After a connecting flight was canceled in the middle of the night, two American Airlines passengers and their infant were left stranded.
After a flight from the Dominican Republic on July 25, Donna and her husband were stuck at Charlotte Douglas International Airport at 130 AM. They were bound for Raleigh, North Carolina.
Donna explained to Insider that they started receiving alerts from the airline after landing at Charlotte’s Douglas International Airport.
The couple, who didn’t want their last names used, boarded the plane at 1230 AM. However, the plane remained at the gate longer than an hour while a copilot was sought.
“We waited until the pilot said that the flight had been canceled because they couldn’t find a copilot”. We all had to get off of the plane.”
Donna explained to Insider that they went to the AA help desk, but people already in line had waited for two to three hours to be rebooked.
“We decided that we didn’t want to wait in line at 130am, so we decided to rent a car to drive home to Raleigh, which is approximately two hours from Charlotte. The plan was canceled when the rental desks closed and they couldn’t find a room in a hotel despite 20 calls.
Donna was worried most about what she would do to feed her baby if she ran out of formula. “I had enough formula to take on our trip and get home”. “I didn’t account for the flight being canceled or delayed for an extremely long time”.
“The airport looked like an asylum camp with hundreds of thousands of passengers sleeping on floors, doors, and chairs – all over the place.”
After calling AA customer service for an hour, they were offered a flight on the next day. “They didn’t care that we were traveling along a 9-month-old baby and that we ran out of formula. They couldn’t refuse the offer and had to take it.
Donna claimed that AA informed her that cancellations were due to weather problems. “This means they aren’t obligated to accommodate your needs in any way – there are no food vouchers or hotel vouchers”.
This was not a weather problem, but a staffing problem as there wasn’t a copilot. “The pilot spoke up and said that he didn’t have a copilot and couldn’t fly the plane without one,” Donna added that she felt helpless, confused, perplexed, and angry.
Donna and her husband were upset about the flight but most of all they were afraid and anxious about what they would feed their baby,
American Airlines was contacted for comment, but we have not heard back them yet.
