Why AI has failed travelers – and how to find a real person when you're in trouble

International numbers, social media, and executive emails are the new customer service lifelines

On a recent flight from Atlanta to Austin, Keisha McCotry got trapped in an AI maze.

She was trying to reach her airline to ask about flying with a sprained ankle, which made it difficult to walk to the gate.

"But I kept getting stuck in endless automated menus when I tried to reach the airline’s customer service department," she recalls.

McCotry's experie…