Fallows just posted a
follow-up and UA has tentatively responded:
The post also includes another tale of woe from a 1K targeted by a pilot (perhaps worthy of another new thread?):
In October of 2010, I boarded a UA flight from Geneva, Switzerland to Dulles. I had been upgraded to business class (along with two other colleagues who had been at the same engineering conference). As is my custom, I changed from my business casual clothing to dark, knee-length shorts and a t-shirt. This was, for any frequent traveler, a "sleeping" flight.
Shortly after I had changed my wardrobe (in the lavatory), a pilot came up to me and said "you can't travel dressed that way". I turned to him with a stunned look and of course asked "why not?". He said it was inappropriate and walked away. A flight attendant came up shortly afterward and said "you'd better change back because the pilot isn't going to let you travel that way". I asked her why that was, and she just rolled her eyes - which told me this pilot might be trouble. There were what looked like elderly Europeans in business class, dressed for travel like it was 1960. They may have lodged the complaint, I don't know. I sat down in my seat, used my blanket to cover my legs, and waited.
The pilot returned, and was clearly agitated. During his diatribe he poked me, which I considered assault. But what does one do about this kind of incident in a foreign country? Should I stand my ground and likely be ejected from the flight at a port where United had no employees (only contract staff)? Even my colleagues witnessing this incident were cowed into silence. I was unsurprised.