After reading truly awful reviews about Air India I decided it would be worth considering another airline even despite the hefty cancellation fee for my flight from London Heathrow to JFK. Being quite restricted with my budget Virgin was completely out of my price range, leaving three airlines left. (I specifically wanted a direct flight.) There was British Airways, Delta or American Airlines. Statistics suggested that British Airways lost 1 in 3 bags so I was put off immediately, I had not heard great things about Delta either and as reviews of American Airlines seemed quite positive, I decided to go with them.

This being my first long haul flight I was not sure quite what to expect really. I have to say though that I was very disappointed.

First impressions seemed alright, no delays boarding the flight, we left on time and actually arrived in New York a little early, which was great. Being restricted with my budget meant I had to go economy, the seats were small and cramped, especially for someone such as me who has long legs and suffers from claustrophobia. I had to sit in between two people which meant that for 8 hours I didn't get any fresh air. It also meant that I had to wake up the person sitting next to me every time I needed the toilet (which was a considerable number of times.) You may criticize me for complaining about the seats in economy, as it was after all economy, but I could have sworn I had more legroom on my flight to Munich with Easy Jet last year.

The worst problem was the air conditioning. It was continuously on full blast the whole flight, there was no obvious way to turn it down which resulted in everyone huddling under their blankets trying to keep warm.

The entertainment was not great to put it mildly there were a few programs that pl
ayed at certain times on the flight, often completely different to those advertised in the guide and most of them not really worth watching in my opinion. The guide advertised that the particular type of plane I was on had a selection of games, however when I inquired to a member of the crew I was told that the games were only available on a different type of plane. Very irritating. For about 3 hours of the 8 hour journey there was no entertainment of any kind.

On a more positive note, the food was fairly good, portions were huge and most of the staff were friendly and helpful.

I would like to go back to New York sometime in the future but unless things improve dramatically I will not be choosing American Airlines again.

Learn more about this author, Jessica Lancod-Frost.
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