You should have grabbed the TWA offer when you had the chance, AA is gonna tell you to pound salt, I guarantee it.

Maybe they have some TWA memorabilia laying around to throw your way.

I agree with the posts that say this guy's demand was out of line with what he suffered. I also suspect like some others hinted that he hasn't told us the whole story. But that should not give an airline carte blanche power to act unreasonably and hold us at their mercy. Assuming his story happened the way he says it did, there is no excuse for the airline not to let him on the plane 20 min. before takeoff that I am aware of. Then again, 2 tix as compensation is more than fair. Even though they made a fair offer after the fact, that does not excuse their behavior. They also owe him an apology.

FWIW, last year my son and his wife were returning home from OKC on DL, and in ATL deplaning was delayed at the gate for about 20 minutes for an unknown reason. Once off the plane they screamed to the connecting gate, arriving 15 minutes before departure. The plane was still at the gate and they were just in the process of closing the door. Would they let them on the plane? Nope. Put them up at a hotel instead and they had to take the early flight next AM. And they got nothing. Of course I wasn't a FF then, so I didn't know enough to help them get a quid pro quo, but I'm betting they had already given away their seats, the plane was full, and they were SOL.


My point being it DOES happen...

Why not wish for a pony, too?

I always ask for this!!

I had a pony ...

(obscure Seinfeld reference)

How come there are no lawyers expressing their views here? I agree that the demands were a bit exccessive (to put it mildly) but a contract between an airline and a pax still remains valid. If it said that he must be there 10 mins before departure and he was there before that and the airline refused him boarding then they treated him unfairly, IMO and broke their own contract of carriage. So, my recommendation would be to consult a lawyer who is willing to take this matter on on a contingency basis (if you can find one). There are of course alternatives...

Even if you got a lawyer, what do you expect?

A jury to hand out a disproportinate award? Litigation and the absurd lawyer fees for.... a 3 hour delay.

Forget it and move on...it isn't worth having a heart attack or stroke over. You left on your own, came back too late, and have now waited almost a year to follow up with a bankrupt, bought out airline? Give it up, dude

Keep in mind that lawyers are in it to make money, too. So what do you think the compensation for this would be? A few thousand bucks, tops?

They're not going to take a case for 40 percent of a few thousand bucks.

Last June, I offered to volunteer my seat on a LAX-EWR CO flight. They took my BP & name. CO does things different than US or UA. I asked about 4 min. before flight time & they gave my seat away. (to clarify, they did not need me & when I asked, they gave my seat away & shut the door) Was I mad? NO! I was happy to get the $300 voucher & free meal. The put me on flights LAX-IAH, then IAH-MIA in First Class! No complaints & all smiles! To make things better, I took a bump on the way back for an another $300 voucher. All this on a $97.50 ticket LAX-MIA!

edited for clarity

[This message has been edited by chemist661 (edited 02-10-2002).]

I know a law firm who'll take this case, just send in a $10,000 retainer and they'll get right on it.

Get a lawyer! Are you kidding???

Man checks in for flight. Proceeds to boarding area. Then prior to boarding, leaves boarding area to make phone calls. Returns late to gate and demands seat? Nope, too bad. If anything is still on the table as compensation, take it. If not, get on with life...

Well, Spider, I AM a lawyer and already gave him my opinion. To amplify: to recover in a lawsuit you need to prove 1) liability; and (this is tricky here, follow me closely)--2) damages.

Even assuming that satish could prove liability (and what s/he is seeking strains their credibility, quite frankly, on the facts of the incident, and s/he has already admitted leaving the boarding area), s/he would still have to prove damages. What are the damages? As I read it, s/he was a few hours late getting to a friend's house. I see no significant damages here.

No, I do not want to take this case on a contingency basis. However, did someone mention a $10,000 retainer?

Djlawman

I am surprised that so many of you have mentioned the fact that since "I voluntarily left the boarding area and returned LATE", I am not entitled to any compensation. If I had left the boarding area 2 hours before the scheduled departure and returned 1 hour and 45 minutes before the scheduled departure, would the airline be justified in refusing to allow me to board? How about if I left 1 hour before the scheduled departure and returned 45 minutes before? What is the time upto which the Airline MUST allow me to to board the aircraft if I have a valid boarding pass and am present at the departure gate? This is clearly spelt out in TWA's Contract of Carriage "The TWA ticket jacket has the following information under
"CHECK-IN AND BOARDING:
After checking in for the flight, passengers must be on board the aircraft 10 minutes (45 minutes for international, Puerto Rico and Hawaii flights) before scheduled departure time or their resrvations and seat assignments are subject to cancellation."

This being a domestic flight, I was well within my rights to ask to be allowed to board 20 minutes before the scheduled departure. By refusing me boarding, TWA violated their own contract of carriage. I do not see why I have to prove liability and damages.