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UA captain diverts flight, removes pax because of IFE complaints

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UA captain diverts flight, removes pax because of IFE complaints

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Old Apr 2, 2013, 5:43 pm
  #151  
 
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This is where pillows and blankets would be useful. Duct tape + blankets wrapped around the offended passenger's heads would have saved the day.
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Old Apr 2, 2013, 5:44 pm
  #152  
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Originally Posted by GimmeLegRoom
He went Defcon 5 on me when I asked for clarification so I know whether maybe a computer rollaboard is okay next time.
DEFCON 5? As is the lowest level of alert possible? Good thing it never escalated to DEFCON 4...
Or are you referring to the "Defcon 5" video game, saying that he started shooting at you?
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Old Apr 2, 2013, 6:01 pm
  #153  
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Originally Posted by LASUA1K
Originally Posted by mre5765 View Post
A trained law enforcement officer investigated and found no law was broken. That suffices for me. Requesting the IFE be turned off is not grounds for diverting and is not a security threat. As for "jam up tv" you are fantasizing.



Just like a captain would never divert because he felt an FA disrespected him.

My goodness if every pilot diverted a flight because a pax asked for something or an FA had a 'tude then every flight would be diverted, and no plane would reach its destination for want of cabin crew and pax.

So, you are comparing going to the restroom with a customer who caused an issue with a certain movie playing? The passenger probably continued complaining about the situation. Again, you never know what that person might do. The movie playing ticked the customer off, who knows if someone accidentaly bumped into them.
More invention on your part. In above passage that you quoted from me, I never referred to a restroom.


Originally Posted by LASUA1K

I agree. My wife has seen this before. The passengers would use words like "you better" turn it off, "do you know who I am", "shut the tv or else". My wife as a FA on UA, has seen it all, she agrees with the pilot. She had a person jump in her face because she wouldn't take a passengers bag out of the overhead. The passenger on thst flight from ORD-LHR had constant complaints about her. Demanded that the pilot take care of her, threatend to get her fired.
She did nothing wrong. She cant take someones bag out.

No one knows the situation and for people to call the Captain names have no idea how this works.

More inventions. I see FAs hand pax, especially those in a bulkhead, their bags all the time. Of course FAs "can" (sic) take a pax's bag out of the overhead. Granted, FAs don't have to do that.
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Old Apr 2, 2013, 6:30 pm
  #154  
 
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In my book this is a fireable action by the captain...
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Old Apr 2, 2013, 6:38 pm
  #155  
 
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FA tells Captain we have a Fruit maybe a Nut Case on board..

Captain say let be safe not sorry, and dump the Nut Job..

Be good people, be glad he was on the ground and did not kick them out while in the air..

First step would have been a long one...
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Old Apr 2, 2013, 6:38 pm
  #156  
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Originally Posted by IflyfromABE
In my book this is a fireable action by the captain...
It's he said/she said. UA would never win. The lesson learned here is to never ask a UA employee for anything. Best to shut up until spoken to, and respond with yes ma'am, no ma'am.
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Old Apr 2, 2013, 7:04 pm
  #157  
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Some parents are way too protective. I watched R rated stuff all the time when I was a kid, never had a problem. My parents just taught me that tv is tv and its for entertainment. Even watched the classic donald duck/bugs bunny stuff, never even noticed the supposedly "censored" stuff.

If i'm sitting next to a parent who tells me to shut down my poker game on my iPad because she doesn't want her child to see it, I'd tell her tough luck, its a public place and there's nothing morally wrong with it. If she keeps on pushing, I guess I'll pull out my SI swimsuit magazine and read that. (I do draw the line at looking at porn in public though!).
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Old Apr 2, 2013, 7:09 pm
  #158  
 
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I've read a number of posts from parents remarking on how they pack materials - from iPads to coloring books - to entertain their kids while traveling, so they don't worry about what's shown on the overhead screens.

Maybe other kids are better behaved or take direction better, but if Master Flavorflav decides that he wants to watch the overhead screen and not an iPhone, then - short of physically maneuvering his head into a look-down position - I am facing an uphill battle as a parent.

Like other parents who have posted here today, I bring plenty of material - electronic and otherwise - to keep my kids entertained. But I can't think of why I should be forced into 'defensive parenting' and actively spend two hours distracting a 5-year-old from a movie unfolding above the next row focused on the torture, dismemberment and murder of women.

Think of all the businesses out there, from Walmart to your corner barber shop. United is the only one that thinks it's good business to take 150 customers, put them in a confined space, and force them to share that confined space with a graphically violent film.
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Old Apr 2, 2013, 7:11 pm
  #159  
 
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Originally Posted by OskiBear
Just last week I noticed the guy across the aisle from watching "OZ" of all things on his laptop. I kept thinking, "man, this is going to be awkward when someone gets shanked in the shower scene." Thankfully, I fell asleep before witnessing that.
Been there, done that. I've caught up on the Walking Dead on my regular ORD-LGA commute. Never thought twice about it as this is mostly a commuter flight at the times I fly. One time a little tyke was in the seat next to me so I decided not to watch that week's episode until I got to my destination.

Another flight, from LHR, I was watching a BBC documentary where they intentionally crashed a plane to learn about survival factors. One of the FA's noticed and suggested it might not be appropriate entertainment for a flight. Ended up having an interesting discuss regarding safety film FAs have to watch. Agreed if anyone else found it disturbing would happily watch something else.

Also had a FA on another flight from LHR notice I was watching the VP debate (recorded a day earlier) in 2012 and want updates on who was winning. No accounting for taste, what interests or offends other people.

Not everyone out there is a parent, so not everyone is used to thinking in terms of what is appropriate for children to watch. Yeah, nudity in a film in a public place, yeah I get it. Zombies or violence or things others might find disturbing like plane crashes, maybe not.

Originally Posted by OskiBear
In this particular scenario, I think we're not getting the full story. A diversion has to be something significant - my guess is the family was not letting it go. Perhaps they had riled up some other passengers around them in support? The FA's may have felt there was a brewing situation on their hands and it would be best to remove the agitators.
Agreed. We have one side of the story, second hand. I suspect the truth and the situation are not as straight forward as portrayed.
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Old Apr 2, 2013, 7:25 pm
  #160  
 
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Once watched Contagion on IFE coming from PEK. Scared the crap out of me when some guy started coughing in row behind me. My fault not UA's!
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Old Apr 2, 2013, 7:35 pm
  #161  
 
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Originally Posted by mre5765
More invention on your part. In above passage that you quoted from me, I never referred to a restroom.





More inventions. I see FAs hand pax, especially those in a bulkhead, their bags all the time. Of course FAs "can" (sic) take a pax's bag out of the overhead. Granted, FAs don't have to do that.
I apologize for the quote. As far as handing bags, you do know if a FA injures themselves handing you a bag, that may be heavy, UA will not cover any medical bills. Don't blame the FA blame UA.

You seem to blame the Captain without the facts. Other passengers dont need to be bothered by a rude passenger that who knows what they said under stress.
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Old Apr 2, 2013, 7:36 pm
  #162  
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Originally Posted by flavorflav
Think of all the businesses out there, from Walmart to your corner barber shop. United is the only one that thinks it's good business to take 150 customers, put them in a confined space, and force them to share that confined space with a graphically violent film.
If you think your kids aren't watching content you'd rather they didn't, you're fooling yourself. Back when my kids were 6 and 2, one of my daughter's friends was over at our house a lot, and when she was over, she always wanted to watch TV, even when it was nice outside. I happened to mention that to my daughter one evening, and she said, "Oh Dad, her parents won't let her watch TV, so she just comes over here."

Getting back to the issue at hand, if you are a parent who has concerns about what UA, DL or AA are currently showing on board their flights, you can always fly WN.
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Old Apr 2, 2013, 7:38 pm
  #163  
 
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Strange: I cannot seem to find any mention if this incident in the MSM or on the web. Seems like this kind of story would have been reported in the Wacky News Column or on a bashboard somewhere.
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Old Apr 2, 2013, 7:48 pm
  #164  
 
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This is why especially after 9-11 I keep my mouth shut, especially when traveling by myself I am very quiet. It was rediculous however to divert this aircraft. I think the employees need better training on how to handle these type of situations and when to distingush a real threat. This is happened other times on other airlines. The crew needs to remember these are customers and nothing wrong with them complaining and not to read into a complaint as a security threat.
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Old Apr 2, 2013, 7:48 pm
  #165  
 
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Originally Posted by SittingUpFront
DEFCON 5? As is the lowest level of alert possible? Good thing it never escalated to DEFCON 4...
Or are you referring to the "Defcon 5" video game, saying that he started shooting at you?
Teaches me to use references I don't fully research, eh

What I meant was, he went to threatening me with a write-up within 30 seconds, and his attitude shifted to nasty even faster than that, as if I was the one who threatened him. I questioned only the rule, not his authority to implement whatever-the-rule-is.
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