AA sucks when the weather is bad

lpbrian

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Mar 7, 2004
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Lets face it. From an operational standpoint, AA is pathetic. This past ice storm is case in point. All other airlines operated flights ot of DFW without problem. A few delays maybe. Over at DAL it was just another day at the office. A few delays maybe, but all operated. But at o'l DFW AA cancelations abound. Anyone witnessed AA's deicing operation at DFW? Like watching a one legged man in a butt kicking contest. Hopefully this merger will mean AAs operations people will be shown the door!
 
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no, every airline had cancellations at DFW. LH had a plane off the taxiway. There were multiple cancellations.

I don't know why N. Texas has had so many more ice storms over the past several years than in the past but it appears to be getting worse.

I'm hardly a part of the current environmental movement but I can't help but believe that the deforestation of the US midwest has made weather a whole lot worse for the central plains. Oklahoma and N. Texas have few of the natural defenses that should help moderate cold weather systems coming from the north as they collide with moist Gulf air.

There was thick ice throughout the metroplex so even if AA had been able to operate, the city around them was not.

There is no doubt this last storm will cause a hit to AA's finances and perhaps they could have done a better job but the notion that everyone else was doing fine is simply not accurate.

Not sure if you are actually a DFW-based AA employee but what operational procedures do you think AA could have done better that other carriers do elsewhere?

Given that AA has now cancelled more than half of its mainline operation at DFW again today, it will be a long return to normality.
 
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WorldTraveler said:
no, every airline had cancellations at DFW. LH had a plane off the taxiway. There were multiple cancellations.I don't know why N. Texas has had so many more ice storms over the past several years than in the past but it appears to be getting worse.
It's because DL closed the DFW hub. God is punishing the Metroplex for letting Delta leave.
 
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Good post WT.

Another reason for more cancellations for AA at DFW is because they do not want to send the aircraft to places they may not be able to get into and/or get stuck when they arrive. This storm affected many places outside of DFW. The last thing an airline wants operationally is aircraft stuck at places where there are no crews available.

It is far better to keep the aircraft at a hub so they can rapidly deploy it when the weather allows.
 
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What's changed in the past few years is AA's approach to severe weather events.

Trying to "just get thru it" always seemed to leave a huge mess, with crews out of position (and time), aircraft out of position, more people stranded in the hubs needing hotel accommodations, and the wheels would fall off the bus about three days after a weather event because of all the maintenance items and time-based checks that had been deferred.


About five years ago, maybe longer, AA stopped trying to limp thru ice storms or snow events, and started implementing larger cancellations, with the intent of leaving the airline in a position where it could recover. That included having ways to adjust crew scheduling and trying to recover sequences where possible, and leaving aircraft in cities where maintenance could keep up with clock-driven checks.

Add to that the new tarmac rules, and you wind up with more cancellations. Airlines get penalized for trying to operate when conditions suck. They don't get penalized for canceling flights, however. Lots of studies have come out in the past two years showing this "pro-consumer" law's effect on cancellation rates.

It results in some bad PR, but hey, the operation need to come ahead of media attention.
 
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I just got home from DFW after being on the clock since 5am Thursday morning. Even if AA wanted to run a limited operation they were stuck and had no choice but to shut the place down. All runways were covered in thick ice, and not to mention the DFW Airport employees who would have been responsible for clearing the runways all called in sick. AA planned ahead and put agents in hotels Thursday night only to have the shuttle van drivers call in sick Friday morning. Most all Skychefs and Ogden fuelers called in fri and sat. AA also had 800 sick calls on both fri and sat.
 
thanks for your perspective, DFWFSC.

What is the staffing situation, now? how many aircraft are sitting at DFW each night?

Expectations for when the operation will return to normal?

Regardless of whose "fault" it is, the nation's second largest hub has now been rendered essentially unusable for 4 days with 280 AA mainline flights just outbound from DFW cancelled today.

If it also Worth noting that WN is operating a far higher percentage of its schedule from DAL than AA is from DFW.... not sure what DAL is doing that DFW is not (obviously DAL is a smaller airport).

Many business passengers who normally connect thru DFW are using other hubs for their business travel this week.


The impact to AA's finances will be real and perhaps not a whole lot different from the operational meltdown a little over a year ago, if not worse.
 
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US excells at bad weather planning, pre cancleing and recovery. I'd expect that to improve at AA over the next few years.
 
 
If it also Worth noting that WN is operating a far higher percentage of its schedule from DAL than AA is from DFW.... not sure what DAL is doing that DFW is not (obviously DAL is a smaller airport).
DAL is ranked 46th for departures... I would think it would be a safe bet that they are running a higher percenatge of flights... So it really is not worth noting...
 
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