American Airlines standby is a mess, and it encapsulates much of what is wrong with the carrier. They don’t have their customer in mind when making and changing policies. Instead, the focus is on reducing costs, and getting customers to change their behavior.
- No more running to the gate to catch an earlier flight. American now turns away nearly all customers who try to do this, even when there’s plenty of seats available.
- American pushes almost everyone to self-serve. Unless you have Platinum Pro status or higher in the AAdvantage program, you have to ‘do it yourself’ to standby, on the website or mobile app. And this now has to be done at least 45 minutes prior to departure.
People are getting stuck in airports for no good reason at all – because the airline thinks it lowers their costs, but by becoming less efficient and burning customer goodwill they’re actually both driving up expenses and costing themselves revenue.
The new customer-unfriendly policies are even contradictory with passengers trapped in the middle.
- Standby isn’t allowed if you have checked bags, unless you’re an AAdvantage elite.
- Once you check a bag, you can no longer add yourself to standby using American’s mobile tools.
- But Gold and Platinum elite members aren’t allowed to add themselves any other way.
In fact, if you ‘add bags’ on the app even when not checking in, you lose the ability to same-day standby for another flight. This cannot be removed from your reservation once added (I’ve not heard of any success in doing so via an agent). That means you would need to request standby at the gate, but for most members this is not allowed.
American Airlines allows their Gold and Platinum frequent flyers to stand by for a flight, even if they’ve checked bags. But they’ve programmed their systems not to allow it, and they won’t allow agents to do it for them any longer to save money. And they haven’t communicated any of this to customers.
An American Airlines spokesperson tells me,
We’re fortunate to enjoy an active dialogue with our AAdvantage members and take all their feedback seriously. We’re looking into this report, and will continue to work toward delivering a seamless travel experience for our customers.
Since current US Airways management took over, standby policies have been broken. They’ve been more focused on making sure customers don’t get a good deal with standby, potentially saving money, than on making sure customers get where they’re going. And they’re far less generous than Delta and United here.
In addition to not being able to seek an agent’s help to get on a different flight, passengers still have to follow their original routing. There may be plenty of space to get home through another hub, but outside of irregular operations, they can’t use it. Travel to or from a city with only one flight to the hub you’re ticketed through? You cannot standby or use same day confirmed change at all.
That undermines the entire value to the customer in having the largest domestic network and all those hubs.
American Airlines is not providing the tech tools to allow for self-service, and telling customers their only option is self-service. Gate agents can no longer do what they used to do for customers. That wastes passenger time, keeps them from getting home early and even on-time – suffering through delays unnecessarily – and keeps American from running an efficient operation moving passengers along and freeing up seats to get other people where they’re going or even seats to sell.
Meanwhile, same day standby was taken away from customers entirely when traveling on corporate PNRs back on March 1. Their primary message to investors over the past two months has been that they’re trying to make amends for walking away from travel agents and business travel. I asked whether this policy will be rolled back, but have not received a response.
As if AA doesn’t have enough problems, they’re going out of their way to tick off their customers? Great way to drive them to the competition.
Agree with greggb57…one other point – ridiculous connections times!!..they are a complete joke, especially in DFW…I am Aadvantage Gold and a million miler…won’t fly AA again until management smartens up and incorporates realistic connection times.
United is better in this regard for partner airline Star Silvers flying United domestically than American Airlines is for AA Golds and Platinums flying American domestically. It’s like American is racing against itself to make American Airlines elite status less competitive against other airlines.
More customer unfriendly policies. I get that companies want to save money and maximize revenue, but when you get to the point of alienating your customers and they rather buy from your competitors, you’re doing it wrong.
@ Gary — AA seems to WANT bankruptcy. I would love to be a fly on the wall where they make these moronic decisions. Delta is definitely more premium than both AA and UA for same-day changes, especially if you book the forward cabin. UA looks good on paper but there rarely seems to be any forward cabin seats available for SDC. United seems to clear almost all upgrades at T-24. Delta, on the other hand, seems to hold back more J seats until the gate, allowing their highest-paying customers more flexibility to change flights.
I was an AA employee for many years and recently retired, having worked in all areas to include baggage service, gates, ticket counter, and in my early career the ramp. It is unrealistic to expect to move to an early flight if you check bags as it creates a whole new set of problems and most of the time results in a delayed baggage claim. A delayed baggage claim results in added delivery expense and unhappy customers. A legal connection time of 30 minutes is what causes the majority of AA’s problems as the connections are not realistic unless everything runs like clockwork, which we know it doesn’t. Pulling up to the gate at the last minute hoping to get on a different flight has never been a good strategy. There is usually so much going on at the gate that agents just don’t have time to rebook with the timeframe they work within. I think it is unfair to expect anything different under the current market conditions.
Slow news day huh Gary. So you recycled this topic YET AGAIN. Nothing new but you just cut and pasted your previous whine. I don’t agree with it but continuing to post the same tired old info isn’t changing anything or getting you any more clicks. You are just playing to the echo chamber.
I used to get useful info from the “thought leader” but now just recycled crap, nit picking about your entitled self not getting what you think you deserve and Reddit/Tik Tok/National Enquirer articles. So sad! I now look to Lucky and even TPG for actual news instead of you and will likely drop your blog. You likely don’t care but please quit phoning it in for the sake of your other readers.
@AC i for one appreciate the continued periodic reposting (skewering) of the idiots in charge at gsw
they have the north texas media captured (along with denton drive)
so someone has to keep these keywords indexed by google
you go gary
Arrogant American (AA) is a cesspool– avoid at all costs. UA and DL also have issues, but maintain a higher level of focus on customer experience –especially for FFYs. Sad testimonial for an airline which was once considered a première US domestic carrier. Wonder where the investor activists are??? Why waste time at JetBlue and WN?
I always thought it was a security issue that passengers must fly on the same plane as their checked luggage. Did this change as all check bags are now screened by TSA?
I travel quarterly. For the past few years on American. Not a wing-warrior like many of the other commenters here. My impression is that US Air bought a Delta competitor with the goal of turning it into a Southwest competitor.
@John C: You only have to travel on the same plane as your checked baggage on international flights.
….and if you have an older cell phone, you cannot download the newest AA app – that renders your ability to go standby useless.
How about just traveling on the flight you bought a ticket for?
Gary, your blog sounds more and more like an old lady gossip column from a dated newspaper rag. Incessantly whining, superfluous writing and repeating articles. Ugh. Painful.
I’m currently stranded in Boston/Logan, EP here on AA. Flight canceled. Lines at the airport was 50+ people for priority. ‘Dedicated’ Exec Platinum phone number is not only 2 hours, the message said it was more than 2 hours!
(They were kind enough to book me on the 8:50pm flight…. Tomorrow!)
Meanwhile, there’s flights still empty but I can’t get through security.
Very frustrating experience, and I can’t remember a time I could talk to a human being, somewhere, in under 30 minutes
Ugh!
In 2002 I was a Lufthansa Senator in my 8th year. 100+k miles per year butt in seat in those days.
DFW-MUC-BLQ. During the layover in Munich, I discover that the company travel agent had booked me on the last flight of the day, with two earlier flights available.
Tried to board an earlier flight at the lounge and at the gate. Staff is empathetic but unable to move me for policy reasons. Then when boarding the late flight, they were overbooked and offering compensation.
That was my last flight with LH, ending 8 years of loyalty.
When I could not use my 4 System Wide Upgrades anywhere, that too ended my Executive Platinum run of 17 years.
Companies just don’t understand what is the limit that breaks the camel’s back.
Such entitled whining! You buy a ticket, then want to book standby for an earlier flight.
Excuse me, why didn’t you just book for the earlier flight? Then when you miss your flight because you couldn’t get to the airport on time, your fault, you can sit standby for the next flight.
Your bags have to travel with you, not an airline rule, that’s federal. Stopping to take your bags off a flight costs time of departure for everyone else.
Must be a slow day, where you have to make up scenarios of entitlement to complain about.
re: “the focus is on reducing costs, and getting customers to change their behavior,” this has been the case since the 1980s when then-Chairman Bob Crandall famously proclaimed that AA must “train” the customers to work for AA’s benefit, not vice versa.
I don’t understand (especially) the people with a “million miles” complaining about AA. How/why do you get 5hat many miles when it’s that bad? I flew AA over 30 years ago for the first time. It was horrible. 15 years later, I flew them for the second time as I could not get another connection from my flight from Japan. It was worse.
It reminds me of the old saying, “fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me”.
After that first experience, I avoided them like the plague.
The second experience confirmed my decision.
All you guys getting a “million miles” from them aren’t exactly incentivizing AA to change for the better.
American is particularly good for collecting Miles / Loyalty Points (for higher status) from credit cards / shopping portal / other online hacks, without even flying them, and then using your high status / earned miles for other OneWorld member airlines in Europe, with much better service Kudos to British Airways / Finnair!
I worked in Reservations for AA more than a decade ago, and I remember when we treated our elite customers with urgency and respect. It’s really sad to see that they aren’t treated much differently than regular passengers anymore, and than none of them are treated very well. It’s a far cry from the mantra of a few years back when employees were encouraged to elevate the everyday experience. Now it’s not even believable that AA cares for people along life’s journey.
Livid that AA canceled my flight. Now trying to get home and a one way ticket has surged to over two thousand dollars! Had to drive. We bail these airlines out over and over and they just screw us.
I appreciate Señor Leff’s taking issue with the airlines’ questionable treatment of the customers.
The whole country bailed out this airline multiple times over, and customers pay good money to fly the airline — even more so its frequent flying ones most likely to be hit repeatedly by issues while flying. So we all should be taking public issue with the airline for its customer-unfriendly approaches to consumers.
Be pro-consumer — by not being a company or industry apologist.
I worked in the “money making” department and I totally agree with you Gary. Many times the directives were given that even we thought would negatively impact customers and employees, leaving you saying “Really?” And then coupled with an attitude from leadership of indifference as long as it squeezed out more money.
I’ve seen big changes for the worse in the past few weeks. 3 weeks ago I changed flight talkingto cust service rep whole driving to the airport. I had 30 minutes to get it done. Saved my business mtg. Now I call EXP customer service and it is 2hrs for a call back. Past 2 time they’ve called me back and it was worthless as I lost my Change opportunity.
I just wish they would stick to the flight times I reserved. They are the only carrier for the route I travel (TPA-XPL) but almost always will change my flight after booking. This time I went from a 90 minute layover in MIA to four hours. My earlier time is still available but they won’t put me back on it with out more than doubling my cost in miles. This happens almost every time I fly.
People should be flying on the flights they purchased. They shouldn’t be booking the later night flights because it’s cheaper and then trying to game the system and show up for an earlier flight hoping to get on. If you want an earlier flight pony up the money for it. Same day standby shouldn’t be a thing unless weather or something similar causes a lot of off schedule operations. If it is going to be a thing it should only be available to an airlines top customers.
Yeah I’m stuck @ dca. Put on standby. Standby means no checked bag. But what if I get gate checked? And restricted liquids! This bag thing is complicated. AA seems stuck in its own mess, and the tsa makes it worse. At least I can relax in the Admirals club, despite its pathetic Muzak soundtrack.
Before Covid, AA at LGA and EWR would check-in and tag my bags for standby when I asked to be put on standby for an earlier flight. Amazingly, for those AA standby flights, my standby checked-in bags always made it with me and showed up on the baggage belts at the domestic destinations without issue.
@AC and @Leo, for sure you can hold any opinions you wish about any Travel Blog, and read them or not as you wish. That said, when the Travel Blog is FREE, you’re not entitled to whine about the author. By all means please feel free to drop this Travel Blog if you wish, but if not, PLEASE do not whine about the author.
AA has terrible customer service. I flew in March I filed a complaint by letter and email. It was 6 weeks to get a reply to call a number which resulted in over 2. 5 hours on the phone with 8 different people who all claimed someone else had to take care of it. Now they required me to file the complaint AGAIN. I got one call saying that someone else had to take care of it and we will get back to you. Five months has passed without resolve.
Hey Gary,
Please put up a thumbs up thumbs down on your site, so we can register our opinions on some of the posters on your site who seem to read your blog to complain about it and you.
Continue to remind us of the stupid things airlines do to make traveling more difficult than it needs to be. Maybe one of those sitting in their offices in their offices will take notice and rersponsibility…
Yesterday I flew standby and saved a couple hours getting home on a full flight that had been delayed. Platinum status, no checked bags. After priority boarding my family of 4 was ticketed and they kept my wife and kids together. Thanks to the AA counter staff for helping me get home quicker.
AA doesn’t seem to train their agents very well anymore. They have automated just about everything so a monkey could work there. That way they don’t have to “waste” money on training. I also agree their connecting times are ridiculous. 35 or 40 minutes in ORD and DFW just ain’t happening! They keep claiming it was USAirways management that ruined AA but it was America West management that took over US and then AA.
@Gary —> I hate to resort to clichés, but how do you know when an American Airlines executive or spokesperson is lying? Their lips are moving…
Gary Leff is a short on AAL stock, he never has anything positive to say about American. Ignore him.
I am a retired FA. I was original Piedmont, then USAir, USAirways, & finally the worst & still is…American!! The time I spent with AA, 3-4 yrs were my
most miserable of my whole career! It’s an airline that just doesn’t give a shit & never will. They will never be an AIRLINE of choice….they don’t want to be !
Bag check in and try an early flight is always been there. U can’t flight without your bag.
American Airlines senior management would be much happier without the nuisance of customers. Every change they make is just another step to annoy their customers especially their rewards members. Perhaps they should use Fed Ex as a model and start flying cargo instead. You know the old saying ‘cargo never complains’.
@Leo says
yet you keep coming here. If you don’t like the content stop reading it. No one cares.
Another way cost cutting measures are affecting aa pax are with delayed bags. Anything 50 miles away or more are going fed ex (2 to 3 days for delivery) and some stations are now using roadie (pilfering issues and poorly vetted and trained drivers) My company handles most lost bags within 24 hours with the majority being delivered in under 5 hours. Its rough to see those bags just sitting there waiting on fed ex
You people who think you can purchase a seat on one flight, then show up at a different time and deserve a seat on another flight ARE A HOT MESS! Stand down. NO AIRLINE WANTS YOU as a customer. You’re the worst kind of entitlement. Buy the flight you want, and shut up. You deserve nothing more than what you paid for, I don’t care what kind of loyalty ranking you have. You are not special, and your repeat business doesn’t give you the right to screw with airline rules/schedules. Knock it off. Disgusting.
Airlines want repeat customers who are easy, not hard. If you are a hard customer, which airline would want your hassle every week? Answer: NONE OF THEM.
@Lindy. Great post! I agree with with you 100%. Some passengers who fly more think they better than others. Buy a ticket on a flight and take that flight.
Some airlines have chosen to have free same-day standby or confirmed flight changes as an elite status benefit. And most legacy major airlines still offer confirmed flight changes for no additional charge to the high price ticket flyers. That makes it pretty obvious that customers doing flight changes with such airlines are very valuable customers to the airlines as the greedy airlines would otherwise not offer such benefits/conditions as they do.
I’ve got a friend who’s stranded right now for two days in CLT after a canceled flight, right after two days stranded in PHL. AA is terrible.
I just flew AA last week. 4 out of 4 flights were delayed by at least an hour. 2 out of 3 checked bags did not make it to my destination with me. Since my miles are worth less and more difficult to use, I will be shopping around for my next flights.
AA has gone from.1st or 2d choice to last resort status when picking a carrier, despite lifetime gold status and 1.5 million miles.
Sorry, AA marketing routinely began boarding 40 or 50 passengers before getting to lowly me … I switched my business to United, to any other carrier, and to AA, in that order
AA management needs to understand they don’t compete in the transportation industry, but rather. in a service-oriented industry. Decisions and policies must be implemented with the customer always in mind. That’s why I no longer fly AA. DL, UA, JB are my options instead.
AA doing everything to piss off loyal customers. Those of us who have
3MM miles and help build AA into a leader have been forgotten in our senior years. Keep taking perks away from us and there is no need to stay loyal. Would Crandel downgrade PLT life timers by adding a new level. We went from second to third, no more stand-by. Fools