Passenger Forcibly Removed From Overbooked UA Flight

[OzEire]

Pax forcibly removed from United overbooked flight

United overbooked last flight on a route that night, then realised it needed 4 seats for deadheading employees to operate another flight the following morning.

Offered pax $400 then $800 to volunteer their seats, none did (last flight). Four pax chosen randomly and asked to leave, 3 did. Fourth said he was a Dr with patients who needed him at destination and asked to remain onboard.

After a while police removed the man, using force, and not surprising other pax took videos. United CEO has offered a non-apology, sorry for overbooking but not sorry for using force.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/christinenegroni/2017/04/10/united-may-be-bracing-for-a-lawsuit/

 

[cove]

Re: Pax forcibly removed from United overbooked flight

Is that the airline that breaks guitars? Not a good look for their advertising people to explain.

 

[kpc]

Re: Pax forcibly removed from United overbooked flight

The last time I flew United was in 1999...Syd-Sfo-Jfk rtn in Y...I have never flown them again because of that horrible experience!

 

[get me outta here]

Re: Pax forcibly removed from United overbooked flight

On the View From The Wing site (can't post), other pax videos shows the doctor's face slammed against something splitting his lip whilst so he now seems in shock. They drag him out of the seat by the arms above his head down the aisle off the plane.

Incredibly, then 10 mins later he is back on board. Another truly shameful officious response over reach that seems more prevelant.

 

[yld200]

Re: Pax forcibly removed from United overbooked flight

What horrible treatment - disgusting to see something like that happen.

 

[CMA222]

Re: Pax forcibly removed from United overbooked flight

I suspect that in litigious USA this will end up costing United more then the originally offered US$800. He was presumably failing to obey a direction of the cabin crew but the outcome was excessive and cannot be justified, and its all on video !!

 

[bam71]

Re: Pax forcibly removed from United overbooked flight

I wonder who may have give up their seats if they increased the compensation? Bidding start at maybe $1000.00 and go from there. Eventually someone will give up their place when they feel the $$ cover the lost opportunity of travelling that night. Market Forces Peeps

 

[juddles]

Re: Pax forcibly removed from United overbooked flight

Will wait to hear the "full story", if it ever comes out, but "on the face of it" it does look rather bad.

 

[juddles]

Re: Pax forcibly removed from United overbooked flight

I actually think that with this event, United have finally manage to disprove the old saying "There's no such thing as bad publicity" :O

 

[Denali]

Re: Pax forcibly removed from United overbooked flight

I find other pax opinion on this interesting.

Because he said he was a doctor, pax seem to be more "Oh, this is terrible. Stop doing this".

But in the past, when its been unknown job/black/female, its been more "Get off the plane, youre holding the plane up", with lots of giggles.

Unless the guy was performing heart surgery the next day, I would be concerned about my allegedly health care professional behaving this way. Its a 5hr drive, much better driving it than looking like this much of a fool.

 

[get me outta here]

Re: Pax forcibly removed from United overbooked flight

I agree, if you're saying no one should be treated like this no matter what their size colour or vocation. That this may or may not have happened to a different person is no justification.

Perhaps this doctor did not have a premonition what would actually be done to him. Perhaps seeing as they were all sitting in the seats, some sort of other resolution could've been given. Someone else could've been invited to volunteer with whatever appropriate payment is necessary before this sort of violent treatment is perpetrated. The gate staff may have known that this could be the outcome of them calling the police.

 

[Viridianne]

Man Dragged Off UA Plane After Overbooking

Videos showed a man being dragged off a United Airlines plane after the flight was overbooked — prompting massive outrage on social media, and hours later, a federal investigation.

https://www.buzzfeed.com/aliciamelvillesmith/a-man-was-dragged-off-united-plane-after-the-airline

Don't worry guys, Trump will make America great again!

 

[serfty]

Re: Pax forcibly removed from United overbooked flight

I wonder what the criteria was for selection?

In such cases up to US$1350 cash can be payable.

 

[RooFlyer]

Re: Man Dragged Off UA Plane After Overbooking

Not to mention silly and political.

 

[mannej]

Re: Man Dragged Off UA Plane After Overbooking

Perhaps you can let us know how that comment is relevant to the issue at hand? Do you think this is a political issue?

Report in the Oz.

If paywalled, a pertinent thing reported was that United was trying to make room for 4 employees - possibly crew who had to unexpectedly get to the next airport to crew a flight.



Pretty appalling all round. Sure, obey crew instructions at all times, but sheesh! Ticketed, seated and then have to get off the plane for company employees? :evil:

SJW are using the ethnicity of this man to further their political arguments and agenda.

However you and I both agree it was handled appallingly from the vision supplied.

 

[njba]

Re: Pax forcibly removed from United overbooked flight

I wonder what the criteria was for selection?

I presume ~altea has the capacity to randomly select an arbitrary number of passengers? Although I wouldn't be surprised if 'randomly' was weighted towards lower fare class, non status pax.

This is completely shameful: it's so sad that police are increasingly responsible for protecting and serving corporate interests ahead of anything else. Their CEO's response is so bad--so bad. United's brand has always been garbage, at least in my eyes, but now the rest of the world knows this too.

 

[RooFlyer]

Re: Pax forcibly removed from United overbooked flight

From the Oz: (may be paywalled)

Passenger Audra D. Bridges posted the video on Facebook. Her husband, Tyler Bridges, said United offered $400 and then $800 vouchers and a hotel stay for volunteers to give up their seats. When no one volunteered, a United manager came on the plane and announced that passengers would be chosen at random. “We almost felt like we were being taken hostage,” Tyler Bridges said. “We were stuck there. You can’t do anything as a traveller. You’re relying on the airline.” When airline employees named four customers who had to leave the plane, three of them did so. The fourth person refused to move, and police were called, United spokesman Charlie Hobart said.

If the figures and sequence is correct, seems to me that the Airline acted a bit prematurely. Under the circumstances (last flight of the night), a lot more should have been able to have been offered, especially when the airline was after 4 seats.

Airlines are allowed to sell more tickets than there are seats on the plane, and they routinely overbook flights because some people do not show up. It’s not unusual for airlines to offer travel vouchers to encourage people to give up their seats, and there are no rules for the process. When an airline demands that a passenger give up a seat, the airline is required to pay compensation of double the passenger’s one-way fare, up to $675, if the passenger can be placed on another flight that arrives one to two hours later than the first flight, or four times the ticket price, up to $1,350, for longer delays.

 

[njba]

Re: Pax forcibly removed from United overbooked flight

I cannot tell if it is an aggravating or ameliorating factor that the passengers had to be bumped to make room for United crew. I'm inclined to think that crew positioning is important, but surely crew positions and movements are largely a known factor and should be planned for in advance? People have pointed out that it's a few hours drive to the destination: why couldn't united hire a car for the crew? Or offer to pay for a uber for the displaced passengers? Or, you know, act with even the smallest degree of compassion and empathy? I really hope there's a big fat law suit.

 

[get me outta here]

Re: Pax forcibly removed from United overbooked flight

I think the fact that he and the woman he was travelling with were back on the plane within 10 minutes or so according to reports certainly shows a compounding lack of foresight and judgement on behalf of the staff.

 

[Bundy Bear]

Re: Pax forcibly removed from United overbooked flight

Looks like a change of rules is coming up.

The staff operating the gate seems like they had to make room for 4 staff last minute.

Taking a passengers money and then changing their minds and then having to call the police because you made an error.

I would like to think that in future once you are on the plane then you shouldn't be able to forcibly remove someone unless you were intoxicated or not obeying crew instructions.

They could have upped the asking price instead United called the police.