Deleted
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Jun 21, 2024 5:12:48 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Apr 10, 2017 14:02:36 GMT
"One unnamed passenger boarded a United flight at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport, headed to Louisville, not knowing he was about to be forced to leave a plane that was overbooked.A nearly 30-second video clip, posted on social media by a fellow passenger, shows three security officers approaching a man who was already seated, asking him to give up his spot on the plane. After the man refuses, he was eventually dragged by his arms and screaming toward the front of the plane. A witness to the debacle said passengers were warned at the gate that the flight was overbooked, and United was asking for volunteers to switch flights, with reimbursements included. Nobody spoke up. According to Audra Bridges, who posted the video to her Facebook page Sunday evening, United management came on board the flight and used a computer to randomly select four passengers who would be removed from that trip. The man in the video — one of those four randomly selected — reportedly claimed he was a doctor and needed to see his patients at the hospital in the morning, then proceeded to say he would call his lawyers." www.cnbc.com/2017/04/10/video-surfaces-of-man-being-dragged-from-overbooked-united-flight.htmlvideo: |
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Post by annabella on Apr 10, 2017 14:06:10 GMT
OMG that's horrible! Why did the people at the gate have more importance to be on the plane verses the man already seated? They should never drag someone off a plane like that! That's so hard to watch.
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Post by auntkelly on Apr 10, 2017 14:15:27 GMT
The airline was at fault, it overbooked. The airline should have offered enough money to induce four people to give up their seats. Had the airline offered $1,000 per seat, four people probably would have given up their seats. If the airlines are going to purposely overbook flights they should be willing to pay whatever it takes for people to voluntarily give up their seats.
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Post by mikklynn on Apr 10, 2017 14:30:19 GMT
That is the dumbest way of dealing with an overbooking I have EVER heard.
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Post by Darcy Collins on Apr 10, 2017 14:30:28 GMT
I'm shocked they started boarding before having sufficient volunteers. I've had flights delayed as they won't commence boarding until enough people agree to give up their seat - I'm also shocked no one took them up on the $800 offer. It's always a hell of a lot harder to get people out of a seat then deny them boarding (which they can absolutely do per their contract of carriage for an overbooked flight).
FYI They needed the seats for crew members needed for a subsequent flight in Louisville.
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Post by realm on Apr 10, 2017 14:30:52 GMT
Wow
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 10, 2017 14:35:41 GMT
That's crazy!!! There has to be more to this story.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 10, 2017 14:36:25 GMT
Word from some passengers is that there was a crew of 4 who needed to "deadhead" on this flight to get to their next flight. So that's why they "volunteered" him off the plane.
If that isn't the stupidest reason to have a paying passenger be assaulted - I don't know what is.
Either get your crew on another flight (yes, even if you have to *gasp* pay another airline for it)
OR
Keep up'ing the ante on the offer to passengers to give up their seats. You don't go: $400 for a bumped seat to $800 for a bumped seat to assault.
JEEEZUZ
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 10, 2017 14:36:49 GMT
Wow! That's a terrible way to deal with that! Although I don't have a better plan. Maybe not overbooking the flight to begin with? Or at the point where the overbooking began, those passengers would have to give up their seat. Last person to book, on down the list. But have a back-up flight ready for them. I hope that doctor really does sue them. I'm not one who condones suits for just anything, but that is ridiculous! The airline should be held accountable for this totally preventable situation.
ETA: just read why the plane was overbooked. I think that doctor has a real good case now!
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 10, 2017 14:37:02 GMT
 how degrading and disgusting for anyone to be treated in that manner. Surely they must have known during check in that the plane was full. Why did they let more passengers check themselves in. It's not difficult to stop any more check in's on their computer system or why let any more through at the gate? According to this report, it was law enforcement officers that dragged him off the plane and United has told the media to contact them.
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pridemom
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Post by pridemom on Apr 10, 2017 14:37:22 GMT
Oh my! What is this world coming to? This is completely unacceptable that a paying customer is assaulted in SUV a way. I do hope he takes this as high as it can go. No one should be treated this way.
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happymomma
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Post by happymomma on Apr 10, 2017 14:38:08 GMT
Should have been resolved before boarding for sure. But good grief, leave the plane like an adult. It was done fairly by random selection.
I can't believe he made such a spectacle of himself by making them drag him off.
If the other passengers were so bothered by it, perhaps one should have offered to take his place?
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Post by melanell on Apr 10, 2017 14:41:58 GMT
The entire situation seems insane to me. And it all could have been avoided if they had worked it all out before boarding anyone. Like others said it is far easier to prevent someone from boarding than to oust them fromt he plane.
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Post by KikiPea on Apr 10, 2017 14:43:03 GMT
Absolutely asinine.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 10, 2017 14:44:03 GMT
I have a hard time believing that this is all there is to the story. Perhaps this guy had a standby ticket and barged his way onto the plane?
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Post by Merge on Apr 10, 2017 14:46:34 GMT
Ugh. I HATE United. We avoid them whenever we can. I miss Continental.
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Post by anonrefugee on Apr 10, 2017 14:48:54 GMT
I have a hard time believing that this is all there is to the story. Perhaps this guy had a standby ticket and barged his way onto the plane? I don't think there's been any hint of that. However I agree there might be more to the story. It seems crazy they wouldn't offer more money to volunteers in this case. Are margins that narrow? |
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Julie W
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Post by Julie W on Apr 10, 2017 14:51:13 GMT
Wow this is insane. I agree with other posters who said the method of selection, given their error, was ridiculous. They should have pulled off the last four who purchased tickets, if they couldn't get volunteers, and certainly they should have upped the reward first.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 10, 2017 14:57:34 GMT
I have a hard time believing that this is all there is to the story. Perhaps this guy had a standby ticket and barged his way onto the plane? I have a hard time believing it to. As a stand-by passenger who was already buckled in to my seat, my name has been called and I've been told to deplane. Sucked, but I got off. Eta... I also know not to wear leggings.  |
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Post by christine58 on Apr 10, 2017 15:01:17 GMT
I have a hard time believing it to. As a stand-by passenger who was already buckled in to my seat, my name has been called and I've been told to deplane. Sucked, but I got off. Key words "Stand-by" this guy wasn't. I hope he sues. That was ridiculous. EVERY flight I've flown that has been overbooked, it's taken care of before boarding. |
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trollie
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Post by trollie on Apr 10, 2017 15:02:06 GMT
Either choose the last 4 that booked, or the last 4 that checked in for the flight to not get to board. So glad a rarely fly.
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pridemom
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Post by pridemom on Apr 10, 2017 15:07:57 GMT
The last time I flew United my work booked me a ticket online. I wasn't assigned a seat until I arrived at the airport. I made it a point to arrive early because I was worried about getting stuck with Standby when flying to a small airport.
I wonder if they pulled passengers based on this kind of system.
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Post by Darcy Collins on Apr 10, 2017 15:11:20 GMT
I'm not sure he's going to have a great case. He will receive compensation from United for denied boarding (there's federal guidelines on what the airline has to pay you depending on the length of the delay). But as the "assault" was conducted by the police after failure to comply...... that's a much harder suit to win. You can find dozens of people physically dragged off planes - I've seen a few in person. It's usually due to some behavioral issue - but the contract of carriage is extremely broad in allowing the airline latitude in denying a passenger passage - then it's up to the police to actually physically remove them. If you refuse to comply with a police officer's instruction to deplane - they can and will physically remove you.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 10, 2017 15:14:39 GMT
Why would they randomly choose 4 passengers? That's stupid. What if you are traveling with your family and only 1 person was selected?
Seems like the people running United and it's policies need some revamping.
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Post by Darcy Collins on Apr 10, 2017 15:15:08 GMT
The last time I flew United my work booked me a ticket online. I wasn't assigned a seat until I arrived at the airport. I made it a point to arrive early because I was worried about getting stuck with Standby when flying to a small airport. I wonder if they pulled passengers based on this kind of system. There's actually language in the contract for carriage on how they will select passengers for denied boarding in the case of overbooking. They must first ask for volunteers with compensation. If they don't have sufficient volunteers they will select with factors impacting selection: I imagine once they realized they didn't have sufficient volunteers, they took all of the passangers with the lowest fare class and no frequent flier status and chose randomly (based on them saying the 4 were chosen randomly). |
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Rhondito
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Post by Rhondito on Apr 10, 2017 15:19:36 GMT
The linked article doesn't explain what happened very well... the passenger wasn't flying stand-by; the flight was "overbooked" because United needed to fly four of their crew to Louisville for a flight on Monday. This is a better article. |
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Post by scrapmaven on Apr 10, 2017 15:19:44 GMT
That's horrible. I'm guessing United will be paying for that one as well it should!
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Post by *KAS* on Apr 10, 2017 15:20:12 GMT
Wow this is insane. I agree with other posters who said the method of selection, given their error, was ridiculous. They should have pulled off the last four who purchased tickets, if they couldn't get volunteers, and certainly they should have upped the reward first. But if they pulled off the last 4 that purchased tickets, there's a chance somebody is missing their mom's funeral or something equally terrible- the reason they booked a ticket at the last minute. And why are there 2 uniformed police officers, but a random dude in jeans the one who physically drags him off? What if the guy is a heart surgeon and needing to get to a patient is literally life or death? Up the ante on the vouchers, and somebody would have given up their seat. They should have never waited until the plane was full before kicking people off. That video is asinine. All of it. ETA: I do see from the 2nd article posted that he was in a police jacket. I didn't see that in the first story. Doesn't really change my opinion though. |
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YooHoot
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Post by YooHoot on Apr 10, 2017 15:22:39 GMT
Why would they randomly choose 4 passengers? That's stupid. What if you are traveling with your family and only 1 person was selected? Seems like the people running United and it's policies need some revamping. Yeah...we are gonna have to ask little Johnny to exit the aircraft. Yes mam, we know he's 3. But we need that seat. |
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scrapnnana
Drama Llama
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Post by scrapnnana on Apr 10, 2017 15:24:26 GMT
It was the airlines fault. To choose people to remove at random may seem fair, but it isn't. The stand by passengers, the last ones to book or board, or up the price offered would make a lot more sense. What if one of the people they choose is going to a parent's funeral and will now miss it? What if a job is on the line for someone who needs the work?
Thanks for posting this. I will make a point to avoid United. I have never seen an airline handle overbooking in such a ridiculous way. Not only did they lose that one passenger's future business, and now face a possible lawsuit, but people who read about it will hesitate to fly United from now on.
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how degrading and disgusting for anyone to be treated in that manner.
