The seat when "flat" was not flat and pad was too thin to cover it.
I had pre-selected a meal. I was told that it cannot be served because of some issue with the vendor. When travelling business class, I expect better service
On time departure and early arrival. Flight attendant very nice.
American delayed the flight for a crew rest period. The delay occurred late in the evening - the earliest i can find is 10:20 pm. With a 6 am flight anyone on the flight would have already have been asleep (unless you are insane, a vampire or on drugs) and at least for me i was already on the way to the airport at 445 am the next morning when i discovered they delayed the flight until 9 am. Given the incoming flight was in the air at 6 pm the evening before this should have been figured out a lot more timely that was there only crew to use. Just frustrating given there is no consideration for customer experience anymore in flying.
The business class layout of chairs was weired. You are sitting directly across stranger.,
The "on the ground" A/C was not working. It was so hot while waiting to get in the air, a passenger from the rear of the plan declared "I just can't!" and waited in the gangway until time to close the doors. It was miserable. But the crew were champs and had an amazing attitude. I know they were as miserable as we were but didn't let that affect their performance.
The captain announced to the cabin there would be a delay because they observed a "cut" on a tire during precheck that needed to be cleared by maintenance. We were delayed during this inspection and allowed to proceed after maintenance "measured the cut and decided it was acceptable". My complaint is not about the delay or due diligence. I wish the captain had been more generic when making his announcement. I was a nervous wreck all the way to Charlotte worried that we would have a blowout when landing!
American Airlines is a miserable experience. It is predictably miserable, in the sense that every time I fly American, I brace myself for the certainty that it will be unpleasant and uncomfortable. But it is unpredictable in the sense that I never know if the flight will be on time or delayed nine hours (both happened to me this week). I never know if I will be able to sit in the seat that I selected when I purchased the ticket or if I will be told by Customer Service (!!!) that I must relocate from first class to a seat in the back of the aircraft with no explanation (both happened to me this week). Will the food be frozen and half defrosted, or scalding hot? Will the drinks be warm? Will the flight attendants be surly and mean? Will the toilets be cramped and foul? Will the seats be narrow and uncomfortable? Will there be a real electric outlet at the seat, or just an unreliable USB-2 port? Will there be enough seats in the boarding lounge or just a few? Will the boarding process be smooth and efficient, or will the gate agents mess it up and delay it needlessly for 30 or 40 minutes? Will the catering and cleaning crew be prompt or will they take an extra 30 minutes? Will the brakes on the aircraft work properly, or will the pilot delay takeoff for four hours while the ground crew attends to what can only be described as routine maintenance that should have been done the night before? I've eexperienced every one of these unpleasant things this year, 2026. The only thing I can reliably count on is that American will find a new way to make the experience of flying as miserable as they possibly can.
I'm not sure American is capable of on-time arrivals and departures. When you land at ORD, you almost always get held on the tarmac because your gate is still occupied. I may have missed my connection, but that ended up up being significantly delayed as well. Once again, I finally got home well after midnight.
Same plane as RDU to LGA — internet not working. Pilot issue of some sort at end of prior flight - I was on same plane for my connection. Late/delayed —
