Dallas49er

Over my howling objections, MrsDallas49er had a business trip and booked us on AA in f DFW-SFO/SMF-DFW, due to her time commitments o either end. Her client paid, so I shut up

I expect nothing to come of this, but felt better for sending it off. This guy doesn't deserve a raise.

Mark/Gary, the male 1st class flight attendant is the personification of why, after 20+ years as an EXP (Executive Platinum) I left American. My wife and I were in F (First Class), and our understanding is that PDB's (Predeparture beverages) are to be expected. Mark/Gary hid in the galley, beating the heck out of ice cubes, not greeting passengers, nothing.
When boarded, the Pilot announced a "short" mechanical delay, which caused Mark/Gary to go hide in the back with other FA's but one. Fully half of F expressed "surprise" at the lack of PDB's to the only FA who was in sight -Michelle Alexandra. Though not her job, she did a water service for F.
In the air, Mark/Gary did the most perfunctory, emotionless, robotic service I have ever seen. Never a smile, never a hint of (ANY) emotion. It made us uncomfortable, like unwelcome guests, and HE was doing us some big favor. Attitude with a capital "A".
I will spend my money where I feel welcome and appreciated. AA may get me from point A to B, but when I get to "B", I feel neither welcomed or appreciated.

Flame away if you wish. I'm Diamond on DL, and will re-qualify for 2025 on April 15, DFW-CDG AF J.

Pinned

The summary: air travel is not glamorous when flying domestically.

Not to minimize your complaints or anything, but I've experienced plenty of rude "service" and plenty of excellent service across many airlines. It's the luck of the draw. I've had mediocre service on JAL in international first class, bummer but it happens. Fly the airlines you like - these are big corporations that don't care about any of us.

AAway

I'm not sure why all this was so shocking to you, given your history of issues with AA. That said, these are certainly valid grievances and I urge you to contact AA about your experience.

jayer

I'm just not surprised when people who are not getting paid till the door closes are not out in the aisle working.

bchandler02

Right.. the way FA's are paid is insane. Name another job where you are required to show up at x:30 and do work, but not paid until a later y:30 when something specific (pushback) happens.

karenkay

agreed, but if PDB is theoretically a benefit of flying up front, it should be provided. I sympathize w/the FA's, but it's not fair the people paying for F seats/service, either.

asnovici

Did you share this with AA?

javabytes

It's not insane. Block time was agreed by both parties for many years as the measure that struck a balance betwen ease of tracking while still serving as a reasonable proxy for actual work to provide fair overall compensation. The fact that there is airport time, boarding time, etc. is a surprise to no one. The fact that there are occasionally delayed flights is a surprise to no one. The hourly rate was set higher when both parties agreed to use block time with the full knowledge that some work duties occur outside that... and on the premise that the higher rate also provided fair overall compensation even in the face of duties that occur while the plane doors are open. No different than a salaried worker who at times puts in evenings, weekends, or overtime... or who works an extra day every leap year. For a salaried worker, if the evenings, weekends, or overtime are far out of balance with the overall annual compensation, then there's going to be a conversation around it, but that doesn't mean the idea of salary compensation is insane, or that those evenings/weekends/overtime are "unpaid". Similarly, if FAs are feeling like the overall compensation for overall effort is out of balance, then by all means negotiate it. But let's not pretend that airport time/boarding time/etc. are unpaid time. Both parties agreed to simply measure and compensate a different way.

DataPlumber

I wish that I had the time and emotion to critique and take personal every service nuance and attitude from every person I interact with.

On second thought, no I don’t.

USFlyerUS

True, but that's also what the union and company negotiated. They could also have negotiated starting the clock :30 earlier, but then the company would likely have asked for a slightly lower hourly rate to offset the increased hours.

A220HubandSpoke

They are paid for that. It's just calculated differently as it's easier for the company.

And they (the FAs) agreed to it. There are also plenty of at will employees in management who do unpaid overtime but hey you don't see them complaining and using it as an excuse not to do their jobs.

Herb687

You need to report Mark/Gary to AA. One bad report won't make a difference. Even ten might not. But eventually enough complaints from pax will get problem FAs disciplined. These losers get away with their bad attitudes and bad service because we as passengers collaborate with management that doesn't care (much).

I'm going to have to go to France on business soon. My engagement letter requires paid J (or F when J is not available). Do you think there's a snowball's chance that I would voluntarily choose AA when AF is an option?

I have status on AA and absolutely none on AF/DL. Chance of me booking AA DFW-CDG: effectively zero.

dliesse

Well, the OP did say it was a rant.

This describes the service I have received on every single AA flight I've ever had (no F, but one international J in addition to domestic Y). Haven't flown them for years, and was not happy when AS joined OneWorld (for my needs, the worst of the three).

I never expect much from any domestic airline anymore, and AA has always lived down to my expectations.

iadisgreat

I have had 3 domestic (in F) and 3 international (in J) flights over the last 4 weeks in AA. Not a ton, but still. All 3 domestic flights offered PDB of choice (A319/E175/E175) and multiple passes in flight to provide refills (on <60 minute flights). All 3 international flights offered as many beverages as desired from takeoff to landing, with chatty service and smiles.

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fastflyer

^My service satisfaction ratio is something like 3:2 -- I have three decent experiences for every two "blah" experiences. I fly in F mostly for the room and the relative quiet.

BTW, someone upthread mentioned an FA who asked for a loudspeaker device to be turned off -- this is actually an AA rule now. "Quiet cabins" they call it. I for one prefer that no passenger may use any noise-making device, and I am happy that the FAs are enforcing this rule, and I hope they apply it to their own credit-card hawkers. A bit of ice clinking in a cocktail glass and some soft conversation is acceptable, but otherwise give me quiet -- just the sound of rushing wind.