p*******m
发帖数: 20761 | 1 United CEO Oscar Munoz testified in front of Congress on Tuesday. Source: AP
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Lawmakers on Tuesday castigated airline executives in a hearing looking into
what went wrong in the now famous April 9 incident when a United Airlines
passenger was violently dragged off an overbooked flight.
United (UAL) CEO Oscar Munoz and executives from prominent US airlines
testified before the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure in
what its Chair, Bill Shuster (R-Penn.), described as “a tough hearing.”
The tone was one of bipartisan anger. Even for the most laissez-faire
members of Congress, a common refrain emerged in the committee, best
illustrated by Rep. Brian Babin (R-Tex.): “I don’t like regulation—I’m a
conservative Republican. But…”
Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-Calif.) took an even harsher tone, beginning his
questions with an attempt at a joke-question: “Why do you hate the American
people?”
The message was clear: Either improve customer service or face government
meddling.
In the weeks since the incident occurred – and which took on a life of its
own through social media – United, as well as other airlines, have
announced policy changes aimed at avoiding similar public relations
nightmares.
Munoz also apologized a few more times during the lawmakers’ venting. “It
was a mistake of epic proportion,” he said. “It’s horrible calculus. Do
you make the flight bad for 150 or make it bad for two or three.”
Munoz promised to avoid situations that cause “impossible” situations and
told the committee the airline had changed its compensation strategy to
entice passengers to voluntarily give up their seats, authorizing a fat
carrot of up to $10,000 in compensation.
Alaska Airlines’ (ALK) Senior Vice President Joseph Sprague noted a similar
, but more open-ended policy. He said the airline will give passengers money
and miles “on the spot” via an “empowerment toolkit” app in the crew’s
mobile devices. Senior vice president of American Airlines’ (AAL), Kerry
Philipovitch, said it did not have an upper limit of what they would pay
volunteers on overbooked flights.
For passengers, this pivot by airlines to pay what is necessary to buy back
a reservation from a customer is both a boon and the most efficient method,
as a Stanford economist told Yahoo Finance in April.
Employees’ ability to settle issues by whipping out the company checkbook
to placate a bumped passenger with cash or miles is often dependent on
passengers knowing their rights and what the airline is obligated to do to
hold up its end of the bargain, or the “contract of carriage.”
Throughout the committee hearing, members of Congress referred to these
contracts of carriage and their immense length: United’s contract is around
37,000 words long, which is 11,000 words longer than Truman Capote’s “
Breakfast at Tiffany’s.” While the contract stipulates what a passenger is
entitled to in case of a long delay, missed connection, or lost bags,
airlines may not volunteer to hold up their end of the deal. In many cases,
a passenger must be proactive and knowledgeable of their rights.
The committee stressed that these contracts are far too long and that it
would be unreasonable to expect a passenger to read in full before buying a
ticket. The airline executives agreed and committed to shortening it to
something more readable, though they remained unenthusiastic at some members
’ suggestion to get it down to one page—something that exists in the
European Union.
The spark of the United incident may not ignite a move to implement new laws
and regulations for air travel. However, it may provide an increased
interest and a venue for other airline reforms, thought long overdue by some
. Rep. Steve Cohen (D-Tenn.) took the hearing as an opportunity to discuss
airline seat size, something he has attempted to regulate with the SEAT act,
a bill that would require airlines to have enough legroom to make rapid
evacuation possible in an emergency and fight potentially deadly deep vein
thrombosis (DVT). | C****t
发帖数: 3813 | 2 United airline is the best in the world. Last year I got $250 voucher from
them and I requested to exchange it to cash money and they agreed.
AP
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【在 p*******m 的大作中提到】
: United CEO Oscar Munoz testified in front of Congress on Tuesday. Source: AP
: More
: Lawmakers on Tuesday castigated airline executives in a hearing looking into
: what went wrong in the now famous April 9 incident when a United Airlines
: passenger was violently dragged off an overbooked flight.
: United (UAL) CEO Oscar Munoz and executives from prominent US airlines
: testified before the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure in
: what its Chair, Bill Shuster (R-Penn.), described as “a tough hearing.”
: The tone was one of bipartisan anger. Even for the most laissez-faire
: members of Congress, a common refrain emerged in the committee, best
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