librarygal

The flight from Boston to DCA was uneventful until we landed. We were speeding toward the gate and I looked forward to getting something to eat before getting on my next flight. It was a short connection but I didn't see any problem. But suddenly the plane stops moving and we sit there for 20 minutes. Not a word came from the flight deck.

Finally the Captain came on and said there were no gates and we would be sitting there until one opened up. Finally after sitting for an hour we got to the gate and 15 minutes later the plane was empty.

My connection had already left and the airport was in busy. I made my way to the customer service desk and found there was over 100 people waiting for one agent to help them. Three hours later I made it to the front of the line and was rebooked for the next day. No hotel was given and we had to pay for our own room.

I tried calling and tweeting while in line. They did not respond to my tweets or did I ever get off hold. I am not an elite member of American Airlines or do I have Club Membership.

What could I and the other hundred other people in line do differently?

YOWzer

Do you have travel insurance?

LondonElite

Not much really. Unfortunately these things happen every day. I would have thought you can claim the hotel and additional expenses from the airline, or worst from travel insurance.

tom911

There's been a lot of bad weather in the northeast the last few days, and that includes up to 4 hour arrival delays at some airports. When that happens, aircraft get out of position and gates that might be expected to be available are occupied by late-departing and late-arriving aircraft. Sometimes this also includes "ground stops" where aircraft can't depart one airport until the other airport can find a landing slot for them. Basically, blame the weather.

If AA is not offering to pay for your room, it's likely that they're considering your delay weather-related. You could follow up by e-mail and complain, and ask them to reimburse hotel and meal expenses, but weather is an escape clause that they can fall back on and not have to cover your expenses. Head over to the AA website and look for the "contact us" link.

About the only thing you could have done differently was get on the phone with AA while you were in that 3 hour line to rebook something sooner.

I don't have travel insurance. You might check if the credit card you made the booking with offered any protection.

LMB01

You could have spend $50 for a one day pass to the Club and had the help of the AAngels.

MSPeconomist

OP did try to call AA while waiting in line, but never got beyond being on hold.

Kagehitokiri

you dont have to rely on that customer service desk

if there is a lounge, you could pay to use it, they might be more helpful with no queue, and you might be able to get payment (to use lounge) refunded

possible to get compensation afterwards

MSPeconomist

With no status when the problem was caused by weather?

Often1

1. Unless the delay was occasioned by AA, e.g., a mechanical, there is no basis for compensation, including for hotel. OP may submit it, but it is certain to be rejected. Most travel insurance will cover trip interruption and that's what this is.

2. I note that OP called AA. Was this possibly a US flight given that it was BOS-DCA. As the late delivering carrier, it would have been on US to rebook OP and that might have gone faster.

3. As to reasons, OP doesn't provide a time-frame, but the past few days have seen horrible weather with ground stops and other restrictions. DCA is great because it's 10 minutes to downtown. It's terrible because it's physically small, surrounded on three sides by water and a highway on the fourth. When traffic slows or stops, there is no place to put aircraft and off-loading passengers onto air stairs is not a great idea at DCA absent a real need.

tom911

Refunded by who? AA is not going to refund the cost of a one day pass after purchase. Have you ever seen them do that or read reports on the AA forum of that happening? I haven't. If they did, every passenger getting off a delayed flight would rush in for priority assistance, complete their rebooking, and then ask for a refund. Just not going to happen.

Even if it's weather related? I'd be very surprised.

Thanks. Appears I missed that.

Kagehitokiri

compensation may depend on one's communication (and sometimes negotiation) abilities

chrisl137

Once it starts to look like you're stuck, if you're on the ground you can start looking up flight status on your smartphone and looking for alternates. With a tight connection and an ambiguous delay time while waiting for a gate, you can get on the phone while you're still on the plane. You might still end up waiting on hold, and still without a flight til the next day, but you'd be earlier in the queue and maybe have a better chance of getting rebooked for the same day.

Tchiowa

Were both flights on American and were they both on the same ticket? If so, they owe you more than just next day rebook.

Kagehitokiri

that was my thought but i may have missed something or others may know schedules offhand

swag

Others have suggested paying for a lounge pass, but that's no guarantee. Just last week, I used a pass for the United Club in IAD. Despite no weather issues, the wait for an agent there was 40 minutes. That day, the regular customer service line would have been quicker.

Standing in line while waiting on hold on the phone is the usual best practice. But when the line gets that long (three hours!), it sometimes is faster to exit the secure area and go to the ticket counter for assistance there.