American Airlines Makes Troubling Move Ahead of Summer Travel: Report
Summer travel season is coming up, and if it's anything like last year, it's going to be a busy travel season. In 2024, a AAA travel survey revealed that 84% of U.S. residents traveled and 43% took more vacations than the previous year.
Summer travel season is always busy, but American Airlines is reportedly making a move that could make things a bit more hectic for travelers. According to a report from Gary Leff of View from the Wing, the airline is "cutting airport customer service hours right before summer flight disruptions hit."
In Leff's report, published on April 6, he says that "when you misconnect or your flight cancels, you're going to have to be doing a lot more self-service if you're flying American. They are cutting the hours of airport customer service."
Leff states that the Chicago O'Hare Customer Service Center is currently open from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m., but that "on the upcoming employee summer shift bid, service center shifts prior to 2 p.m. have been eliminated." Leff also notes that "usually, airlines staff up for peak summer."
He says he has contacted American Airlines to learn what other scheduling cuts are taking place at other hubs, too.
Leff also states that American Airlines has "reduced the number of agents at each gate, so that domestic flights that are no more than 80% full now get a single employee."
He adds, "That solo staffer has to board the aircraft, perform customer service like seat changes, and watch out for passengers who are too drunk to fly or who have too many carry-on bags. They've automated tasks like clearing upgrades and standby passengers with a program called AgentAssist."
So, if you're flying American and have trouble rebooking during flight disruptions, Leff suggests trying to rebook on the mobile app, going to the club (if you have access), trying X DMs, calling customer service or trying to get help at the gate, among other suggestions.
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