United passenger forcibly removed from flight after refusing to give up seat

[yuna628 9,873]

2 minutes ago, bcking said:

Ya I would likely do the same, and have done in other situations (thankfully never had such a huge issue with an airline, despite flying so much).

 

EDIT: Actually my wife and I did have an issue with BA, and that escalated to the point where we said they would lose our loyalty (She was silver, I was bronze, she always booked BA when flying business with her company). Sadly it didn't actually make a difference to BA. Since then we've only flown them once when we got a cheap fare (we also stopped flying since they also cut out a lot of services). Airlines like BA that are consistently more money than other airlines need to realize the importance of loyalty. People are booking more expensive tickets out of the goodness of their heart.

We've been loyal with BA for years, really due to the fact they are the only one to offer a direct flight. But the service has become so bad... the plane is so old, and the mouse issue is really a fuss. Seriously ''we can't take off because the mouse poses a safety hazard by chewing on the wires'' has been said so many times now. We've always been stuck in economy of course because of cost, the sheer cost of anything else was always too much. He cashed in all his FF miles and upgraded to first when he came over, and can't ever imagine going back to the utter hell in the back of the plane again.

[bcking 3,157]

Just now, yuna628 said:

We've been loyal with BA for years, really due to the fact they are the only one to offer a direct flight. But the service has become so bad... the plane is so old, and the mouse issue is really a fuss. Seriously ''we can't take off because the mouse poses a safety hazard by chewing on the wires'' has been said so many times now. We've always been stuck in economy of course because of cost, the sheer cost of anything else was always too much. He cashed in all his FF miles and upgraded to first when he came over, and can't ever imagine going back to the utter hell in the back of the plane again.

I was initially flying Virgin from New York to London every time I would visit her. She had been a loyal customer with BA through her company, and became silver with 1 year because of her business flights to Thailand from London. So she convinced me to switch so that we would earn loyalty on the same airline.

 

In a year I made Bronze (I was always paying out of pocket so I usually flew economy) and then continued to be loyal. Even over the last 3 years I have watched the quality go down significantly. They are cutting a lot of corners. On my last flight with them the stewardess was saying how they were getting rid of all snacks for economy to "cut costs". That, coupled with the way we were treated on our honeymoon last April, led to us changing.

 

The London to Houston route is non-stop with either BA or, unfortunately, United. That being said I have flown United the last 4 times and I have had no issues what so ever. The crew are very attentive, the plane is clean and always on time. Maybe international flights with United are different than domestic. United is always around 100-200 dollars cheaper than BA so it seems like a no brainer. I'll often use that extra savings to at least get premium economy on the red eye leg of the flight.

 

That being said, the only thing I miss about BA is their premium economy. Most airlines just offer a little more leg room (United included, and if I recall Virgin as well). BA premium economy, though more expensive, was quite nice. Seats reclined more, footrests, Business-class food (the best part), their nice comfy BA headphones. On the New York - London leg I frequently was able to upgrade for 200-300 dollars and that was nice. Upgrading to business would be 1000+ and honestly I sleep just fine in a normal seat so it never made that much sense to me. I've only done it when I've been upgraded free. Perhaps as I get older I'll appreciate the seats more.

[Teddy B 17,252]

NB & Ori

 

[The Nature Boy 7,659]

Just now, Teddy B said:

NB & Ori

 

Woooooo

[OriZ 3,165]

1 hour ago, bcking said:

Ya I would likely do the same, and have done in other situations (thankfully never had such a huge issue with an airline, despite flying so much).

 

EDIT: Actually my wife and I did have an issue with BA, and that escalated to the point where we said they would lose our loyalty (She was silver, I was bronze, she always booked BA when flying business with her company). Sadly it didn't actually make a difference to BA. Since then we've only flown them once when we got a cheap fare (we also stopped flying since they also cut out a lot of services). Airlines like BA that are consistently more money than other airlines need to realize the importance of loyalty. People are booking more expensive tickets out of the goodness of their heart.

Yup, either that or for miles. Like I said for those who don't do that, they're much better off going on kayak or something and getting a cheap flight. Airlines like Jetblue in many ways are actually much better than the big (and expensive) boys.

 

Also to add to what I said earlier about the flight change - I know some people talked about "looking" for a bump. I've never done the bump thing but I do believe it is a good strategy to book a flight as far ahead as possible(obviously it's not always possible like with you). It's a risk, but the longer the time between booking and flying the better the chance they will make some changes that will entitled you from that point on to do whatever you want with it - change it, cancel it, etc all free of charge.

 

1 hour ago, bcking said:

I was initially flying Virgin from New York to London every time I would visit her. She had been a loyal customer with BA through her company, and became silver with 1 year because of her business flights to Thailand from London. So she convinced me to switch so that we would earn loyalty on the same airline.

 

In a year I made Bronze (I was always paying out of pocket so I usually flew economy) and then continued to be loyal. Even over the last 3 years I have watched the quality go down significantly. They are cutting a lot of corners. On my last flight with them the stewardess was saying how they were getting rid of all snacks for economy to "cut costs". That, coupled with the way we were treated on our honeymoon last April, led to us changing.

 

The London to Houston route is non-stop with either BA or, unfortunately, United. That being said I have flown United the last 4 times and I have had no issues what so ever. The crew are very attentive, the plane is clean and always on time. Maybe international flights with United are different than domestic. United is always around 100-200 dollars cheaper than BA so it seems like a no brainer. I'll often use that extra savings to at least get premium economy on the red eye leg of the flight.

 

That being said, the only thing I miss about BA is their premium economy. Most airlines just offer a little more leg room (United included, and if I recall Virgin as well). BA premium economy, though more expensive, was quite nice. Seats reclined more, footrests, Business-class food (the best part), their nice comfy BA headphones. On the New York - London leg I frequently was able to upgrade for 200-300 dollars and that was nice. Upgrading to business would be 1000+ and honestly I sleep just fine in a normal seat so it never made that much sense to me. I've only done it when I've been upgraded free. Perhaps as I get older I'll appreciate the seats more.

If you ever get the chance to do United Business on an international flight they now have Polaris on many of them, it's actually pretty good.

[Ban Hammer 14,286]

On 4/11/2017 at 3:12 PM, bcking said:

Yes except now unfortunately there needs to be a small footnote that says:

 

"The single doctor that doesn't recommend United was previously under investigation for trading prescriptions for sex, and had his license revoked for a decade"

 

Not the most "trustworthy" guy.

none of which matters really as it had zero to do with what happened on the airplane.

[The Nature Boy 7,659]

I just saw another video in which the police were reasoning  with him very nicely and patiently , and explained to him he would likely go to jail and be forcibly removed if he did not peacefully comply. He said he didn't care. Not saying he should have been bumped in that manner, but if the Po Po explain to me very nicely and patiently I am about to be forcibly removed and give me  several ample opportunitys to comply and I dont then on me. 

[OriZ 3,165]

1 hour ago, Nature Boy Flair said:

I just saw another video in which the police were reasoning  with him very nicely and patiently , and explained to him he would likely go to jail and be forcibly removed if he did not peacefully comply. He said he didn't care. Not saying he should have been bumped in that manner, but if the Po Po explain to me very nicely and patiently I am about to be forcibly removed and give me  several ample opportunitys to comply and I dont then on me. 

I guess I was on the right track. 

[OriZ 3,165]

 

[Dakine10 5,452]

    Second United Airlines passenger comes forward with damning claims against company

 

   This was weird, they were going to involuntarily deboard this guy, but then after threatening him, tell him he has the option to downgrade to economy. Maybe United has bigger issues. If airlines are going to overbook thousands of flights a year, they may want to train staff better in the conflict resolution skills that will ultimately be needed. 

 

   ....

        

  Fearns, the president of Irvine investment firm TriPacific Capital Advisors, said he purchased the pricey ticket so he could return from a business conference on the island sooner than originally planned.

Although Fearns spent the extra $1,000 for the earlier flight, arrived at the airport an hour early and boarded the plane on time, he still ended up getting kicked off his flight due to overbooking.

A United employee reportedly approached Fearns once he was seated on the plane and demanded he get off the aircraft, saying "we have a priority list, and you're at the bottom of it."

Fearns resisted her request at first, until another passenger warned him that United has a history of mishandling these situations.

"The guy sitting next to me, who's apparently a United frequent flyer, said: 'Hey man! They get really nasty about this stuff," Fearns told KCAL. "They'll call the cops on you.' And I'm like – for what? For sitting in my assigned seat?"

 

 

  Fearns said that, true to his neighbors warning, the employee got increasingly demanding each time he refused.

He eventually caved once she threatened to have him put in handcuffs.

Then, another United employee figured out a "compromise" to get Fearns home on the same plane he spent so much extra money to get a ticket for, he claims.

The airline reportedly downgraded him to economy class and put him in a middle seat between a couple who "argued the whole way back."

 

 

 

[OriZ 3,165]

12 minutes ago, Dakine10 said:

    Second United Airlines passenger comes forward with damning claims against company

 

   This was weird, they were going to involuntarily deboard this guy, but then after threatening him, tell him he has the option to downgrade to economy. Maybe United has bigger issues. If airlines are going to overbook thousands of flights a year, they may want to train staff better in the conflict resolution skills that will ultimately be needed. 

 

   ....

        

  Fearns, the president of Irvine investment firm TriPacific Capital Advisors, said he purchased the pricey ticket so he could return from a business conference on the island sooner than originally planned.

Although Fearns spent the extra $1,000 for the earlier flight, arrived at the airport an hour early and boarded the plane on time, he still ended up getting kicked off his flight due to overbooking.

A United employee reportedly approached Fearns once he was seated on the plane and demanded he get off the aircraft, saying "we have a priority list, and you're at the bottom of it."

Fearns resisted her request at first, until another passenger warned him that United has a history of mishandling these situations.

"The guy sitting next to me, who's apparently a United frequent flyer, said: 'Hey man! They get really nasty about this stuff," Fearns told KCAL. "They'll call the cops on you.' And I'm like – for what? For sitting in my assigned seat?"

 

 

  Fearns said that, true to his neighbors warning, the employee got increasingly demanding each time he refused.

He eventually caved once she threatened to have him put in handcuffs.

Then, another United employee figured out a "compromise" to get Fearns home on the same plane he spent so much extra money to get a ticket for, he claims.

The airline reportedly downgraded him to economy class and put him in a middle seat between a couple who "argued the whole way back."

 

 

 

Well, I would expect them to refund my ticket or at the very least the difference between economy and business. If they refused, and if I didn't book my ticket way ahead of time(as you only have so long to do so) I go back home and dispute the whole thing with my bank/credit card.

[Dakine10 5,452]

3 minutes ago, OriZ said:

Well, I would expect them to refund my ticket or at the very least the difference between economy and business. If they refused, and if I didn't book my ticket way ahead of time(as you only have so long to do so) I go back home and dispute the whole thing with my bank/credit card.

  Yeah that's what I would do too. I'm just wondering if it was first class that was overbooked, why didn't they offer him the economy seat first and then threaten to call the police second if he didn't budge. It doesn't make sense to threaten to call police first, then tell him there's another seat available. I don't know, maybe they did. This is just the customers side of the story. 

 

   If anything good comes of these incidents, hopefully it will be that airlines revise and/or be more transparent about their criteria for doing this. If they go in the order the ticket was purchased and then the order of seat assignment (for example), at least people would know that it's better to buy the ticket as early as possible and check in/ get the seat assignment as early as possible to have a better chance of not getting bumped. There should be some benefit to buying the ticket early. Random selection seems like a silly way to do it.

[OriZ 3,165]

1 minute ago, Dakine10 said:

  Yeah that's what I would do too. I'm just wondering if it was first class that was overbooked, why didn't they offer him the economy seat first and then threaten to call the police second if he didn't budge. It doesn't make sense to threaten to call police first, then tell him there's another seat available. I don't know, maybe they did. This is just the customers side of the story. 

 

   If anything good comes of these incidents, hopefully it will be that airlines revise and/or be more transparent about their criteria for doing this. If they go in the order the ticket was purchased and then the order of seat assignment (for example), at least people would know that it's better to buy the ticket as early as possible and check in/ get the seat assignment as early as possible to have a better chance of not getting bumped. There should be some benefit to buying the ticket early. Random selection seems like a silly way to do it.

I agree it should be more transparent. After this recent incident, united already said they won't use police anymore to get people off of planes, we'll see if they actually keep their word. 

[Jawaree 719]

The passenger refused to give up the seat, those on the plane said he just sat there 

so dont try to blame the victim,UNITED was wrong & from all the clips you can hear

passengers begging that they dont treat the man like that, NO ONE was heard saying

'Sir stop that' Well all who choose to victimize him again better hope nothing simiiar

happens to their pious existence

[Dakine10 5,452]

28 minutes ago, Jawaree said:

The passenger refused to give up the seat, those on the plane said he just sat there 

so dont try to blame the victim,UNITED was wrong

   The passenger had to leave the plane. Until someone got off, the plane could not leave the ground.  The airlines policy may be unfair, but if he was selected randomly, there was really no recourse.  As a professional poker player, he should probably be familiar with the adage that you gotta know when to hold em, know when to fold em.

 

   Overall, there is blame to go around on all parties here. I would put more of that blame on the transit police than anyone else. If they hadn't dragged him off like a sack of meat, we wouldn't have even heard this story, and the doctor would just be one of the anonymous 45000 people this happens to every year.