FlyngSvyr

From my experience it is not the corporation or the people that work for it, far from it. I recognize this incident for what it is, a situation that got out of control and went sideways. Partly due to flawed procedures and/or regulations. It seems that the constructive part of this incident is UA is going to change their procedures and there may be some positive rules/legislation from government that benefit travelers (could be bad regs also).

It seems many who comment on these posts regarding this incident just want to see UA burn to the ground. What is constructive about that? If it truly happened and they went under (I doubt it), what would be good about that. One less major carrier in the marketplace, increased fares due to less competition, less chance of a CPU in your airline of choice as elites have to find a place on other airlines, etc..

raehl311

Why is that a good thing? If I run a business and I don't want a customer on my property anymore and they refuse to leave, I expect the police to show up and be my bouncers. That's what I pay my taxes for.

If the customer doesn't like it, they can sue me for whatever reason they think I was out of line in having them removed, but one thing they absolutely DO NOT get to do is camp out on my property if I don't want them there.

He's not a hero. He's an ........ He got hurt because he was committing a felony.

(Note: I do not think it was appropriate for him to be dragged off the plane after he hit his head - at that point force should have stopped and medical attention should have been provided.)

What will happen is other airline's low fare classes might book up a bit faster, and then people who fly based on price will buy the slightly cheaper United tickets.

MDJennings

I'm guessing that was the reason only one officer was suspended without pay (the plainclothes that dragged him after he was on the ground). That might be Dao's only real target in the coming weeks.

Just looking at this vid starting at the 5 second mark doesn't show anything out of the ordinary with removing someone from your property that is no longer welcome there.

FlyngSvyr

Exactly, it's not like the other airlines are going to magically create more routes/planes/crews to move that many more people...

rickg523

This company - as do many publicly traded companies - takes their fiduciary responsibility to its shareholders more seriously than it's commitment to customer service. But they're selling a service to create profitability. The contradiction causes mistaken priorities top to bottom as this case illustrates.

skidooman

I have control of my travel budget.

Usually, always give United the chance to compete for my business. If there are within the same waters of others, I go with them. So, sure, if they try to get $2K more money, won't give them, but $200 on J transcon? Sure.

Now? I will give them the cold shoulder for a few months. This is not going to be permanent because I know others are probably as worse, but they need to get the message. The culture needs fixing in favor of clients. Munoz said he will make sure nothing like this will happen? Well, Oscar, I (and others, I am sure) will be watching.

If it turns out to be the point in time when passengers pushed back on the airlines, it may turn out to be a bright day after all. I am not holding my breath, but one can hope.

dinanm3atl

Exactly.

I don't understand how people will defend and continue to utilize an airline with the worst(or close to it) ratings year in and out. There are 2 other good options in the US(or more if you consider low cost). It just makes no sense.

I have a few die hard UA flyers in my industry(very small) and routinely deal with mechanical delays, canceled flights and more. DL isn't perfect but the two huge meltdowns(Aug 16 and Apr 17) pale in comparison with a single year of flying UA internationally from what they tell me(or I see on their twitter/facebook.

LA2CDG

It's a $180 ticket, I'm sure most of us here have had to eat a cheap ticket that fell below the $200 change fee threshold.

Companies start and stop using different vendors for different reasons all the time, nothing idiotic about that.

Lani1

17+ years , 3100+ flights and I wish I could feel sorry for united
Kharma is real, united just does not care

stevendorechester

I think UA will take a hit because of this. It won't bankrupt them but a couple of things to keep in mind: nobody will suddenly decide to give their business to UA in support of what happened. While most of us are rational this has left a long term scar on UA, particularly in China. UA will have to offer lower fares to not lose market share, less so in American. They may need to start advertising in convince people that this is not how things will be. Right now, the perception is bad; there arste people ( wrongfully) fear stepping on a UA flight right now; picture a parent with a child who has issues and might overreact during a delay, or a senior who's spouse might also have certain issues due to their age, and so on. It's a knee jerk reaction but they might be afraid that their loved ones might be the passenger to get a beating. Not right, but that's the perception. United, and the industry in general has a huge image problem that will not be easy to fix.

AllanJ

Telling your employees to stop using a particular airline (United) and forfeit tickets already bought has a totally counterproductive outcome. The airline gets to make more money selling the seats to other passengers while pocketing the revenue from the forfeited tickets.

tom911

The first officer was not suspended without pay. He was placed on paid administrative leave while an investigation is underway, something that is very common in serious police investigations while the facts are investigated. Both the Chicago Tribune and Chicago Sun Times have reported he is on "leave" (not "suspended") and ABC reported this morning that the leave is paid administrative leave. He may very well end up suspended or fired after the investigation is completed, but we're not there yet.

raehl311

And the other two officers were also placed on leave today.

erlich

I also don't think UA burns to the ground, but hey, lest you forget, burning to the ground is how capitalism works. Survival of the fittest, next deserving one up, etc., etc. Nothing inherently wrong with it.

MDJennings

I stand corrected. ^