[ld40]

On a recent flight I was delayed more than 3 hours due to weather problems. When our plane finally arrived, we were told that we couldn't take off because our flight crew was past their limit in terms of the amount of time they are allowed to work. This meant we had to wait even longer! Eventually another crew showed up and we were allowed to leave. We were then informed by the pilot, that the crew American got for us had just gotten off of another flight and was headed to their hotel to go to sleep. It was after 11pm, everyone was tired, and this new crew had just agreed to work an additional flight that was now not scheduled to arrive until about 230 am!
On our return flight a helpful ticketing agent offered to put me on standby for a direct flight for NO ADDITONAL CHARGE leaving 20 minutes later instead of my original flight that included a layover in dallas.
Several days later, I rec'd an email from American stating that they were sorry for the delay and that they would add 3,000 extra miles to my account as a "goodwill gesture."

None of the flights were perfect - after the return flight we had to sit on the runway for 30 minutes and wait for a gate - and then sit for another 15 in front of the gate waiting for a person to come and direct the plane to park. (This seems ridiculous by the way - the pilot can fly the plane and land the plane, but he can't park the plane without the help of some guy with light up orange sticks!?)

This just goes to show that airlines do value their customers, and that many of their employees really do care about offering good service. They are certainly not responsible for the weather, and frequently end up paying money to compensate customers for everyday issues that are completely outside of their control.

I was impressed all around and will definitely fly with American again.