Originally Posted by
threeoh
This doesn't make sense to me:...But this doesn't jive with the lazy theory either -- not too lazy to let 5 people on and yet too lazy to let 6 people on?
Based on what I've heard, we're missing a piece of the story. What was different about this pax? Size of suitcase? She was already offloaded? She started shouting at GA? Was "at about the same time" really about the same time? It's very hard to say without more info....
Sorry but this actually happened to me with United about two years ago so I do believe it could happen. Not there so obviously I do not have the facts...but in my case,
Arriving flight to from FRA to SFO was delayed but I ran to the gate and arrived five minutes before the other connecting pax (about four of us) after they have started boarding. My BP beeps and I am asked to step the side but the others who got there after me go through. They inform me they have given away my FC seat and I say then please put in Economy - it is only SFO-SAN and I want to get home. They try to tell me there is no room as they are taking STBY pax and that I was late - I point out that I arrived before the other connecting pax that they let on the plane. They seat me on the plane and then take me off for another STBY pax. I was pleasant and polite the whole time and the other GAs cannot work out why I did not get to keep my original FC seat, why I was offloaded and then offloaded again (after I sat in my seat). So I believe it is as reported because it happened to me! Now admittedly it was SFO and not IAH but United has a pattern of doing this as I have spoken to other pax who had this happen to them in SFO as well.
I did end up with Euro 600 out of the whole exercise but would much rather have arrived home on time.