight team did not handle it. We had to ask more than once for a garbage bag to clean it up ourselves.
— David Schwartz (@SchwartzMaster) July 23, 2025
But the real problem here – if you’re going to have to tidy up after the last flight to save American Airlines money on cleaning – is that American also slashed the number of gloves they have onboard flights for flight attendants in a cost-saving measure.
“From this point forward, service gloves should only be worn during trash pickup” according to a memo that went out to all flight attendants.
They’ve been boarding only one box with 12 pairs of gloves per flight, with gloves reportedly missing entirely from drawers frequently on many flights.
That means no more gloves for lavatory checks – and therefore skipping lavatory checks – which means no more wiping counters if wet, restocking toilet‑paper and seat‑covers.
Worldwide, a typical single‑aisle aircraft carries 100–150 pairs: half in the forward galley, the rest split between each service door and the medical kit. Bear in mind that reuse is a safety violation because pathogens adhere to the exterior of the gloves.
When CEO Robert Isom took over the airline, his first message meeting with employees is that they should ‘never spend a dollar they don’t have to.’ It’s a message he’s repeated. This kind of thinking, that permeated the ranks of Northwest Airlines (where Isom cut his teeth, and many of the airline’s executives once worked), has been internalized.
The initial case presented represents a potential public health issue. A restaurant, for instance, would never get away with declining to clean a biohazard and continuing to serve customers. Regulatory responsibility for public health issues for aircraft on the ground is complex and often unclear, but episodes like this should be reported to the local public health department, FAA and CDC.
AA has gutted everything customer facing in an effort to save money. In the process, they have given passengers every reason to book away from them. That’s not to say the other major carriers are much better. There are good reasons I carry disinfecting wipes in my carry on these days.
At this point, I feel like American and Spirit both need to go into bankruptcy just to prove to the industry once and for all that the ULCC model simply doesn’t work. You can’t save yourself into success as an airline.
@greggb57. Exactly . Everything CUSTOMER facing they didn’t cut back on CEO or executives pay,.. And I would like to know Isom’s definition of “have to” in * don’t spend a dollar you don’t HAVE TO”
Being a depression era parent, my Dad never understood the concept that sometimes you have to spend money to make more money. “Dad, we need a computer system.” “No, our bookkeeper is doing just fine! Clean off her green visor cap!” We finally got a decent IBM system. He wouldn’t admit that it helped. So, here’s American trying to squeeze a nickel until the “buffalo craps” by not investing in something that will enhance customer satisfaction, show off a clean and welcoming cabin experience oh…and get rid of the “buffalo crap” left by previous passengers. Ignorance can be corrected. Stupid (which incident is!!) is forever. Again, American is climbing its way to the bottom!
Isom and Steenland were two of the most despised execs at Northwest.
They made Mr. Nyrop look like a spendthrift.
Part of their push toward a premium experience.
“Clean. Your. Planes.” One of Gary’s favorites. Shame on American here, but it can happen on any of them.
United remains the only US carrier that still hands out complimentary sanitizing wipes when you board their aircraft.
While I would prefer every airline properly hire, train, pay, and support dedicated cleaners for each and every flight, I recognize it’s not ‘possible’ everywhere, but at least United cares enough to give us the option to tidy up ourselves when needed.
At the very least, use those wipes to clean your phone; the germs on our screens. Yikes.
So, yeah, it’s the little things…
while we are at it I fly American because I have frequent flyer miles on American Do they ever clean the restrooms whenever I walked in it was always filhty Mayve other airlines are the same but bAmerican is really bad
Whatever happened to people cleaning up after themselves?
I froze on two flights United. because they will not carry blankets anymore. I mentioned it to FA. All that I got was an I’m sorry.
Everybody is assuming that is shit on the seat. If it were shit, and based on how it rolled off the cushion, as if it were a liquid, most likely diarrhea but if that were true, that whole armrest would be covered in splatter.
Years ago, I boarded an American Airlines flight with BLOOD smeared on the cabin wall. I notified the attendant and she asked if I wanted a wipe to clean up the biohazard. I complained online afterward and got a canned reply from American Airlines that could not clean it because they were on a tight schedule. I’ll never forget this.
Isom and his “yes” men/women are a joke. They care nothing of the passengers or crew. Last flight I was on flight attendants said the had 4 pairs of gloves. Not even sure if they were sanitary because they were catered in a ziplock bag stuck in there by someone’s hands. Isom only cares of his bonus. Charging as much as a premium airline, but giving it customers Spirit service with minimum crew, food and beverage. They, AA, tell crew to do more in service, all the whole not increasing supplies, food or crew. Reducing all! Crew included!
Get rid of Isom!
I refuse to fly a North American flagged carrier if I can possibly avoid it. Sorry, but the flight crews are usually old battle axes who couldn’t care less about passengers. At least, in Asia, on a bargain airline like Air Asia and Cebu Pacific, you know ahead of time what to expect. And…… The plane is generally clean.
@Josh Gates — If you really want your blood to boil, look up what Isom got in total compensation in 2023… $31.4 million. Huh, but, how about paying people to properly clean the planes? Yeah, no, yeah… no can do, mate…
Airlines are the new Greyhound bus. Get over it. Gilded member clubs and crowded luxury lounges within the bustling stations, are the fragile window dressing we cling to.
Plenty of awful new experiences ahead.
@Matt Ashe — I’ve flown them all and still much prefer American over Air Asia or Cebu (or Scoot, or any of the other ULCCs in E. Asia), like based on Economy legroom alone, because it’s often way too tight on the carriers you prefer. And, there’s nothing wrong with having experienced crews, either. Some of y’all have awful priorities…
Airplanes are incredible dirty places and that’s why you should travel with wipes. Cleaning crews have 5 at the most 10 minutes to clean between turns. Lots of “dirt” is going to get missed. This is nothing new. It’s been this way for decades. If you’re seriously immune compromised or in very poor health the last place you should be is in a sealed metal tube.
Insane! 12 pairs of cloves would be used up on the first leg. That same aircraft may well have multiple segments during the day with no catering service, so no new gloves for the crew—obviously a decision made by a pencil pusher at the GO. While Isom was at Northwest, the airline ranked at the bottom of the Legacies in customer and employee satisfaction because of this kind of penny-pinching. Where’s the AA Flight Attendant Union? This presents a significant hazard for the FAs.
Next the waitresses (stewardesses?) on aircraft will be demanding tips or you will be kicked off the flight. They do so little for passengers these days — “Not My Job” is their anthem. They claim to be only there for safety in a crash. But do they have to be so obnoxious in the process? Despite their claims, they are just waitresses, and not very good ones.
Stupid CEO. It wouldn’t cost $1 more to have the flight attendants walk down the aisle a little slower, and make an extra pass or two.
The attendants, too often, walk through the motions.
Maybe a bold airline, would pay their attendants for all time on the plane. (Not US industry practice.). At the same time, you would also hold them and passengers responsible for ensuring all of the trash has been gathered. . Japan is a different culture, but people are fastidious in ensuring their trash is disposed of. Of course students from the first year of school also take responsibility for cleaning their school before they leave daily.
@Chris — Your demeaning and disregard for flight crews is just sad.
I suspect, in the real world, there’s no way you’d say anything like what you said above to anyone’s face.
So, I dare you, on your next flight, say what you just said here to any member of the flight crew. See what happens.
They’re professionals, so you probably will get to stay on-board, but depending on how you say it, maybe not; after all, it’s their call, lest you forget commercial air travel is a privilege, not a right.
Said it before and I’ll say it again…It’s the stingy man who pays the most.
I had it as an example by my father that the stingy man is among those who pay the least.
In short term the stingy man may pay the least but in the long run they pay the most.
Isom and his BOD need to go. They have proven they are only in it to line their own pockets while the employees and passengers suffer for their incompetence. OSHA and the Health Department for some strange reason have never had oversight on airlines. If so, the airlines would have been shut down by the health department decades ago.