American Airlines Awards Port Columbus International Airport for Improved Customer Service

FORT WORTH, Texas, Feb. 9, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- American Airlines employees at Port Columbus International Airport (CMH), Ohio celebrated a customer service victory this week as the airline announced the top five airports to be honored for improved customer experience and innovative problem solving for the fourth quarter of 2010. The program is called the "Customer Cup," and the winners are announced each quarter.

"We created the Customer Cup to build competition between airport station teams who are focused on improving processes, products and interactions to deliver a better customer experience," said Mark Mitchell, American's Managing Director – Customer Experience. "A good customer experience is the foundation for building customer loyalty, and we recognize five stations each quarter that make measurable improvements in enhancing the travel experience for our customers."

Customer Cups are categorized and awarded by market size from largest to smallest stations according to flight activity. The award recognizes stations for their performance in serving customers at the airport across six primary customer touch points, including gate interactions, the boarding experience, delays and delay management, onboard interactions, baggage handling and baggage resolution. CMH was awarded the Customer Cup for improving internal customer satisfaction ratings in a number of key areas including boarding efficiency, in which the station improved nine points quarter over quarter. Other winners this quarter include San Francisco, Denver, Pittsburgh and Punta Cana, Dominican Republic.

The American team in Columbus credits its improved customer experience metrics to the "Back to the Basics" approach the station adopted last year. Meetings are held on a regular basis to review expectations and reiterate the station's key characteristics of quality customer service. Employees are encouraged to acknowledge customers in a friendly manner, listen and focus on resolving issues as quickly and efficiently as possible, thank customers for their continued loyalty and take pride in themselves and the job.

"Winning the Customer Cup in Columbus shows that our customers recognize our work to improve the customer experience," said Andy Baum, American's General Manager – Port Columbus International Airport. "We have focused on making improvements and the Cup gives our employees motivation to continue looking for ways to better our service for both American and American Eagle customers here in Columbus."

The Customer Cup is part of a broader focus the airline has put toward improving the experience for its customers. With more than 250 employee teams across the network, the airline encourages all employees to bring forward ideas and solutions to improve the travel experience. With stations competing for the Customer Cup honor quarterly, employees who contribute earn network bragging rights and a party in their honor for working hard to improve the airline's customer service rankings.

"Given the challenges the industry faces, the Cup is a great way to recognize the accomplishments of our employees," Mitchell added. "It's through their dedication and ingenuity we can deliver exceptional travel experiences of our customers."

About American Airlines

American Airlines, American Eagle and AmericanConnection® serve 250 cities in 40 countries with, on average, more than 3,400 daily flights. The combined network fleet numbers more than 900 aircraft. American's award-winning website, 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, which brings together some of the best and biggest names in the airline business, enabling them to offer their customers more services and benefits than any airline can provide on its own. Together, its members serve approximately 750 destinations in nearly 150 countries and territories. American Airlines, Inc. and American Eagle Airlines, Inc. are subsidiaries of AMR Corporation. AmericanAirlines, American Eagle, AmericanConnection, AA.com, We know why you fly and AAdvantage are trademarks of American Airlines, Inc. (NYSE: AMR)

Current AMR Corp. releases can be accessed on the Internet. The address is http://www.aa.com

SOURCE American Airlines

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