United Airlines Passenger Forcibly Removed from Overbooked Flight
In unrelated news, I bet Pepsi is relieved for the change in news cycle.
'Pepsi: We have made the biggest PR disaster of any major company this year or any other year...
'United: Hold my beer...'
No-one's commented that in their rush to get their 4 employees to work, and get this paid passenger off, the plane was emptied of all passengers and delayed 3 hours "for cleaning" before the injured man came back on board before being taken off again (as mentioned, by stretcher). So this adjustment was so essential that it necessitated a delay of 3 hours to everyone's travel plans. 
If nothing else, it speaks volumes about their personnel management.
Related:
theatlantic.com: The Real Scandal of that Brutal United (Airlines) Video
https://www.theatlantic.com/bu...
Piers Morgan chimes in:
dailymail.co.uk: Domestic U.S. Airlines are Worst than Con Air
Remember when the Feds were turning over rocks in the Jersey Bridgegate scandal, it was revealed that United had arranged a special flight for Dave Samson formerly of the NY/NJ Port Authority in a quid pro quo move. Eventually, United's CEO resigned with a golden parachute.
jalopnik.com: Why Did United Airlines CEO Resign?
this poor fellow is 69 years old??? They couldn't pick on a younger, fitter passenger???? (Were they scared that a younger person would fight back?!)
We've had stacks of articles on this matter in our media today, including heaps of consumer advice for domestic (here) and international flights, and domestic (US, and Europe, and UK).
This video has gone viral in China and it is being seen as an anti-Chinese incident.
Thank you United Airlines.
Yes, I think he got home 3 hours or so late. United is in touch with him, no doubt to negotiate something.
kthnry said:
I haven't heard what happened to this poor guy. Did he ever make it home?
BBC is saying he's Vietnamese not Chinese. (So perhaps there's even more to the emotional distress angle here)
I never accept vouchers, only cash (which Delta will do). United vouchers have blackout periods and are good for only one year. and the cost of giving a voucher which might not even get used is a minimal cost to the airline. I recently flew on United and they needed 2 volunteers and they would only give $200 voucher. nobody volunteered but no incidents. when they asked me I told them I would agree to be bumped for $500.00 cash. I was told that was too much and they were only authorized to give (next to worthless ) vouchers. I probably would have accepted $200.00 cash (next flight was later the same night).
The whole incident shows that United has poor leadership, bad employee training, poor employee morale, and a sh#tty strategy.
the airline deregulation act of 1978 has not worked out. There is less competition, lousier service, and lousy morale/training of employees. It is time to admit that some regulations are needed.
the contract we make when buying a seat is one sided and impossible to get out of. You buy a seat and you can't get a refund, change the flight (unless you pay a fee that is often more than the cost of the ticket), and in some cases you can't even bring a small bag with you. BUT the airlines can bump you, toss you from a plane, change your seat, and charge you extra to board early. Airline travel has become a nightmare.
I'm surprised no one has mentioned the actions of the security guards. Sure United handled this dreadfully. And the fact that their agents called security to take people off the plane was uncalled for. But for the airport cops to rough up a guy who was no danger to anyone, did not breach security, in order to carry out a business request by the airline is also shameful. They could have gone back to the United agents and say they weren't going to get physical with a person who was disturbing no one, no danger to anyone, and no security threat. They should have told United to get another person to agree to leave the plane.
This is yet another instance of cops who don't like to have their authority questioned, and when it is, they decided to use brute force. If the airline needs to take responsibility for poor training of staff, so does O'Hare. Their security force should be there to provide security, not use physical force to enforce the customer policies of an airline.
spSeveral of the article do in fact raise this issue, ml1, and also point out that by merely refusing to be a 'volunteer' and not complying with requests to exit the plane, the gentleman was by the airports' and airlines' definition 'being disruptive'.
I thought about the issue with excessive force by the police/security but was not sure what the airlines told them. I have been in situations where the flight attendants were less than honest in requesting security.
The officer that grabbed the passenger was suspended and his employer said that standard protocols were not followed.
ml1 said:
I'm surprised no one has mentioned the actions of the security guards. Sure United handled this dreadfully. And the fact that their agents called security to take people off the plane was uncalled for. But for the airport cops to rough up a guy who was no danger to anyone, did not breach security, in order to carry out a business request by the airline is also shameful. They could have gone back to the United agents and say they weren't going to get physical with a person who was disturbing no one, no danger to anyone, and no security threat. They should have told United to get another person to agree to leave the plane.
This is yet another instance of cops who don't like to have their authority questioned, and when it is, they decided to use brute force. If the airline needs to take responsibility for poor training of staff, so does O'Hare. Their security force should be there to provide security, not use physical force to enforce the customer policies of an airline.
good to know.
I guess it's only my friends and acquaintances who blamed only United. I was surprised that no one on MOL and to my knowledge none of my FB friends had objected very much to the behavior of security before, putting all the blame on United.
yahooyahoo said:
The officer that grabbed the passenger was suspended and his employer said that standard protocols were not followed.
ml1 said:
I'm surprised no one has mentioned the actions of the security guards. Sure United handled this dreadfully. And the fact that their agents called security to take people off the plane was uncalled for. But for the airport cops to rough up a guy who was no danger to anyone, did not breach security, in order to carry out a business request by the airline is also shameful. They could have gone back to the United agents and say they weren't going to get physical with a person who was disturbing no one, no danger to anyone, and no security threat. They should have told United to get another person to agree to leave the plane.
This is yet another instance of cops who don't like to have their authority questioned, and when it is, they decided to use brute force. If the airline needs to take responsibility for poor training of staff, so does O'Hare. Their security force should be there to provide security, not use physical force to enforce the customer policies of an airline.
Two questions: no-one is talking about the injured gentleman's wife, who was also a 'volunteer' bumped off the plane. She was sitting next to him. I haven't watched the video - was she also manhandled??? If the three security officers were focussed on him, did she follow, or remain in the plane, confused? Maybe that's why he returned? (For her, for belongings etc)
Also, while one of the security officers has been stood down the other two haven't been. So it appears that mostly, they have the backing of their superiors.
The sad thing is air travel has gotten so bad that after all of this, this may not have been the worst flight that he's ever been on!
Sharing a tweet I saw.... "It is reported that United Airlines just gutted a passenger with a pocket knife - one of their employees needed a kidney."
You know, I am not defending CPD or United by any means, but if push came to shove, I'd leave the plane. I mean, what did he hope to accomplish? Did he really think they were going to change their minds?
In one of the videos you can see her follow the officers down the aisle as they dragged the passenger out.
She didn't appear to be manhandled or coerced by the officers. I don't know what happened when he ran back in, I assume she was still outside the plane.
joanne said:
Two questions: no-one is talking about the injured gentleman's wife, who was also a 'volunteer' bumped off the plane. She was sitting next to him. I haven't watched the video - was she also manhandled??? If the three security officers were focussed on him, did she follow, or remain in the plane, confused? Maybe that's why he returned? (For her, for belongings etc)
Also, while one of the security officers has been stood down the other two haven't been. So it appears that mostly, they have the backing of their superiors.
United is digging their heels in
https://www.washingtonpost.com...
(emphasis mine)
United Airlines’ chief executive is defending his employees after a passenger who refused to give up his plane seat to a crew member was pulled screaming into the aisle by security on Sunday. The battered and bloodied man was dragged back to the terminal at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport.
But international outrage continued into Tuesday morning, with United’s stock price falling, memes exploding and disturbing videos of the incident shared across the world.
In China, where United bills itself as a top carrier, tens of millions of people have read or shared a report that the passenger claimed he was targeted for being Chinese. Many there are now echoing calls in the United States for a boycott.
“Like you, I was upset to see and hear about what happened last night,” United chief executive Oscar Munoz wrote to his entire company — while defending the crew’s conduct on the Louisville-bound plane as “established procedures.”
“I deeply regret this situation arose,” Munoz wrote, according to the Associated Press.” But: “I want to commend you for continuing to go above and beyond to ensure we fly right.”
Well if he hoped to bring light to the draconian ways in which some airline employees treat their passengers, great lesson learned. Flying has become so stressful, so much as raising an eyebrow can get you yelled at or threatened off a flight. Your child won't calm down, off the plane. It's like you're expected to show up shut up sit down like cattle. Don't twitch, don't move, don't ask, don't you dare. They have too much power and they abuse it. Someone needed to shine the light on United, I'm so sad it took this to do it. Now I'm not defending unruly passengers, but this isn't what happened. Sadly they won't learn. Too big to fail?
marylago said:
You know, I am not defending CPD or United by any means, but if push came to shove, I'd leave the plane. I mean, what did he hope to accomplish? Did he really think they were going to change their minds?
Not sure how accurate this is, but looks like the stock market is reacting
marylago said:
You know, I am not defending CPD or United by any means, but if push came to shove, I'd leave the plane. I mean, what did he hope to accomplish? Did he really think they were going to change their minds?
There is no reason for pushing going to shove. Physical force on a paying customer should not be used to prevent the airline from losing money.
This brutal act was legal because the airline had regulations written for their benefit. They tell the security force what to do, and the people have no police force representing them. The regulation CAPS the reimbursement amount to $1,350, and I'm sure the industry requested that cap. So now we have a nation in which corporations own the cops and use physical force to protect their profits, at the expense of everyone else. Any other airline can do this, too, if it chooses to. It's not about what's wrong at United. It's class warfare.
From the Ellen Generes show, a United Airlines video spoof. This was actually done a month or so ago.
So I guess no one in first class was selected to give up their seat. (not that there is anything wrong with first class seating).
And why do the police blindly follow and assume the airline is in the right? UAL's own rules state that the "volunteers" should not be allowed to board and as Tom says -- this is class warfare. They randomly pick people based on what class of seats they are in starting with those who pay the least. it is not as if someone from first class is ever bumped.
Let's hope this latest fiasco with UAL forces the CEO to resign and maybe triggers a passengers bill of rights. it is insane that when you buy a ticket you have to put a check mark next to a box saying you agree to their rules but they are over 35 pages long (all favoring the airline).
The industry is a disgrace and needs stricter regulations.
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I haven't heard what happened to this poor guy. Did he ever make it home?