The Pleasures Of Flying These Days

I received automated telephone notification from American Airlines that my noon flight from NY to LA would be delayed an hour. When I got to the gate the equipment wasn’t there and departure time came and went. A half-hour later the flight was cancelled. We then had to go to the ticket counter, get our new flight, retrieve luggage from baggage claim, get our new boarding passes, check our luggage and go through security again. We were put on a flight to Miami connecting with a flight to LA. We would never have made the Miami flight if it weren’t that my friend had recently had hip replacement surgery and needed wheelchair assistance — we were put in front of every line and given priority. We finally reached LA 8 hours than originally scheduled. And, of course, no food. Thank god I was traveling on a frequent flyer ticket. All in all, the trip took 13 hours. I wrote a scathing letter to the president of American and received 10,000 bonus miles as a “good will” gesture. Truly a flight from hell.

Tagged as: american airlines, delay/cancellation, disability