Encyclopedia Muneerica

The time we spent in Punta Cana was amazing. However, American Airlines was horrible during each trip.

Our flight going to the DR was supposed to be at 7.30am, Sunday, May 11.

• We got an email from AA 6 hours before our flight took off saying that we were being rebooked to the 7.30am flight on May 12.
• Since we were under the impression we were going to take off, we got the message at 3am when we woke up. Jessicca called up AA.
• Their agent finally got on the line after we were on hold for almost 2 hour and told us there was no way for us to get to the DR on Sunday.
• So, we missed a whole day at the resort.

On the way back, it was an endless series of nonsense:

• We got an email that our flight from Punta Cana to Chicago was delayed. The email told us to go to the airport to rebook. * We get there and check in the bags. The itinerary, however, said that the first leg of the trip was from Punta Cana to Chicago, while the second leg of the trip was from Charlotte to KC. I didn’t want our bags getting lost, so I checked the bags to Chicago. That incurred an extra $10 bag fee because AA charges you if you don’t check your bags to your ultimate destination. * The gate agent we got to was a trainee. Her manager came over and decided this was the best time for some training. So, our rebooking took twice as long as it should because they were doing it as slowly as possible. They rebooked us to Charlotte and put us on a flight that got to KC 2 hours after our original flight was scheduled to land.
• The flight actually took off an hour early, so I thought this was the end of our troubles. How wrong I was. * We get to Charlotte and there’s no gate open for us. We sat on the tarmac for almost 2.5 hours. A gate magincally opened up when a baby had a medical emergency in the back of the plane. * They had held the flight to KC, probably because half our plane was on that flight.
• When we get through Customs, we were told to go upstairs to the general ticket counters. * Apparently, flights out of Charlotte had been getting cancelled all day, so there were close to 3000 people in line waiting to get rebooked. * We got in line at around 11.30pm. * At around 1.15am, Jessicca got an email saying we had been rebooked on the 8.19am flight to KC. * At 3am, we get to the front of the line. AA had 4 people working originally, but some extra agents got in at around 2. * They wouldn’t let us check our bags because the baggage handlers don’t start work until 5am. * I went downstairs to get us food and coffee from Starbucks, which was the only place open. * While I was downstairs, Jessicca got back in line for the baggage. I got up to the line with the food and drinks about 10 minutes before they finally let us give our bags to the baggage handlers.
• We took off on time, and got home at noon on Sunday, 13 hours after we were supposed to have gotten home.

We’re never flying with American again.