American Airlines’ early morning demand leaves travelers ‘cranky’

• The conversation was started by an anonymous user on a popular Reddit thread 
• The original post explained how AA had asked customers to arrive hours early
• But passengers were left up in arms after finding the check-in desks were closed 

American Airlines has sparked uproar after making an early morning demand of plane passengers at Barcelona airport.

The conversation was started by an anonymous user on Reddit‘s popular American Airlines thread.

The original post explained how the operator had asked customers to arrive four hours ahead of schedule despite the check-in desks still being closed.

It left a crowd of ‘tired and cranky’ people – as dozens of other travelers rushed to share their own dire experiences.

The post, which was shared earlier this week, was simply titled: ‘American Airlines Early Arrival Request.’

It read: ‘We got an email yesterday telling us to show up at the Barcelona Airport four hours early for our 10.40am flight. 

‘Of course the check-in desks don’t open until 7.15 am… 

‘Now there’s a huge line of tired, cranky people standing in front of empty desks.’

DailyMail.com has contacted American Airlines for comment. 

It was quickly flooded with comments from travelers who had received similar demands from airlines.

One person shared: ‘Same email two weeks ago from Barcelona arrived. Three [hours] is plenty of time.’

A second person commented: ‘This is far from limited to A.A. Qantas did the same thing to me – sending me to an airport before sunrise that didn’t even have any staff in it for another hour and a half.’

Another added: ‘Every time I get those emails, I ignore it for that exact reason,’ and the Reddit user responded: ‘Lesson learned.’ 

One person commented: ‘Well, getting there at 6.40am and not having check-in open for another 35 minutes isn’t the worst thing that could happen. I had a similar experience when I flew out of Porto. 

‘Delta told me to get there four hours early cause it’s an international flight and blah blah blah. Check-in counter didn’t open until two and a half hours before the flight. 

‘[I] basically just hung out in a café for a bit. Between being early or being late, I’ll go with being early all the time for those big trips. Like what happens if you miss your flight? 

‘Do they let you move to another flight the next day for a small $100 or so fee? Do they tell you to pound sand, and you have to drop another $2,000 buying two new last-minute tickets? 

‘Then for work you have to let them know you’ll be back late, and have to take some unpaid days off.’

According to Kayak: ‘The standard airline recommendation for international travel is to arrive at the airport three hours before your scheduled departure.

‘In most cases, this should cover every step of the airport process, from checking a bag, to clearing passport control and security, ensuring you board on time.

‘One important consideration to keep in mind when considering how early to get to the airport for international flights, is that the boarding process is longer – usually between 45 minutes up to an hour, to account for larger aircraft. 

‘So be sure to account for that extra time when you’re planning what to do during your time at the airport.’