American Airlines repaid its Flight 728 customers after their Sunday night flight to London from Philly didn’t go smoothly.
The 9:15 p.m. flight diverted back to Philadelphia International Airport when a passenger smelled smoke from inside the plane. The inconvenience caused a three-hour delay before a replacement craft boarded the passengers.
American Airlines' Customer Relations department reached out to travelers who experienced the lengthy delay via email Tuesday evening and thanked them for their patience and rewarded them with extra miles.
“While we are sure you can appreciate our decision to return to Philadelphia was motivated by our commitment to your safety, we also can appreciate that many of our customers’ important plans were affected, and for that, we are sorry,” the email said. “In appreciation for your patience, we have added 4,000 AAdvantage bonus miles to your account.”
Valentin Vesa, a traveler on the flight, documented the incident and posted updates on his Twitter until the replacement aircraft took off.
He praised the airline crew and staff for the way they handled the situation, and felt pleasantly surprised to receive the reward.
“It was, again, a gesture of professionalism that I salute,” he said.
