Introduction
American Airlines is one of the world’s most distinguished and well-recognized international airlines. Headquartered in the city of Fort Worth, it is known as one of the busiest airline companies, averaging about an incredible 6,700 scheduled flights in a single day, flying to approximately 350 travel destinations based in more than 50 countries. Yet, despite its reputation, it has faced instances where passengers and partners have not been as pleased as they would have hoped, which has led to numerous complaints and disputes. So what can be the possible reasons for such occurrences?Let us know about the Services offered by American airlines and how they can be improved, their functions & operations in this article.
Services offered by american airlines
The last decade has seen lots of mistakes and mishaps done by American Airlines, which have discouraged the American public and government officials. Such mistakes include late arrivals, damage to passenger belongings, missing passenger belongings, jam-packing the plain to record higher sales despite the pandemic, etc.
In this article, we will be looking into the company’s functions, its services, mishaps caused, and steps that can be considered to better its services.
Functions and operations
American airlines rely on its ten airport hubs across the United States to function and operate daily, carrying cargo and passengers and dropping them to their destination city. These are the following hubs:
- Miami international airport
- La Guardia Airport
- Philadelphia international airport
- Ronald Reagan/Washington international airport
- Charlotte international airport
- Dallas/fort worth international airport
- Los Angeles international airport
- O’hare international airport
- JFK international airport
- Harbor of sky/phoenix international airport.
AA can deliver and service more than 350 destinations because of its largest commercial fleet of airlines, which includes aircraft from the Boeing 737-800 family, Airbus A319-100, Airbus A321-200 family, and the McDonnell Douglas, and the Embraer, jet family.
American airlines Services
Services offered by American airlines include:
Basic Economy
The least costly of all the American Airlines services, the service comes with certain restrictions. For instance, overhead bin access is not allowed, seats are assigned after the completion of check-in, and a no-refund policy. American Airlines re-added the essential economic feature recently once again after having once discontinued it in 2004
Economy Premium
Economy premium was solely announced for aircraft with wide-body long-haul. Its seats are more comprehensive than the traditional cabin seats. Economy Premium customers can take along two free checked bags, enjoy priority boarding, get free alcohol, and avail of quality food and drinks services: making the most of its benefits.
Advantage
brought into effect in May 1981, AAdvantage is one of American Airlines’ outstanding frequent flyer services. This frequent flyer service is the biggest one, with members about 67 million as of 2011. So the benefits of enrolling in AAdvantage are plenty.
First class domestic
With a maximum of 50 seats, all domestic and regional aircraft offer their services. And when used for international travel, it’s advertised as Business Class. As a result, passengers enjoy luxurious treatments in the form of offerings like snacks, beverages, alcohol, and soft drinks, along with dining options on all its flights. Three-course meals are also offered if the passengers fly 900 miles or further.
Flagship lounge
The Lounge consists of the staff consists of employees and affiliates also working for Admirals Club. Admirals Club is a connected network of airport lounges provided by AA that operates over 30 locations worldwide.
These lounges provide a comfortable and positive experience for traveling passengers to relax, charge their mobile devices, dine, shower, etc. There are numerous ways to obtain the admirals club membership under AA. It is designed for flyers of First Class international flights and domestic intercontinental flights.
Reasons for poor CRM
Pandemic mismanagement
while the pandemic was accelerating cases worldwide, AA had adjusted its COVID-19 safety protocols and went back to selling every available seat rather than keeping the middle seats empty as it had been doing since the start of the pandemic.
Mass cancellations and delays
AA has had a somewhat dis-balanced working relationship with its mechanics in recent years. But why? A simple answer is that the mechanics have intentionally slowed down their work progress. As a result, keeping planes under maintenance has directly disrupted the airline’s schedule causing a massive problem for its customers.
Grounded aircraft
Due to the difference in opinion between AA and the mechanics union, during any given period, there have been routinely 100 or so aircraft grounded, which puts the strain on the passengers, who lose a lot as a result.
Non-friendly staff
Passengers who have flown with American airlines on more than one occasion have described the on–flight staff, that is, the flight attendants, as fierce, hardly spoken, not serious, a bit frustrated, and mildly careless. Sure passengers have also claimed that such conditions diminish their flying experience, leaving them unsatisfied.
Lacking customer services
Surveys within AA have shown a considerable gap of understanding between the management and front-line staff. This gap has often resulted in decreased staff interest in customer services because they don’t feel satisfied with their working conditions.
Conclusion
Things American airlines can do or continue doing to better their services are:
- Focus on conflict resolution to better its relationship with the unions it works with, the front-line staff, and its customers.
- Take decisions for the next business cycle that cuts their losses and leads to better service delivery and profit earnings.
- Formulize better pricing and safety strategies to boost ticket sales.
- Be constantly active with its social responsibilities to present a good image to its business partners and customers.
American Airlines, despite its issues, is still a reliable commercial option for passengers, and with the help of the above blueprint, it can re-establish its reliability with its customers.
