Is it too early for...

[VillageContractor]

Not realising that they've overbooked until people are already on the plane - just slightly incompetent.

The offered people $400 to take another flight the next day as they had overbooked by 1 seat. No one took it so they let everyone board.

Then they also had to accommodate 3 airline cabin crew who needed to be on the flight before they needed to be at SFO for work the next day.

They then asked for 4 volunteers or they would be selected at random by a computer. No one volunteered. The others left willing.

It amazes me how stupid so many people can be to see why that was wrong on so many levels.

[Mordac]

Getting the crap beaten out of you because the Airline hasn't got it's staff in the right location?

Police are filmed dragging man off United Airlines flight | Daily Mail Online

**** me, one of the most outrageous things I have ever seen when it comes to air travel.

#BoycottUnited

The reason the police got involved was that the Captain had ordered the passenger to leave the aircraft. Disobeying such an order is a serious (possibly federal?) offence. However, the airline should never have allowed the situation to escalate to that stage. The PR fallout from this incident will be horrific for United. I've still not forgiven them for changing my flight to JFK from smoking to non-smoking at the last minute. And that was in 1994!!

[BlasterBates]

[billybiro]

The offered people $400 to take another flight the next day as they had overbooked by 1 seat. No one took it so they let everyone board.

Then they also had to accommodate 3 airline cabin crew who needed to be on the flight before they needed to be at SFO for work the next day.

They then asked for 4 volunteers or they would be selected at random by a computer. No one volunteered. The others left willing.

It amazes me how stupid so many people can be to see why that was wrong on so many levels.

Outrageous. If they had 3 airline crew who needed to be at SFO the next day then they (United) should charter their own private jet to get them there without interfering with a plane full of paying customers. They're an airline FFS, it's not they don't have planes or anything.

How the F does it become the passenger's problem that the airline is too incompetent to ensure correct numbers of people on board their own planes?

[GJABS]

The US is becoming a really weird place.

Now I read yesterday somewhere you'll be required to give up a password for your electronic devices if requested at immigration.

An easy workaround to this is to change the passwords to your accounts to a different password (not used by any of your other accounts), then pass through immigration, then change them back again.

[Mordac]

Outrageous. If they had 3 airline crew who needed to be at SFO the next day then they (United) should charter their own private jet to get them there without interfering with a plane full of paying customers. They're an airline FFS, it's not they don't have planes or anything.

How the F does it become the passenger's problem that the airline is too incompetent to ensure correct numbers of people on board their own planes?

The flight was to Louisville, which according to my fairly basic US geography is nowhere near SFO. The likelihood of the crew being able to take a flight (any flight - most airlines have reciprocal arrangement re. crew movements) to SFO from Chicago is surely better than getting one from Louisville. The more one reads on this, the more stupid and incompetent United appear.

[shaunbhoy]

BA sometimes put a sign up asking people if they can travel later/next day at the check-in desk. However I've only seen it when I'm going abroad to do something where I can't travel later/next day.

Back in 1992 I was travelling from London directly to Chicago with BA. They overbooked the flight and around 15 of us did not get allowed on. We were flying cattle class.
However, they offered us either £300 worth of BA travel vouchers or £250 cash, and then upgraded us to Business Class on a flight to Newark around an hour later on.
We also then got an onward flight to Chicago (with United Airlines ironically).
Got there a good deal later than planned, but overall a decent swap.

Later that same year I volunteered to come off a cattle class flight to Stockholm for another £250.
They put me up in a hotel overnight with a free meal and upgraded me to Business class first thing the following morning.
Happy days and Kerching!!

Fairly standard practice with airlines, yet still United managed to fook the whole process right up.

[Hertsseasider]

Overbooking seats is commonplace in the Airline industry. They will have stats on seats sold vs No Shows and overbook to compensate. Normally it works fine.

In this case, this should have been sorted prior to boarding the flight (it's a lot easier to stop someone getting on than taking then from their seat). However, once on board, the Captain is the law. Forget colour, race or anything, if he decides you are to be off loaded then off you go. If you refuse, even politely, you are deemed disruptive. Cue meathead Security.

Shocking PR though

[SueEllen]

Overbooking seats is commonplace in the Airline industry. They will have stats on seats sold vs No Shows and overbook to compensate. Normally it works fine.

In this case, this should have been sorted prior to boarding the flight (it's a lot easier to stop someone getting on than taking then from their seat). However, once on board, the Captain is the law. Forget colour, race or anything, if he decides you are to be off loaded then off you go. If you refuse, even politely, you are deemed disruptive. Cue meathead Security.

Shocking PR though

How come BA, Thomson and other European carriers can do it? Even those flying in the developing world can manage as well especially with the tulip people take on board.

Are Americans just thick?

[sal]

Don't think he will have much recourse with United, they are limited by law to offer a maximum of $1350 compensation to involuntary bumping someone off a flight, and were within their booking conditions to overbook (why they are allowed to overbook is another question)

I'm surprised more anger isn't being directed at the police officer, but I guess United make a more agreeable target than the boys in blue

They didn't go to the maximum tho, only to $800 before they called the cops. Then when the situation became violent, the crew should have stopped the cop and looked for a different solution instead of letting the events unfold as they. Not only that, but the passenger in question apparently managed to evade the cops and return to the cabin all bloodied and pleading, this didn't make the cabin crew flinch either....

The cop is already suspended and will likely face some consequences. On the other hand United has only apologised for the overbooking and having to "relocate" some passengers...

I'm sure if they had cone to the maximum of $1350 someone would have volunteered, tried to save $550, will cost them millions.