Airline Companies

United Airlines Removes Paying Customer by Force







Video of police officers dragging a passenger (David Dao a doctor from Elizabethtown Kentucky), from a United Airlines flight.

A United spokesman conceded Tuesday that the flight was sold out but not “overbooked,” as the airline originally claimed, meaning four ticketed passengers, including the man, were kicked off the plane to make way for crew members that United said needed to make the flight as reported here; https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2017/04/11/whos-losing-internet-and-plenty-customers-united-airlines/100295762/

As the flight waited to depart from Chicago’s O’Hare Airport, officers could be seen grabbing the screaming man from a window seat, pulling him across the armrest and dragging him down the aisle by his arms. United was trying to make room for four employees of a partner airline on the Sunday evening flight to Louisville, Kentucky.

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.

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.

 

https://youtu.be/4dlLD5uTkFk

Attorney holds news conference on lawsuit against United Airlines

 

United Passenger Lawyers Up, Will Likely ‘Re-Accommodate’ Airline In Court

United Airlines has finally, belatedly, apologized for beating up one of its paying customers for his stubborn refusal to “volunteer.” Initially, United CEO Oscar Muñoz said: “I apologize for having to re-accommodate these customers.” When that didn’t do the trick, United smeared the victim.

George Washington law professor John Banzhaf points out that Dao wasn’t “denied boarding” therefore rule 21, “Refusal of Transport,” should apply to Dao, not rule 25.

Banzhaf writes:  Rule 21, entitled “Refusal of Transport,” is very different because it clearly and expressly covers situations in which a passenger who has already boarded the plane can be removed…

The rule, which unlike the denied boarding rule does provide for removal “from the aircraft at any point,” lists some two dozen justifications including: unruly behavior, intoxication, inability to fit into one seat, medical problems or concerns, etc. But nowhere in the list of some two dozen reasons is there anything about over booking, the need to free up seats, the need for seats to accommodate crew members to be used on a different flight etc.

 

United passenger gets second helping of humiliation

It’s certainly been a rough week for David Dao. Sunday, he was dragged off his United Airlines flight to make way for an affiliated airline employee who needed the seat. A fellow passenger’s video of the incident broadcast the hapless Kentucky physician’s humiliation around the world.

In an ironic twist of cruel fate, the news media uncovered & reported that Dr. Dao spent five years on probation after being convicted of writing fraudulent prescriptions in 2004. Medical licensing board records cited by the Courier-Journal .

In my opinion, Dr. Dao was victimized twice; first by United Airline for treating him more UN-humanely than an animal by dragging him off the plane in which he had every right to be on and then causing worldwide scrutiny into his past, which he already paid for.

This permanent world wide stain on Dr. Dao reputation would never have been revealed were it not for United Airlines actions.

The damage done to Dr. Dao is considerably and for that, I think he is due millions, if not billions in damages.

I think Dr. Dao civil & human rights were also violated and criminal charges should be filed against those who unjustly, illegally and without provocation dragged him off the plane

 

United Airlines shows how to make a PR crisis a total disaster

Now he’s being raked over the coals for his response to a violent passenger incident on a United Airlines flight. Public relations experts say the CEO should have quickly offered an unreserved apology after a customer was filmed on Sunday being forcibly removed from his seat and dragged down an overbooked aircraft’s aisle.

United Airlines’ Gross Miscalculations Will Cost Them Way More Than $800

How could good public relations planning & training have helped United Airlines in the current crisis? What can it do from here? originally appeared on Quora – the place to gain and share knowledge, empowering people to learn from others and better understand the world.

 

MORE UNITED AIRLINES ABUSE:

Former beauty queen was roughed up on United flight: suit

A former Miss Venezuela is suing United Airlines over a nightmarish midair incident in which a flight attendant handcuffed her and enlisted two burly men to forcibly remove her in a dispute that escalated after she asked for a pillow.

Former beauty queen was roughed up on United flight and is now suing United Airlines

 




Customer claims she and her special needs teenage daughter were mistreated

Column: United passenger threatened with handcuffs to make room for ‘higher-priority’ traveler

It’s hard to find examples of worse decision-making and customer treatment than United Airlines having a passenger dragged from an overbooked plane. But United’s shabby treatment of Geoff Fearns, including a threat to place him in handcuffs, comes close.

 

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Spirit Airlines Unprofessionalism

My flight from Costa Rica to Ft. Lauderdale was cancelled on Friday and Spirit could only get me a flight 3 days later. Although they offered hotel vouchers, I did not need one because the family I was staying with lives close by. In order for Spirit to change my ticket, I had to wait in line for 2 hours. I did not complain and simply asked for a luggage voucher for my flight on Monday. They declined to do so.

I found many more complaints about Spirit Airlines like these…

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“6 delays so far and we haven’t even got on the plane! Supposed to leave Minneapolis at 11.00 and get to Las Vegas by 6 after a long lay over in Chicago. Our flight was pushed back, and then again, and again until we would miss our Chicago connection. They put us on a flight leaving at 10.00pm, getting into Vegas at 11.00pm, then pushed back. Now pushed back again until after 1am. Never again”.

“Absolutely the worst airline we have experienced, no savings here. No one at Spirit desk to explain 4 hr delay from Las Vegas to Portland, missed connecting flights, had to rent a car to drive additional 5 hrs home. Apparently there’s no way to contact anyone except through email”.

The above are some of the comments made by various disgruntled passengers . I have counted 337 and I just want to say after all that has happened I tried calling customer service and was hung up on twice and put on hold for nearly an hour until I gave up. I then called the Corp HQs and that number was no longer in use and there was no forwarding number,

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