When I originally booked this flight, I was expecting to travel on Qantas. When the itinerary changed and the long-haul segment was operated by American Airlines, we were disappointed but remained open-minded. Unfortunately, the overall service experience fell far short of expectations. This was a long-haul international flight. Getting up periodically to use the restroom or stretch is inevitable, especially on flights of this duration. However, each time we stood up, we felt as though we were inconveniencing the crew. The tone and body language often suggested that we were in the way or disrupting something simply by moving about the cabin. As a result, I avoided getting up as often as I needed to and was physically very sore upon arrival. Meal service was similarly impersonal. The options were presented in single words “beef or veggie,” “pasta or beef” without any description of what was actually being served. There was little engagement or courtesy beyond that. Even simple expressions of gratitude were often not acknowledged. I am accustomed to no-frills travel and do not expect luxury. What was disappointing was not the absence of extras, but the absence of basic warmth and professionalism. On a long-haul international flight, small moments of courtesy and humanity make a significant difference. In this case, the experience felt transactional and dismissive rather than welcoming. I hope this feedback is taken constructively, as there is a meaningful difference between efficient service and indifferent service.
4.0 OkayDesiree, Feb 2026SYD - LAX
When I originally booked this flight, I was expecting to travel on Qantas. When the itinerary changed and the long-haul segment was operated by American Airlines, we were disappointed but remained open-minded. Unfortunately, the overall service experience fell far short of expectations. This was a long-haul international flight. Getting up periodically to use the restroom or stretch is inevitable, especially on flights of this duration. However, each time we stood up, we felt as though we were inconveniencing the crew. The tone and body language often suggested that we were in the way or disrupting something simply by moving about the cabin. As a result, I avoided getting up as often as I needed to and was physically very sore upon arrival. Meal service was similarly impersonal. The options were presented in single words “beef or veggie,” “pasta or beef” without any description of what was actually being served. There was little engagement or courtesy beyond that. Even simple expressions of gratitude were often not acknowledged. I am accustomed to no-frills travel and do not expect luxury. What was disappointing was not the absence of extras, but the absence of basic warmth and professionalism. On a long-haul international flight, small moments of courtesy and humanity make a significant difference. In this case, the experience felt transactional and dismissive rather than welcoming. I hope this feedback is taken constructively, as there is a meaningful difference between efficient service and indifferent service.
Qantas is always subpar beyond comfy chairs for a domestic flight
Flight arrived late with no one to help over 30 people rebook. I slept at the airport.
Business seats not as comfortable or private as most competitors (e.g. Qantas was outstanding), and movie selection was much more limited than Qantas or United has been recently
Hard to move and get out of my seat when the passenger in front is in recline position.
The crew were wonderful - if only the customers were as well behaved as the attendants!! Ha ha! If you could just talk to God and ask for less turbulence next time.... Juuuuust kidding....
Basic airline, aircraft and service. AA gets you from point A to B. My flight was delayed by 2 hours too.
My flight from Dallas to Sydney was cancelled. My entire trip was rerouted to include the following: Hartford to Washington DC Washington DC to JFK JFK to Auckland Auckland to Christchurch I paid for an aisle seat on the flight to Auckland and was asked if I would take a window seat to accommodate a family. The agent at the podium failed to mention that the family had a 3 month old baby and that a bassinet would be used during the 16 hour flight. The only way I could get out of my seat was to crawl under the bassinet of the sleeping baby. I think it is wrong that I was no given the choice to sit in another seat, that the agent knew what she was doing and chose to not properly disclose my seating arrangement. Terrible treatment.
they ran out of fruit for breakfast and so I just had a yogurt instead. other than that the flight was good
Poor! This flight was delayed 14 hours. There was no assistance in helping customers find other routes to their destination, nor any other kind of support. It was a chaotic experience. I'm not likely to fly with AA going forward.
When I went to check in at the United counter in Barcelona, Spain I had 2 different menat 2 different times in United uniforms (standing around with a couple other employees) ask me if I was traveling alone. The one man asked me 3 different ways if I was traveling alone. I am, 68 yeaers old and have all my faculties. I thought it was weird and it made me feel very uncomfortable. What difference does it make if I was traveling alone or with someone? What if I was a recent widow? That would have been horrible. They never gave me a reason why they needed to know who I was traveling with. I was hesitant to question them because I needed to be on that flight.
We were delayed for about an hour from taking off due to traffic control procedures at the destination airport. But once in the air, the flight went well. The crew members were great and provided cabin service despite moderate turbulence during much of the flight.
Crew was great. 2 1/2 hour delay was due to staff needing "rest" was avoidable and self inflicted as United not willing to hire enough crew to keep flight on time.. Ridiculous. The crew and the passengers both suffered due to this.
Fine not above and beyond as I had a connection that was delayed due to maintenance
Bad food, bad service, cold cabin with no additional blankets when asked for (they told me they don’t provide additional blankets). I’m a frequent traveler and this is one of the worst companies I traveled with (by the way I thought that I booked my ticket with Lufthansa but I didn’t see that the flights were handled by United).
Great other than a couple very drunk guys that for a while kept bumping my seat from behind. The staff did their best to control them. Even refused serving them alcohol and allowed the gal sitting next to them to move.
Good crew. Boarding delays. Almost two hours wait for the bags in DC.
Unfortunately weather delayed our flight waiting for our plane to arrive and due to a little snow time was needed to deice the plane so departure was very delayed and I missed the connecting flight
It was great. There were some issues prior to takeoff. The weather was poor so we had to go through deicing, and we were delayed a bit by the pilots' concern about one of the engines, but that's aviation. The pilots handled everything with aplomb, and kept us apprised
The seats were comfortable and we had leg room. Great entertainment.
