FORT WORTH, Texas, Nov. 10, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- American Eagle employees in Dayton, 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 third 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 bettering processes, products and interactions to deliver an improved 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 are making measured 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. Dayton was awarded the Customer Cup for improving internal customer satisfaction ratings in a number of key areas including cabin cleanliness, baggage handling and delay management. Other winners this quarter include employees at Colorado Springs, Colo., Dallas/Fort Worth, and Liberia, Costa Rica and San Jose Del Cabo, Mexico.

The American Eagle team in Dayton is focused on delivering superior service to each and every customer. American Eagle employees handle both American Airlines flights and American Eagle flights. Employees are encouraged to comply with a series of standards in order to deliver the brand experience customers expect when flying American, and agents pay particular attention to providing a seamless travel experience from the ticket counter, to the gate, and finally to the seat.

American Eagle was one of the first airlines in Dayton to offer Gate Information Display Systems which provide Dayton customers with the same level of information they would expect at major hub airports. In addition, staffing has been realigned to ensure that sufficient agents are available at the gate and ramp to turn every flight as quickly as possible to help avoid delays.

"Winning the Customer Cup in Dayton shows that our hard work has paid off in the eyes of the customers," said Matthew Streem, American Eagle's General Manager – Dayton. "We have focused on making steady customer experience improvement this last year. This award, which comes from feedback our customers provide, gives our employees additional motivation to continue looking for ways to improve our service for both American and American Eagle customers here in Dayton."

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 airlines' 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 nearly 700 destinations in more than 130 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)

AmericanAirlines®  We know why you fly®

Current AMR Corp. releases can be accessed on the Internet.

The address is http://www.aa.com

SOURCE American Airlines