American Airlines Will Get You Where You Need to Go!
Written: Oct 22 '01
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The Bottom Line
This is a very good web service, be remember to check prices in other web services first, before you make a purchase.
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| Full Review |
American Airlines is the airline that I fly most frequently, and the web site that I visit most often (among airline web sites), when I want information on flight reservations. I have been a member of the American AADVANTAGE frequent flyer program for about 7 years, and I have received several free flights so far, by cashing in my accumulated miles.
Features of This Site:
The primary reason that potential customers visit this site is to lookup flight reservation information. American Airlines knows this, and they have designed the web site accordingly. When you go to the home page, the first thing you will see is a place to enter your departure and arrival cities, dates, and number of passengers, to conduct a flight search. You will also see a quick summary of any special flight offers that are currently being offered, right above the flight reservation area of the screen.
Besides looking up flights and making reservations, you can also lookup gates, times, and flight status; purchase travel packages through AA Vacations; get automatic notification of flight information; book a hotel or car rental; view seating charts for the plane you will be traveling on; etc.
Booking a Flight:
Since this is the most common feature used in this service, I want to spend some time describing how it works and the various features available.
Like I stated above, the flight reservation service is the first thing you will see, when you visit the home page. You begin your search by entering a city name or airport code for your arrival and departure cities; whether or not you want a one- way or round trip ticket; the dates of departure and return; the desired times for your departure and return; number of passengers; and the type of seating desired (first class, business, coach, or unrestricted fares). You then need to select whether to search by price, or by the schedule which most closely matches your selected times.
On the results page, you will be shown a list of flights to select from, which most closely match your criteria. With each flight, it will show you the departing and arrival airport codes for each leg of your flight; the times; class of service; and the type of aircraft that will be used for each leg of your flight.
If you want to modify your search and choose different dates or different airports and cities, you must either press back on your browser and make the necessary changes, or click the “start over” icon at the bottom of the screen.
If you want to make a reservation, you just click the price tag next to the desired flight option, and then click “continue” at the bottom of the screen. The prices that are indicated already included taxes. On the next screen, you will see a summary of your flight, and a breakdown showing how much is tax and how much is for the flight ticket itself. At this point, you can either place a hold on the tickets, or you can directly purchase them by entering your personal data and your credit card information.
Aadvantage Member Services:
For those who are already a member of the American Airlines frequent flyer program, you can logon to the American Airlines site, enter your frequent flyer number and PIN, and view all sorts of information on your account. You can quickly see how many miles are in your account, including a breakdown of the sources of those miles (flights, hotel stays, credit card purchases, etc.). You can setup a personal profile, and get updates from American Airlines on any special deals that are being offered. There’s even an option to receive your updates from American Airlines (showing the status of your account), via e-mail rather than standard mail. You can also book a travel flight award, using your frequent flyer miles, right through the web site.
If you don’t have a current frequent flyer account, you can set one up by going directly to the web site. You do not need to make a purchase, to setup a frequent flyer account. American Airlines will issue you a number on- line, so that you can start using these special services right away.
Customer Service:
Airline customer service is sometimes inadequate and frustrating, when you’re dealing directly with airline personnel at the airport. But the service is very good, when dealing with a representative on the phone. With American Airlines, customer service issues or complaints can be answered by calling a toll- free number, or by sending a message on- line. If you need a quick answer, then your best bet is to place a phone call. If you have a question that doesn’t require urgency, then you can leave an e-mail message on- line. They will get back with you in 1 or 2 days.
Final Thoughts:
American Airlines has been my airline of choice for many years. I have had only minimal problems with American, and the few that I’ve had have quickly been resolved to my satisfaction.
This web site is pretty good overall. There are some changes that could make it a little better, though. The navigation through the site isn’t always a user- friendly process. Sometimes, I find that I have to go back to the home page, before I can make my next move because the page that I’m stuck in doesn’t seem to have the necessary link to make a smooth transition to a different feature.
Another thing to keep in mind is that the prices quoted in this site are not necessarily going to be the best deals in the market. This should be obvious, but you should always consult more travel sites, before you book your flight. Remember that this site is, of course, only going to show you flight data on American Airline flights exclusively. As much as I like to fly American, if I can use a different airline and get my ticket for $200 less, then you can bet I will fly elsewhere! Besides, even with an American Airlines flight, it’s often possible to find a lower price on the same flight from one of the other travel flight services (cheaptickets.com, travelocity.com, expedia.com, etc.). These other services often buy a large batch of tickets in bulk, and therefore they can offer the seats to the public at a discounted rate.
This is a good site, though, as far as airline- specific web services go. It’s nice to have the ability to book a flight on- line, using your frequent flyer miles and I like the services that are offered to AAdvantage members.
I will continue to browse through this website, americanair.com, whenever I feel the urge to shop for flight reservations. It’s a very good airline reservation site, and I recommend giving it a try!
Recommended:
Yes
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