Look, I've heard and read the same terrible things about AA that you have over the years, and as a result have generally avoided using it whenever possible. That said, in February we took a family vacation to Arizona — and found ourselves needing a flight home to Boston that was A) Nonstop; B) Not a redeye; and C) Not crushingly expensive. We usually fly Jetblue everywhere, but they only offered a redeye, so my choices were essentially American... and American.

So we booked American, and after a great trip in AZ we arrived at Sky Harbor airport ready for what I'd anticipated would be a long and unpleasant flight — esp. given that we'd be seated near the back, and would be among the last to board.

Turns out... it was totally fine. Standing in line to drop off our luggage and check in? Relatively painless, and the agents were friendly and professional. Boarding? Handled cleanly and without confusion. The seats? Reasonably sized and comfortable. Yeah, we missed the built-in seatback screens of JetBlue, but one quick app upload made it easy to stream video on our phones. (I just wish I'd been smart enough to download a couple of movies before we got to the airport -- my bad!)

The flight was smooth and essentially on time, and - miracle of miracles - our bags even came out quickly and efficiently at Logan Airport (which NEVER happens when we fly Jetblue). So all things considered, it was a really good trip. I don't know if we just lucked out or if reviews here tend to skew negative just because it's hard to write a review of a flight that went fine, but... my trepidation, at least in one case, proved unfounded. Nice work, AA!

I have had the absolute worst experience. They didn’t have a direct flight to Phoenix and both of my flights were delayed by 30+ minutes. The staff was not friendly. Honestly, everything about my experience with this airline was terrible. I will NEVER book another American flight again. DELTA IS THE WAY TO GO!

I feel so bad for people that fly this airline as I know they must have had no other option. What a horrible airline, they change important flight information (flight #, departure time, etc.) often, the planes are dirty and outdated, the staff are remedial and rude. I'd rather fly on a small and questionable aircraft then by a ticket and give American Airlines my money.

I flew from Ronald Reagan (Washington DC) to Wausau, Wisconsin via Chicago O'hare. The day started with a rude check-in agent who was passive aggressive and verbally assaulted me for not knowing how to put on my luggage tag. I asked for help but she was not happy. Pay for a checked bag and they make you feel terrible about it? Strike 1.

TSA was pretty slow at Reagan but I can't fault the airline for that. Also the food options were very limited in the terminal and generic, I will happily fly out of BWI (1st choice) or Dulles (2nd choice) instead. Arrived at my gate about 2 hours early before boarding and relaxed. Before I knew it, the aircraft pulled up to the gate... wait, is that the emergency slide hanging off the side of the aircraft?! Yep, their crew accidentally deployed the slide so they delayed the flight 2 hours to repair it. I get it, mistakes happen and they brought out food and drinks for passengers to eat in the meantime. Not a bad thought and appreciated (the only good part it seems). After I got some food, I went up to the gate agent and confirmed I would not miss my connection in O'hare and she assured me I would not.

2 Hours passes and they extend the delay another hour to make the repairs. At this point, I would miss my connection so I went to the gate agent again. I asked if I could get on another flight so I could make my connection and she asked my ticketing class. She gave me side eye and said "oh theres nothing we can do". From this point on, she refused to acknowledge or help me in any way. TStrike 2.

To Customer Service I go to rebook my connection. See, this could all be avoided if my ticketing class was economy and not basic economy, lesson learned. My rebooking options were terrible and the only other flight from Chicago to Wausau was 8 hours after my original flight. This suddenly became the layover from hell. No compensation or anything, they would not work with me unless I bought a whole new ticket. Strike 3.

3 hours go by and still no word so they delayed the flight another 20 minutes. Then another 20. And another 20 minutes, no communication from staff and they would not let me rebook unless the flight cancelled. Essentially, they could delay into eternity and I would be held hostile. 5 hours and 45 minutes after the original departure we could board. The gate agent was yelling at everyone to board faster so we would not miss our departure slot and I was happy to leave Ronald Reagan. Strike 4.

Arriving in O'hare, I went to the service desk to beg for compensation, all I could get was a meal voucher and boy did I have to move mountains for it. My connecting flight left on time (a regional jet) and the flight itself was a dream, minus the miserable flight attendant. Strike 4.5 (lol).

Overall, I learned an important lesson, basic economy is tempting but you essentially sign over all your rights. It is fine if nothing goes wrong but if it does, you are mercifully screwed and at the will of the airline. Next time, I'll pay the extra $60 for economy but I will never fly AA again. Terrible customer service and HORRIBLE flight prices. United is far better for regional services and Southwest for anything else. #neverAAagain.

This airline is hypocritical. As of May 11th they are restricting our rights by forcing ALL CUSTOMERS to wear “face coverings” during services. Not only is this ignorant but after flying with them just weeks before this mandate, it also appears hypocritical. Their stewardess don’t wear masks, and the ones that are we’re using them improperly. They make a huge deal about “social distancing” (we are all sharing the same air!!!!) but it was evident after multiple flights that only was the case if they couldn’t sell enough tickets to fill the flight. If the flight was full, all rules went out the window. Obviously this has a lot less do to with “public safety” and more about publicity and profitably.
Won’t fly with these guys again, this whole situation is absurd and senseless.

Lost a customer for life.