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It was a perfect storm of circumstances that pushed this situation to the edge.
I'm also still curious on how the guy got back on the plane all bloodied and mumbling to kill him.
He was in his seat, no one volunteered, UA stated they would randomly pick by computer, (so no racism involved for those who keep trying to push that agenda), his was one of the seats, he stated that he was a Dr and needed to be with his patients the next day, UA got all huffy and ordered the rent a cops, 2 of the rent a cops were calmly talking to the guy to see if he had a valid reason for not wanting to leave, the third one, the Rent a Thug, came down the aisle, reached over, grabbed the man's sweatshirt, hauled the passenger out of his seat, smacked his face in to the armrest, the Dr went down on the floor after such a hit, then they dragged him down the aisle and off the plane.
Then, they came back and said that they "lost" him in the terminal. Yeah, right.
The man, 69 years old, having had his face slammed in to the armrest and bleeding from the mouth, came back on the plane stating that he needed to be at work the next day. He also stated "just kill me", and we can all speculate why he said things like that...people want to drag his past out to the world as if it mattered, but I wonder if he just got his license reinstated in 2015, if it was not imperative that he do everything exactly right or he lose everything? Who knows...that's also speculation. Maybe the fact that he was originally from Vietnam had something to do with it...how long did he live there, what did he witness as a youth..? We don't know why he was saying that.
By this time, some of the other passengers were getting disgusted. There was a school teacher on there with a handful of students who said he could not subject his kids to watching this anymore, so he and his kids got up and said that they were leaving the plane. More passengers followed suit, disgusted with UA and their actions.
Then UA told everyone to leave. They then took the Dr off the plane again, and this time magically didn't lose him and got him to a hospital.
I once flew on a Delta flight with a couple of crew from United who could not be accommodated by their outgoing flights being all booked solid. They know how to do it they just didn't bother this go-around.
Most airlines operate a "gentleman's" agreement that allows for open seats to be used by other flight crews to get where they need to be if there is no other way to avoid just this type of happenstance.
Sounds like a civilized way to do it - I'll make a note to choose Delta over United if given the choice.
It's sad really how the airlines have changed. My wife and I married in '83 and went to Hawaii for our honeymoon. We flew Northwest, when the stewardesses found out we were on our honeymoon they moved us to the front (not first class) and treated us so good the whole flight. It was so nice when they were allowed to be human beings. And people used to dress with respect for flights. It's like riding a bus now. I avoid flying like the plague.
Flying is like riding a school bus and being treated like naughty children.
Even if congress were to enact some kind of anti-overbooking law. Maybe they can only book by x % of their flights. Airliners are just going to make up that lost difference by increasing flight costs.
In the end of the day airliners are going to win or consumers are going to pay more in flights.
It's a crappy situation all around but if you look at the amount of consumers that fly each year & how many times a passenger is screwed over it's gotta be far less than 1% of all passengers.
How about the CEO give up a bit of his salary? I don't know whether you have booked a flight in the past ten years but you must run your credit card first. Most tickets are non-refundable unless more $ is paid. In other words, over booking is a cash cow for the airlines.
I heard that if the 4 crew members did not make it to the other destination a flight would have been canceled. Just staying in the middle here on taking sides but another flight is probably 100+ people versus forcing 4 off.
"Poor planning on your part..."
Was this possibly-to-be-cancelled flight a last-minute addition to their regular schedule?
I was responding to that posters post about airliners having to do everything they can to make money. i.e. needing every seat filled if possible.
Slight correction. They don't need each seat actually filled with a body. They just need to have a fare paid for each seat. (Something I actually don't fault them for.) Which is why nearly every ticket they sell these days is non-refundable.
Two parties consented to a contract. Party A (the passenger) violated the contract.
He clearly initiated force.
I know my stance isn't going to play well in here as I use the normal consistent and logical definitions of things.
Sitting in your seat is initiating force?
WTF?
To all the corporate butt kissers defending UA, the rules are in the process of changing because a guy still possessed the balls to stand up for himself instead of obediently taking crap like a spineless, mindless sheeple. Gov Christie has called for the practice of overbooking to stop, and the CEO of UA has said they will never forcibly remove a passenger again. You can bet the next time UA is faced with this situation, they will go overboard to solve it to the customers satisfaction. All because one guy still has a backbone, something that quite a few people here seem to have been conditioned out of.
The corporate butt kissers are just freaking amazing.
To all the corporate butt kissers defending UA, the rules are in the process of changing because a guy still possessed the balls to stand up for himself instead of obediently taking crap like a spineless, mindless sheeple. Gov Christie has called for the practice of overbooking to stop, and the CEO of UA has said they will never forcibly remove a passenger again. You can bet the next time UA is faced with this situation, they will go overboard to solve it to the customers satisfaction. All because one guy still has a backbone, something that quite a few people here seem to have been conditioned out of.
The corporate butt kissers are just freaking amazing.
I don't get it either. The average person here is a consumer if I had to guess, and if they are flying at all are probably flying coach. I agree with you it took a lot of courage to push back against these goons. I suppose the people that are fawning all over UA would have happily given up their seat. More power to them, I'll find another carrier when I have a choice.
To all the corporate butt kissers defending UA, the rules are in the process of changing because a guy still possessed the balls to stand up for himself instead of obediently taking crap like a spineless, mindless sheeple. Gov Christie has called for the practice of overbooking to stop, and the CEO of UA has said they will never forcibly remove a passenger again. You can bet the next time UA is faced with this situation, they will go overboard to solve it to the customers satisfaction. All because one guy still has a backbone, something that quite a few people here seem to have been conditioned out of.
The corporate butt kissers are just freaking amazing.
LOL watch the video, a grown man screaming like a toddler, not brave at all. The guy has a history of mental issues. No braver than a drunk who won't leave the plane and gets pulled off.
This is a debate/discussion board thus people are expected to have differing opinions, so no need to be amazed. I doubt anyone posting is a corporate butt kisser unless they stand to gain from being one. Maybe they are using reason and logic as opposed to blindly conforming to popular opinion. Which would make them brave actually.
In this case fault lies with United, the Security company and the whiny passenger. No one acted right.
The airlines are a competitive industry, at least on routes with multiple airlines having flights, so overbooking probably does indeed lower the prices a little bit. If somebody voluntarily takes the vouchers when it's overbooked, I see no harm done at all. Involuntarily bumping people is a different matter though.
With all due respect, your statement is rather lazy and naive. The airlines are NOT a competitive industry. In fact, it's become less competitive with the mergers. There are essentially 4 major carriers now and they have a large monopoly. Routes were eliminated to reduce competition once airlines merged. Fuel prices have decreased yet prices remain the same. They've also managed to keep their pilot and flight attendant salaries from escalating. It's just corporate greed. They have no right to overbook a plane and then remove a person from their paid seat to accomodate their employees. The customer comes first.
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