FORT WORTH, Texas — American Airlines was named a “Five Star Global Airline” on Monday by the Airline Passenger Experience Association (APEX). The ranking is a testament to the airline’s $3 billion investment in the customer experience, including improvements in food and beverage offerings, inflight entertainment, and Wi-Fi.

“Being named a Five Star airline shows that our customers are noticing our investments and the hard work by our team,” said Kurt Stache, Senior Vice President of Marketing, Loyalty & Sales for American. “It’s an honor to be one of only three North American airlines to receive this distinction.”

APEX worked with TripIt® from Concur® to gather anonymous passenger feedback based on verified travel itineraries. Customers rated their overall flight experience, then rated their experience in seat comfort, cabin service, food and beverage, entertainment, and Wi-Fi. Customers of nearly 500 airlines from around the world rated flights they had taken during the year ending June 30, 2018.

In addition to having the youngest mainline fleet among the four large U.S. airlines, American’s investments include:

• Adding fast Wi-Fi to its domestic fleet, available today on more than 240 aircraft and on all of American’s long-term narrowbody fleet of more than 700 aircraft by mid-2019;
• Adding power throughout the cabin on mainline aircraft and two-class regional jets through 2021, ensuring customers arrive refreshed and recharged;
• Installing new larger overhead bins so customers will have space for their carry-on bag. American offers the largest overhead bins available on its new and updated aircraft;
• Enhancing the free onboard library with hundreds of movies, television, and music titles as well as new offerings such as Calm, which provides custom-curated sound and video to help customers relax and have a restful journey;
• Activating free live TV, now available on more than 100 domestic aircraft, with the rest being updated during 2019. American is already the only U.S. airline to offer live TV on long-haul international flights;
• Improving premium cabin offerings with amenities such as noise canceling headsets, elevated food and beverage choices, and bedding from Casper; and
• Flagship First Dining and Flagship Lounge locations, with Dallas Fort Worth coming in 2019.

American also recently announced a partnership with Zoës Kitchen to introduce a new food-for-sale menu for customers in Main Cabin designed to provide delicious, light and healthy choices. The new menu includes items unique to American as well as dishes found in Zoës restaurants, such as its signature hummus and The Grüben sandwich. The new items will be available for purchase on most domestic flights longer than three hours beginning Dec. 1.

About American Airlines Group
American Airlines and American Eagle offer an average of nearly 6,700 flights per day to nearly 350 destinations in more than 50 countries. American has hubs in Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas/Fort Worth, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Philadelphia, Phoenix, and Washington, D.C. American is a founding member of the oneworld® alliance, whose members and members-elect serve nearly 1,000 destinations with 14,250 daily flights to 150 countries. Shares of American Airlines Group Inc. trade on Nasdaq under the ticker symbol AAL. In 2015, its stock joined the S&P 500 index. Connect with American on Twitter @AmericanAir and at Facebook.com/AmericanAirlines.