A TikToker recently went viral after sharing the wild ride American Airlines allegedly put her on after canceling her flight.
Each part of the journey posted by user Cera (@ceragibson) went viral, bringing with the virality new surprises and twists to her story.
The first part currently has over 425,000 views.
@ceragibson @American Airlines is absolute overpriced poop. Thanks for listening to my rant. Rip 😭 #americanairlines #rant ♬ original sound – Cera Gibson
In part one, Cera says she previously booked a flight from Salt Lake City, Utah, to Richmond, Virginia, with a layover in Dallas. Her original flight, she says, was booked with Delta, though after a date change, she says that Delta had to cancel and even assisted her with rebooking on another airline: American Airlines.
While she notes she appreciated the gesture, she was immediately trepidatious about flying with the airline.
“I never fly with them because they have a reputation of losing baggage, canceled flights, etc.,” she claims.
When it finally came time to take her flight, she says she packed up a carry-on and went to the airport. As she boarded the plane, she says the airline made her check her bag, even though she had medications and other things she needed in it and there appeared to be ample storage space on the flight, as notes in a later video.
Undeterred, she says she pressed on to Dallas. However, when she arrived, she says she discovered her connecting flight to Virginia was canceled.
At the airport, she says she waited for an hour to speak with a representative. When she finally managed to reach someone, the person allegedly informed her that she would not receive a refund for her flight, nor would the airline pay for a hotel to accommodate her until they could put her on another plane. The representative also allegedly said that she could book Cera a flight for the next day but that it was likely that flight would also be canceled.
“The reason? Weather, and they only refund you when it’s something wrong with the plane,” Cera claims.
American Airlines’ refund policy is unclear, but its website suggests that refunds for canceled flights are universally applicable, regardless of the reason.
“If an American flight has been canceled or excessively delayed, customers may cancel their itinerary and request a refund by visiting aa.com,” the website states.
Cera then claims she requested to pick up her bag at baggage claim—at which point she was allegedly told it was already headed to Virginia.
She says she then put in a request to have her bag, at which point she ventured to the baggage claim to see if there was any way to pick it up there. Upon arrival, she says she was informed that, as she had already put in a request, her bag would be returning to Dallas, even though she had plans to continue onward to Virginia. There was also allegedly no way to cancel this request once it had been put in.
Allegedly, the representatives at baggage claim then told her that her flight was not actually canceled due to weather conditions; instead, the flight was canceled because there were “too many planes in the sky.”
As commenters wrote, this would make sense, as there was a flight that managed to take her baggage to Virginia from Dallas.
“How does her flight get cancelled ‘due to weather’ but her BAG still makes the flight???” a user questioned. “Something doesn’t add up.”
“They also told me there were other flights going to Virginia but they were too full for me. During the same time. Why weren’t they cancelled for weath[er?]” Cera asked in response.
American Airlines has had many flight cancelations in recent days, which it claimed “were largely due to weather and air traffic control initiatives designed to regulate traffic,” per Reuters. These appear to be the same reasons allegedly given to Cera.
In the second part of the series, Cera says she complained to the airline, to which it responded.
@ceragibson Reply to @grouched #greenscreen nice try, but I’m gonna ask you to try again. It’s not just me. It’s hundreds of other people. @americanair ♬ original sound – Cera Gibson
American Airlines told Cera on Twitter it was “frustrat[ed]” and apologized for the inconvenience, according to a screenshot featured in Cera’s video.
She also pointed to American Airlines’ policy that refunds purchases for items needed immediately, which is visible on the airline’s site.
@ceragibson Reply to @marveltheatrechick clarifying a few things xo #americanairlines ♬ original sound – Cera Gibson
In a third video, she clarifies a few points, also noting that her comments about the reasons for the flight cancelation were simply speculation.
In the comments under this video, she claimed that a different employee told her her bag was actually still in Virginia and that she could go pick it up. “They said that information was available so they don’t know why I was told it was already in Virginia, or that my bag request would get it sent back to dallas,” she wrote.
She also says she learned her credit card company may be able to help her, as many credit card companies offer complimentary travel insurance.
Finally, she posted a complete update with the last remaining details of the story.
@ceragibson Reply to @ceragibson #greenscreen pilot shortage, ATC, weather whatever, should not fall on the consumer when you’re price gouging to fly within the same country. #peepeepoopoo #americanairlines ♬ original sound – Cera Gibson
In this final video, Cera says she did, in fact, make it to Virginia. However, she adds her bag was actually sent to Virginia as previously stated.
Furthermore, she says her formal complaint finally got a response. The airline allegedly offered an apology and a travel voucher for $125 valid solely on American Airlines. In a previous video, Cera says she paid around $1,000 for her original flight.
“A trip credit doesn’t do fucking anything for me because I’m not going to fly with you again,” she says.
She also reiterates her belief that the airline was being dishonest about its stated reason for the cancelation.
In the comments section, TikTokers expressed relief that she finally made it. Many advised Cera to go further with her claims against the airline.
“Honestly, dispute the flight charge with your bank. This is a disaster,” one commenter urged.
The Daily Dot reached out to both Cera and American Airlines via email.
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