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American Airlines Shows That Customers Meet Your Culture on Your Worst Day
American Airlines had a bad day on Thursday. Here’s what that revealed.
I plopped down in my seat around midnight after a four-hour delay in Dallas. Exhausted and frustrated, I hoped to get a little sleep during the 1-hour-and-45-minute trip to El Paso. I vowed never to fly American Airlines again.
The day began so well. I’d given a workshop on Building an Inspiring Culture® that morning to senior military officials and defense business leaders. Thanks to working with my mentor, Nick Demos, my storytelling reached a whole new level of excellence, and it showed during the interactions and post-event surveys. I met a friend for lunch whom I haven’t seen since we served together in Afghanistan 19 years ago. I even sprung for business class on the return flight.
Everything was awesome until I landed in Dallas. I checked the app for my gate. Only a 6-minute walk! Arriving at the gate, I noticed the flight was delayed by two hours and would depart from a different terminal. I schlepped my bags onto the tram to Terminal B. I waited at the gate for a while, then received another gate change notification. I walked there, hoping this was it. We were to board in a few minutes.
Curiously, a flight to Las Vegas was still boarding at the same gate. There was no way they’d be finished before we were supposed to board a plane to El Paso. I stood near two gentlemen who were looking equally perplexed. We struck up a nice conversation. Saying hi to new people enriches my life.
The flight to Vegas was stuck at the gate, but the gate agent assured us we were in the right spot. The boarding time countdown reached 8 minutes. The Vegas plane was still there. The electronic sign turned off the boarding countdown and went back to “Flight Closed” on the Vegas flight. The gate agent was nowhere to be found.
Then, the 10- to 20-minute rolling delays hit, the air travel equivalent of Chinese water torture.
Every so often, the boarding countdown resumed, then reverted to “Flight Closed” for the Vegas flight (still stuck at the gate), followed by another delay notification. The countdown reached 7 minutes at one point, but we knew it was a fantasy because of the stuck Vegas plane. No gate agent, no explanation.
We’re now well past 11 pm and wondering if the flight will be canceled. One of the gentlemen, an American Airlines Platinum club member, received a food voucher valid only for that day. Of course, everything was closed.
The app pinged again, announcing a new departure gate in a different terminal. Everyone groaned. Over two hundred people hustled to the tram (which was running on a single track, infrequently, due to the late hour) and crammed aboard. We traveled the circumference of the airport through terminals C, D, and E, because the old gate was B17 and the new gate was A11.
Happily, the crew lined up at the gate, and a plane waited outside. After boarding, the well-meaning flight attendant announced, “I know you are frustrated by the delay, but we’re committed to your safety and had to fix the plane.” Using the term “but” dismissed everyone’s frustrations, adding insult to injury. We finally arrived around 1 am, and the car ride home took another hour.
I contrast that experience with a similarly long, late-night delay on United Airlines in Chicago. The gate agent provided us with routine updates, brought snacks to everyone, and answered everyone’s questions. He took personal ownership to make an awful experience as pleasant as possible. I felt totally abandoned by American Airlines.
I’ve written that the culture you create in peacetime is the one you take into combat. In business, the culture you create in stable times is the one you carry with you when things go wrong. American Airlines is sadly notorious for awful customer service and aircraft maintenance in normal times. It’s no wonder that challenging situations spiral out of control.
What do you want your customers to experience on your worst day?
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