The brute force of the video has not changed no matter what else lies beneath the story.
Consider this.... Let's say a person who did NOT have a ticket nonetheless was able to board the plane. Would it be appropriate for the airline to remove the person who did not have a ticket (albeit as non-physically as possible)?
Turns out, this person did
not have a ticket. He ONCE did but he voluntarily surrendered it, he gave it up in return for credit. He thus got out of the seat and left the plane and returned to the terminal.... why? Because he did not now have a ticket on that flight, he had voluntarily surrendered it, gave it back to the airline in return for credit.
It was only when he got out to the terminal and discovered the next flight was too late for him to return home at an acceptable time. Did he buy a ticket on that flight? No, it was sold out. He simply was able to get back on the plane - and he took back the seat he had voluntarily surrendered since it was still empty.
Point is: He didn't have a ticket. He was NOT a paying customer.
IMO, United had a right to remove a customer who did not have a ticket. Indeed, security should have prevented him from getting on that plane. OBVIOUSLY, it should not have been done so brutally - I fully agree!! That was disgusting!!! But it's wrong to say he was a paying customer and that he had a ticket; we've finally learned that's simply not true. He was a NON-TICKETED man.
That doesn't excuse what we see on the video.... but it also doesn't excuse him taking that seat and refusing to leave.
Now, I've seen this many times (usually BEFORE the plane boards, however). Overbooking is common and I've often heard this request for people to surrender their ticket in exchange for credit (often an amount FAR greater than the face value of the ticket). There's usually a rush of people going up to the counter - more than are needed. Only once have I heard this on the plane, while boarding - but that obviously was the case here. But what the video doesn't show is this man and his wife ACCEPTED THE OFFER. They volunteered to surrender their ticket (and seats) in return for the credit (I'm imagining the credit was pretty big at this point). They GAVE UP their ticket. They ACCEPTED the credit. They were not paying customers.... they did not have a ticket. And thus left the plane. I suspect this happens a lot (although again, I've witnessed it only once on the plane itself; it's usually all handled at the gate before boarding). Now, I think the policy should be to tell the customer when the next flight would be, what flight they CAN be booked on - before they agree. But I know that's not done. There is a risk involved in accepting this offer, and I think that's understood.
- Josiah
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opworm:
