Filed under: Consumer experience, Employees, Southwest Airlines (LUV)
This post is part of a feature on companies and products that our bloggers think are in need of a makeover. See all 26.
This summer I had the misfortune of flying AMR Corp.’s (NYSE: AMR) American Airlines. In my experience, it ranks near the top in its expression of contempt for its customers. As I wrote in my book Value Leadership, it is almost the opposite of Southwest Airlines (NYSE: LUV), which has tarnished its flawless image with its first quarterly loss in 17 years due to a $247 million charge resulting from a jet fuel hedge gone sour. But to give American Airlines a makeover, it would be wise to borrow selectively from what makes Southwest so great.
In August, I was scheduled on a 1:50 pm flight from Boston to Miami — trying to get a connecting flight to Chile on its excellent airline, LAN Air. American Airlines said the flight would be delayed for 15 minutes because of a mechanical problem that caused the air-conditioning in the back of the plane not to work. Half the plane got out, and an hour later American Airlines announced an indefinite delay.
A big line formed at our gate to rebook. Next to our gate was an empty one with two American employees who were working on their computers. I waited patiently until one of them finished her work and asked if she could help me. She stared at me and said no, she could only help people on the flight scheduled for that gate, and went back to her computer. No thanks to her I ended up booking a flight that left at 6 pm, causing me to miss my connection to Chile.
Continue reading Makeover needed: American Airlines
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