News is out on the larger blogs as well as the message boards now that American Airlines has wised up on some of the choices it made regarding meals served in First Class. In summary, American is further refining its meal changes and returning some (if not most) of what was lost on September 1. Here’s a quick rundown with a hat tip to Gary.
- Meal tray service will be adjusted to flights of about 2 hours 30 minutes (hmm…”about” does this mean ATL-DFW could get meals again?)
- Warm mixed nuts will reappear on flight of 2 to 2.5 hours
- Ice cream is coming back on flights it was removed from
- Some former “exception markets” are getting meals again (DC (DCA and IAD)-MIA (knowing what I know about the DC market, I was surprised when DCA-MIA lost meal service in the first place), ORD-AUS, DFW-MEX)
There’s more that has been covered elsewhere including better sandwiches and snack baskets. I thought I’d adequately conveyed that I did not love the new beef entree here, but I guess not. I know I liked it more than DeltaPoints did. Actually, I liked the meal with the exception of the beef, but I suppose a beef meal should include beef that can be loved. 🙂 Then again, airline food has never thrilled me. I’d rather have the warm mixed nuts than dinner on most 2 hour flights.
I still continue to believe that new management is getting more right than wrong with the merger, but the meal changes appear to have been mostly in the wrong column for American’s flyers. It’s a positive thing that they recognized this and acted on it in about a month. I doubt this will be the last bright idea they have to tweak, but that’s not my point. My point is that sometimes companies mess up, or think they have the right idea when they really don’t. If that company’s customers are vocal enough, things can change. Indeed, complAAints can be heard. If you’re a regular American flyer, you’ll probably need to complain again before the merger is complete.
-MJ, October 4, 2014
[…] done with its larger EMB 17X fleet. Shockingly enough, we may have United to thank (and some constructive criticism from customers) for American’s tweaks to its first class meal policies since United […]
Don’t forget IAD-MIA also is an exception market, and the MIA-CAP route that started a few days ago is an exception market to (probably the shortest route AA flies and serves a meal, not even 90 minutes gate-to-gate).
Thanks Simon. I tweaked the wording a tiny bit to make it clear that both DCA and IAD are included. Did not know about CAP. I remember getting breakfast on an A300 to PAP from MIA many moons ago in a previous career.
The baked on board cookies, what about the baked on board cookies?
Ha! I don’t know but will see if I can find out.