AMerican airlines cancelled flight/

Old Aug 4th, 2007, 06:18 AM
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AMerican airlines cancelled flight/

My husband was booked on an american airlines flight from LGA to Cleveland at 4:30 pm yesterday august3rd.They cancelled it without any reason and rebooked on the flight next(today) morning at 8:30 with a connection which will take 7 hrs instead of a 1.6 hr flight, expected to reach today afternoon around 20 hours later than yesterday.He is on the airport for 16 hours now..The airline would not entertain any request for accomodation ..now they say it was weather but between 4:30 to 9:30 pm, there were other flights which left from the same LGA airport to cleveland including continental .I fail to understand how the weather was a problem for one airline and now many others.There were also flight from LGA to columbus ,near cleveland which actually took off during the same time but my husband was denied as that was overbooked...The weather in cleveland and columbus is hardly ever different and I know cleveland was as sunny as could be.I feel the airlines just put all blaims on whether when actually it is their problem.

Can anybody suggest me how to succesfully address this matter with the american airlines.
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Old Aug 4th, 2007, 06:57 AM
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When airlines have delays/cancellations for weather, they are not required to give you any compensation - it is not their fault.

Weather delays occur for weather problems sometimes in cities far from your departure or destination cities. Equipment (the plane) must get to your departure city. That is why when there is widespread severe weather in one part of the country it has a ripple effect over much of the rest of the country.

With planes usually flying close to full these days, the problem is compounded since there is often not room on the next flight or any reasonable alternate flight.

I know this is maddening - it has happened to anyone who flies frequently, regardless of airline or cities involved.

In the future, sometimes one can get a better reschedule by calling airline on cell phone from the airport or checking on-line rather than relying on what gate agent tells you. I have often been able to rebook my husband's business flight messes from home more effectively than he can do at the airport.

Also, when dealing with the gate/airline agent, it always works better to be polite and sympathetic to their plight of having to deal with scores of angry travlers. If the person in front of you in line is really rude and you are really nice, so much the better.

As far as compensation, I would either write a concise and polite letter to AA or call and ask to speak to a supervisor. It is unlikely you will get much - maybe some FF miles, partial voucher. But the bottom line is that weather is not their fault and if other flights are full, you can't really expect them to throw passengers off to accomodate you.

But it is infuriating, I know.
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Old Aug 4th, 2007, 07:02 AM
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AAFF has explained this here many times, probably better than I can. Not that this is going to be much consolation to your husband, but weather-related delays and cancellations don't necessarily have anything to do with the weather at the departure and arrival airports. A given plane might start out the day in Chicago, then fly to Memphis, then to Miami, then to New York, then to Cleveland. If weather delays or cancels a flight or the availability of a crew, say in the early-day Chicago-Memphis flight, the rest of the day gets gummed up. It's not like American can just pull a spare plane out of the hangar or call in a spare crew from home. There aren't any. And with summer, especially, being peak travel season, planes are full, so it's never easy to be rolled over to the next flight out. Of course, airlines have no obligation to provide accommodation to passengers when weather is the problem.

It's frustrating, I know. Been there. But that's the way it is with weather.
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Old Aug 4th, 2007, 07:09 AM
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Oops. I was composing my reply as Gail posted hers.

Another bit of advice, although it's not always possible to arrange things this way: Flying early in the day is more likely to shield you from the ripple effects that tend to build up as the day goes on.
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Old Aug 4th, 2007, 07:58 AM
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There were air-traffic control imposed restrictions at all NYC airports yesterday. The airline has to determine which flights they want cut. Many Continental Express regional jet flights were indeed cancelled yesterday at Newark, for example.

When there are weather issues at airports, it doesn't mean NO FLIGHTS CAN DEPART unless yours can also depart.

But that's the sad facts of flying this summer through Northeast airports. It's absolutely ridiculous.
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Old Aug 4th, 2007, 08:05 AM
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If this makes you feel better, according to flightstats.com, between 3-6p yesterday, 128 flights were scheduled out of LGA. 12.5% were canceled.

Over at JFK, 156 flights were scheduled, 7.7% canceled.

And at EWR, 136 scheduled, 16.9% canceled.

One thing I pointed out and want to say again. The vast majority (though not all) of the canceled flights are regional jets or turboprops. Airlines almost always sacrifice these for their longhaul flights, especially international ones, when ATC forced them to cancel flights.

Another strong reason to avoid regional jets if possible.
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Old Aug 4th, 2007, 08:59 AM
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Thansk for the replies...I understand if there was a weather problem but there was none..there was a mistype in my previosu post..

From 4:30 pm to 10 pm, infront of him many flights did leave like continental etc from laguardia to cleveland.How is it that it was a problem for american airlines and not others and how is that the american airlines did fly 2 flights from LGA to columbus during the same time when its only an hour and half from cleveland and weather is the same both places..

It looks like there was a crew problem..or something and they won't accept it.

I know that after 10 pm some flights were cancelled due to weather but none before that.

Also the ygave accomodation to another couple and not to my husband stating that its Manager's decision because that couple was little ol..(my husband is 35 and the looked in 50s..)..and that they had an international connecting flight though that was also the same category as him.I dont know how that matters that somebody in 50s gets paid for accomodation and my husband needs to shell out $200 for the room if he wants....

I feel downright infuriated ..

and the update is that now his flight fro mchicago is also delayed ( the one they rerouted him from...)...really sucks to be on airport for close to 24 hrs..
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Old Aug 4th, 2007, 09:01 AM
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sorry..typing error ..I meant my husband is on 35 and the other couple who got free accomodation was in 50s
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Old Aug 4th, 2007, 09:08 AM
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Yes, it sucks to be stuck at the airport - it's happened to me before and I surely empathize.

But you say "I understand if there was a weather problem but there was none..there was a mistype in my previosu post.."

I'm sorry, but you are misinformed. There were a series of very strong summer thunderstorms that rolled through the area yesterday.

As rk points out the air traffic control is stretched to its limits, especially in the NE, and during the afternoon hours. Any hiccup has a ripple effect.

Weather, like that that rolled through yesterday afternoon, happens.

You are feel to continue to feel infuriated, but I encourage you to better understand the facts, and to understand the broader air traffic control system in general.



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Old Aug 4th, 2007, 11:05 AM
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Sorry, but did you not understand what I wrote in my last reply?

There was a air-traffic control issued ground-stop or delay for all NYC area airports. There are just not enough slots for all scheduled flights for the airspace.

So, some flights will have to be canceled. You can register on flightstats.com and find out flight status of any airport for yesterday, today and tomorrow.

Anyways, between 3:00 and 6:00p yesterday, canceled flights at LGW include:

US Express 4151 to BWI (Baltimore)
DL Express 5483 to TYS (Knoxville)
DL Express 5245 to CHS (Charleston)
DL Express 5436 to JAX (Jacksonville)
US Express 3947 to SDF (Louisville)
US Express 4617 to BUF (Buffalo)
NW 261 to DTW (Detroit)
DL Shuttle 1928 to BOS (Boston)
US Express 3023 to DAY (Dayton)
AA Eagle 4901 to CLT (Charlotte)
AA Eagle 4791 to DCA (Washington National)
US Express 4458 to SYR (Syracuse)
Frontier 511 to DEN (Denver)
US Express 3054 to PWM (Portland, ME)
US Express 4451 to MVY (Martha's Vineyard)

in additional to your husband's CLE flight on AA Eagle.

Do you need me to list all the canceled flights out of JFK and EWR too? Or those from 6pm to 9pm and onwards?

If he wonders why someone else get free accomodation, he can file a complaint to AA. They still won't give him anything because he's not qualified to get anything.
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Old Aug 4th, 2007, 11:41 AM
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And did you not understand the manhy posters who tried to explain that weather problems that effect your flight might actually occur 1000 miles from anywhere your flight goes?

My son was flying SWA yesterday from Manchester, NH to BWI (Washington). There was a 20 minute thunderstorm in Manchester area and because of it flights from 2 hours prior to thunderstorm and on thru evening were delayed or cancelled.

We all agree it stinks and it is hateful when it happens to you or yours - but it is not the airline's fault.

And I am actually pleased that AA gave preference to the couple trying to catch an international flight - if it were you, I would think you would hope to receive that consideration as well.
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Old Aug 5th, 2007, 08:43 AM
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It is also possible that the other couple had a high enough status with the airline that they received the voucher even though it was weather related. Maybe they were nice to the agent, too.
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Old Aug 5th, 2007, 01:29 PM
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It's all nonsense....when passengers with confirmed reservations are inconvenienced like this, the airline should be forced to provide some amenities.....what we need is an airline bill of rights...I assure you that if the airlines could not use this "weather" excuse, there would be far fewer cancellations and far fewer screwing of their passengers and they would be a lot more cauteous of not ruining people's holidays or whatever by not re-scheduling them for 2 or 3 days. That is total garbage.
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Old Aug 6th, 2007, 10:51 AM
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This exchange certainly proves the point that you can tell who flies a lot by their reactions to weather and equipment delays.

For those who 'been there, done that' it is old news, and you learn to live with it or you die early of a heart attack.

For those like insearchofheaven and xyz123, who is apparently a leisure traveler, it is new and surprising. None of us like it, but ya gotta get over it. Delays and cancellations happen. There are some things that aren't anybody's fault.
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Old Aug 6th, 2007, 12:10 PM
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Ackislander - I'm a "leisure traveler" and don't fly very often, but I can guarantee that I understand delays and cancelled flights better than some experienced business travelers (I've sat at the airport listening to them telling the gate agents how important they are and that they MUST get on this flight - the flight that isn't going anywhere for anyone). Just wanted to point out that not all "rookie" flyers are incapable of grasping common sense logic.

To me, flight delays and cancellations are no worse than rush hour traffic and highway accidents - it's not anyone's fault, it's part of dealing with life and knowing that some things are outside your control.
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Old Aug 10th, 2007, 07:42 AM
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I think I would have rented a car and drove to Cleveland from NYC. Its only a 6 hour drive. I've done it many times.
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Old Aug 10th, 2007, 07:47 AM
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You consistently drove ~460 miles in 6 hours? Including fighting traffic to get out of NYC?
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