Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Ah, I see. So there were no crew members already in SDF who would volunteer to take the flight to MIA? We certainly wouldn't want to pluck them off their couches and throw them into a plane involuntarily.
Yes, I know there is more behind the story and there are certain logistics at play. I get it. I work for a financial institution and what we do and why we do it can be much different than how the public sees it. Unfortunately, for airlines (and banks), public perception is huge when it comes to reputation.
SDF is not a Crew base for Republic, So there would not be any random E170 crews standing around.
Why Republic did not have a available crew there for the Monday Morning Flight? Was a flight earlier Sunday in to SDF canceled, do to other issues, putting that crew out of place? Did last weeks bad weather put crew at the end of the allowable flight time? So A crew was needed for Monday morning, Only the Republic Operation Staff know the reason why they had to put on four Must fly on that flight.
So Republic had to call in a ORD based E170 Crew (That can take a few hours, to call them, allow them time to get to ORD) to take the flight to SDF to crew the plane in the morning.
If they take a flight to much later, the morning flight would have to be delayed due to Rest Time needed, for that relief crew that was being brought in.
I recently wrote a book on the police use of force (can't name the book as it will be cut by a moderator). The use of force against a person who has committed no violation of law is very dicey. This mostly comes up when trying to control a person who has serious emotional problems but has not done anything "dangerous" or in violation of statute.
In this case (and I am NOT familiar with the FARs in regard handling flight crew requests or orders) the man was a booked passenger, lawfully seated, and simply refused to vacate the aircraft when directed to do so. The extent of his visible injuries tend to show me that the force used was possibly excessive, but as I was not there I don't know how much of the man's injuries were self-inflicted.
Everyone has their price. United should have increased their offer for volunteers. The extra couple of thousand would have been much less costly than this PR debacle.
The situation was completely mishandled by United. The contractual situation is neither here not there. It is public perception that matters.
Ding Ding Ding!!! We have a winner!!
Even if they compensated him outlandishly (lets say $2000!) it STILL would have been pennies on the dollar compared to the financial hit they are going to take due to the bad PR fallout.
Even if they compensated him outlandishly (lets say $2000!) it STILL would have been pennies on the dollar compared to the financial hit they are going to take due to the bad PR fallout.
If United, or any other major carrier for that matter, can survive the bad PR from a plane crash I doubt if they are very worried about the PR of this incident. Within a few days the vast majority of the flying public that was even aware of the incident will have forgotten all about it. Business travelers will continue to fly on whichever flight their companies book them on. People flying on personal business will continue to try to book whichever flight they can save 5 dollars on.
Being forcibly removed was brought on by the passenger. He choose to disobey the police orders.
I'm not siding with United in this case but when you are asked to get off the plane and refuse, at that point you are trespassing.
Chicago is a six hour drive from Louisville, United could have shuttled the crew members there in a van.
I find it hard to believe out of a full plane load of passengers that they couldn't find 4 passengers willing to accept $800 and the next flight. In my experience, when even half that amount is offered due to overbooking you have a dozen people racing to the gate to be picked.
I would have hated to be the person sitting in his seat when the plane finally took off.
If United, or any other major carrier for that matter, can survive the bad PR from a plane crash I doubt if they are very worried about the PR of this incident. Within a few days the vast majority of the flying public that was even aware of the incident will have forgotten all about it. Business travelers will continue to fly on whichever flight their companies book them on. People flying on personal business will continue to try to book whichever flight they can save 5 dollars on.
Being forcibly removed was brought on by the passenger. He choose to disobey the police orders.
They are worried enough that the CEO was forced to put out a statement.
Another board that I was on had someone point out that United should have just paid for the crew to fly on another airline if it was that dire a situation. They handled this incredibly poorly. With proper incentives, someone would have given up their seats. The guy was a doctor who was apparently quite desperate to be able to meet with patients in the morning. Not a good look for United.
What makes staff needed in other locations? So much so that passengers are bumped?
Quote:
Originally Posted by flyonpa
4 MUST FLY Crew members. Who were needed to take the flight out this morning from SDF-MIA.
Chicago is a six hour drive from Louisville, United could have shuttled the crew members there in a van.
I find it hard to believe out of a full plane load of passengers that they couldn't find 4 passengers willing to accept $800 and the next flight. In my experience, when even half that amount is offered due to overbooking you have a dozen people racing to the gate to be picked.
I would have hated to be the person sitting in his seat when the plane finally took off.
Those crew members were probably needed for a particular flight according to a preset schedule and might not have had the time needed for a road trip rather than a flight.
And there aren't always passengers willing to accept compensation and wait for a later flight (which might not be the next one if that is full!).
If United, or any other major carrier for that matter, can survive the bad PR from a plane crash I doubt if they are very worried about the PR of this incident. Within a few days the vast majority of the flying public that was even aware of the incident will have forgotten all about it. Business travelers will continue to fly on whichever flight their companies book them on. People flying on personal business will continue to try to book whichever flight they can save 5 dollars on.
Being forcibly removed was brought on by the passenger. He choose to disobey the police orders.
Maybe you're ok with bending over and taking it, but what if this man had an emergency and needed to be where he was going?
He paid for his ticket. He was issued a boarding pass that he paid for, and was assigned a seat.
Don't see how he broke any law. If anything, his civic rights were violated.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
