It's only fair to point out that AA employees are capable of rising to the situation as well. I copied the following from another site:
Among the stories that almost didn't get told:
At American's terminals at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport, several fleet service clerks -- who primarily handle baggage -- sorted through thousands of bags in limited lighting to find the luggage of dozens of passengers who needed their packed medications.
Also at JFK, four customer service agents -- who traditionally check in passengers at ticket counters and gates -- spent Thursday night and much of Friday with seven unaccompanied minors who were traveling internationally so that their parents and guardians could be assured of their safety.
At New York's LaGuardia airport, a premium services manager -- who usually assists Admirals Club members -- personally drove a pregnant passenger and her husband to a hotel after searching for an available room.
Back at JFK, two customer service agents at Kennedy assisted an elderly woman who suffered an apparent heart attack. The agents laid the woman down on a nonoperating bag belt, called paramedics and calmed the woman's family until help arrived. The passenger is recovering in the hospital.
At Kennedy, American's pilots voluntarily moved aircraft to hangars and parking pads so additional aircraft could be accommodated as flights landed. Mechanics located a 1960s-era generator that they nursed back to health and, after borrowing other generators, got as much power back to as much of American's terminals as possible in the hours after the blackout.
When American decided that it would try to operate four flights out of JFK at about 3 p.m. on Friday, employees at Kennedy, at the Maintenance Operations Control center in Tulsa, Okla., and at the airline's System Operations Control center in Fort Worth, Texas, put together a plan to manually make the process work. This entailed two agents going between the Federal Aviation Administration tower and the terminal to receive faxes with critical operational data. Other agents manually checked passengers in and fleet service clerks sorted through thousands of bags to match them with passengers on the flight. Pilots and flight attendants at the airport voluntarily staffed flights to which they weren't originally assigned.
The airline's partners also rose to the occasion. Transportation Security Administration employees hand-searched passengers and their bags. LSG SkyChefs brought catering to the aircraft. And the local fueling company ensured the aircraft were fueled for departure.
These efforts resulted in American accommodating 857 passengers that otherwise would have been waiting for flights until the next day.
These same kinds of stories played out north of the border as well.
In Canada, American's employees handled two inbound Boeing 747s full of passengers from one of its oneworld partners that had to be diverted because of the power outage. American's people also worked tirelessly to reaccommodate passengers from other airlines who were unable to travel as originally scheduled.
At American's Reservations offices around the country, representatives worked overtime to proactively call passengers advising them of cancellations and delays, to handle thousands of inbound passengers inquiries and to rebook customers on flights operating later in the week. In addition, they assisted passengers with delayed baggage inquiries around the clock.
"These examples represent just a small sample of the spirit our people showed during the blackout," Arpey said.
American Airlines had to cancel a total of 483 flights during the period of Aug. 14 - 16 due to the blackout and its lingering effects. During that period, American continued to operate more than 7,000 flights throughout its worldwide network.
To help accommodate passengers trying to reach their destinations, American has operated 57 extra sections, or additional flights, to key cities since Friday. Additionally, for passengers who chose not to travel on flights that operated to, from or through the affected cities, American is allowing them to change their date of travel once without penalty until Aug. 21, 2003. All affected airports have power today and American's flights are operating as scheduled.
American Airlines is the world's largest carrier. American, American Eagle and the AmericanConnection regional carriers serve nearly 275 cities in 50 countries and territories with approximately 4,300 daily flights. The combined network numbers more than 1,000 aircraft. American's award-winning Web site, AA.com, provides users with easy access to check and book fares, plus personalized news, information and travel offers. American Airlines is a founding member of the oneworld Alliance.
