United Airlines CEO Oscar Munoz has apologized for the “truly horrific” headline-making incident in which security dragged a 69-year-old doctor from an overbooked flight from Chicago to Louisville over the weekend. “I want you to know that we take full responsibility, and we will work to make it right,” Munoz said in a statement Tuesday. “I promise you we will do better.” Munoz went on to pledge a full review by the end of the month “to fix what’s broken so this never happens again.” CNN Money notes that this was Munoz’s third attempt to resolve the outrage that occurred after a now-viral video emerged of a bloodied and screaming passenger being removed from a plane to make room for crew members. Prior to his apology, Munoz emailed all United employees on Monday assuring them that he stood behind the crew members’ actions. Meanwhile, United’s stock price has plunged and even White House press secretary Sean Spicer weighed in. “I don’t think anyone looks at that video and isn’t a little disturbed that another human being is treated that way,” he told reporters </s> A United Airlines viral video caused outcry on social media after the footage revealed how a passenger was beaten to a pulp for refusing to leave the plane in a classic case of airline overbooking.

On Monday, a video of a man who was forcibly removed from his seat on United Flight 3411 became viral online, resulting in one airline security officer to be placed on mandatory leave pending a probe by the Department of Transportation.

The passenger, who appears to be of Asian descent, was being dragged from his seat by men wearing police jackets, bumping him and his wife off a flight from Chicago O’Hare International Airport to Louisville, Kentucky, on Sunday.

After different angles of the incident surfaced online, social media users jumped in to criticize how the matter was handled poorly.

What makes things a whole lot worse is that despite being at fault as seen in the United Airlines viral video, the airline’s head security officer decided not to apologize for the incident.

Citing Reuters, an article from Fortune revealed that United Chief Executive Officer Oscar Munoz is not planning to apologize to the passenger because he “defied” the security officers sent to the scene.

“We sought volunteers and then followed our involuntary denial of boarding process (including offering up to $1,000 in compensation),” Munoz’s letter read.

But while the airline’s CEO is stern with his position and “emphatically” supports his employees, the Chicago Department of Aviation decided that one officer did not follow protocol and had been put on mandatory leave as they investigate the matter thoroughly.

The actions of the security personnel seen on the United Airlines viral video are already questionable. However, this incident brings to light one more issue that has plagued the airlines for so long: overbooking.

According to an article from Wired,overbooking is beneficial for everyone “in a sense” as they ask Cranky Concierge travel agency owner Brett Snyder to explain why this is.

“It’s all about trying to maximize the revenue they bring in, and part of that is making sure there’s a butt in every seat,” Snyder said.

But while the outlet agrees with the businessman, it also highlights a fallout: the passenger bargaining. According to the Department of Transportation (DOT), bumping passengers through passenger bargaining is legal, although there remains a matter of civility as to how it should be handled.

“While it is legal for airlines to involuntarily bump passengers from an oversold flight when there are not enough volunteers, it is the airline’s responsibility to determine its own fair boarding priorities,” a statement from the DOT stated.

But what happened to the poor man in the United Airlines viral video? Frankly, it was the worst passenger bargaining ever. As seen on the footage, the security personnel weren’t very good at passenger bargaining and decided to use violence instead.

On top of that, the CEO of the airlines seem to have lost all sense of humility by refusing to apologize for the apparent misconduct that severely reeks of racial discrimination. This just makes United passengers feel like they are characters in the Hunger Games– waiting for their name to be called from a bowl to be randomly ejected from the flight they paid for.

Like one tweeter posted: Pepsi already delivered a highly insensitive commercial with their Kendall Jenner ad but the airlines win the worst PR situation after the United Airlines viral video emerged.

A small consolation is the change of heart the airline’s CEO experienced, finally seeing the light and apologized to the passengers albeit in a statement crafted to suit their PR needs.

“This is an upsetting event to all of us here at United. I apologize for having to re-accommodate these customers. Our team is moving with a sense of urgency to work with the authorities and conduct our own detailed review of what happened,” United CEO Munoz said in a statement cited by CNBC.

Is it enough? Only the victim seen in the United Airlines viral video can answer that. Tell us what you think in the comments section below. </s> United Airlines’ CEO, Oscar Munoz, sent an email to his employees on Monday, commending them for following established procedures when a passenger was dragged off the plane due to an overbooked flight, Time reports. He also placed the blame on the passenger, whom he said was being “disruptive and belligerent.”

United Airlines has been facing online outrage since Monday after a video of a passenger being forcibly removed off United flight 3411 was uploaded online and then went viral. The video shows the passenger screaming at the top of his lungs as an officer pulled him off his seat and dragged him off the Louisville-bound plane just before take-off at the Chicago O’Hare International Airport. The man sustained injuries to the head when he hit an armrest while being forcibly removed.

In a second video, the passenger claimed he was a doctor who desperately wants to return to his patients at the hospital Monday morning.

“This situation was unfortunately compounded when one of the passengers we politely asked to deplane refused and it became necessary to contact Chicago Aviation Security Officers to help,” United Airlines wrote in an email to employees, as reported by CNBC. “Our employees followed established procedures for dealing with situations like this. While I deeply regret this situation arose, I also emphatically stand behind all of you.”

United Airlines’ first statement was posted on Monday, apologizing for having to “re-accommodate these customers,” and then calling the unfortunate incident an “upsetting event.”

“This is an upsetting event to all of us here at United,” Munoz said. “I apologize for having to re-accommodate these customers. Our team is moving with a sense of urgency to work with the authorities and conduct our own detailed review of what happened. We are also reaching out to this passenger to talk directly to him and further address and resolve this situation.”

The United Airlines scandal continues to receive backlash on social media, with many vowing to never use the services of the beleaguered airline again.

A spokesperson for United explained the Flight 3411 incident in a statement Monday morning.

“Flight 3411 from Chicago to Louisville was overbooked. After our team looked for volunteers, one customer refused to leave the aircraft voluntarily and law enforcement was asked to come to the gate,” the statement said. “We apologize for the overbook situation.”

Audra Bridges, a Flight 3411 passenger who uploaded the viral video, told the Courier-Journal United Airlines announced that the flight was overbooked before take-off, and said that four passengers are needed to volunteer to transfer to a later flight to make room for four United employees who needed to get to Louisville by Monday.

Bridges said United offered $400 and free hotel accommodations for one volunteer. When no one responded to the offer, they doubled the offer to $800. United Airlines then randomly selected passengers, and when one of them refused to leave his seat, they called the Chicago police to have him forcibly removed from the plane.

The Chicago Aviation Department suspended the officer who dragged the passenger from his seat and left him with a split lip, as reported by DNA Info. The unidentified officer was placed on leave Monday, “pending a thorough review” of the incident, according to Aviation Department spokeswoman Karen Pride.

“The incident on United flight 3411 was not in accordance with our standard operating procedure and the actions of the aviation security officer are obviously not condoned by the Department,” she said.

Before the Aviation Department announced that one of the officers didn’t follow normal procedures, the Chicago Police Department said that the passenger became “irate” as soon as he was asked to remove himself from the plane.

Police said the passenger was taken to Lutheran General Hospital for treatment. His injuries were declared non-threatening. </s> CHICAGO (CBSDFW.COM/AP) – United Airlines CEO Oscar Munoz says he felt “ashamed” watching video of a passenger being dragged off a United Express flight and has promised to review the airline’s passenger removal policy.

In an interview with ABC’s “Good Morning America” aired Wednesday, Munoz apologized to Dr. David Dao of Elizabethtown, Kentucky, his family and the other passengers who witnessed him being forcibly removed from the plane.

♦♦♦ Click Here To Watch The Video ♦♦♦

Munoz vowed this “will never happen again on a United flight” and that law enforcement won’t be involved in future.

But it was just two days ago when Munoz was mocked for describing how David Dao was removed from Flight 3411. The statement he issued then said in part, “This is an upsetting event to all of us here at United. I apologize for having to re-accommodate these customers.”

Today Munoz called the embarrassment a “system failure,” and said United will review its policies for seeking volunteers to give up their seats when a flight is full. United was trying to find seats for four employees, meaning four passengers had to deplane. </s> LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WHAS11) – The CEO of United Airlines has responded to the removal of a passenger from a United flight.

The flight was overbooked, according to United Airlines, so the airline asked for volunteers to leave the aircraft.

One man said he had to get home and refused to voluntarily give up his seat and that's when we are told the police were called to remove him. The man was forced out of his seat by officials and dragged him down the aisle.

“This is an upsetting event to all of us here at United. I apologize for having to re-accommodate these customers. Our team is moving with a sense of urgency to work with the authorities and conduct our own detailed review of what happened. We are also reaching out to this passenger to talk directly to him and further address and resolve this situation.” – Oscar Munoz, CEO, United Airlines </s> United Airlines CEO Oscar Munoz says he felt "ashamed" watching video of a passenger being dragged off a flight and has promised to review the airline's passenger removal policy.

In an interview with ABC's Good Morning America, Mr Munoz apologised to Dr David Dao of Elizabethtown, Kentucky, his family and the other passengers who witnessed him being forcibly removed from the United Express plane.

Mr Munoz vowed this "will never happen again on a United flight" and that law enforcement will not be involved in future.

Mr Munoz called the embarrassment a "system failure", saying United will review its policies for seeking volunteers to give up their seats when a flight is full.

United was trying to find seats for four employees, meaning four passengers had to leave the aircraft. </s> LOS ANGELES (CBSLA/AP) — United Airlines said passengers on United Express Flight 3411 are getting compensation equal to the cost of their tickets.

Spokeswoman Megan McCarthy said Wednesday that the passengers can take the compensation in cash, travel credits or miles.

Dr. David Dao, 69, was on a full jet that was scheduled to fly from O’Hare Airport in Chicago to Louisville, Kentucky on Sunday night when he and three other passengers were ordered off the plane to make room for some employees of a partner airline.

The others complied. After Dao refused, airport security officers yanked him out of his seat and dragged him off the plane.

Video of the incident was shown around the world, sparking public outrage.

United CEO Oscar Munoz has apologized for the incident and vowed Wednesday that it will never happen again.

In his most contrite apology yet, Oscar Munoz said no one should be mistreated that way. He described the removal by airport police as “truly horrific.”

Munoz is scrambling to contain the damage to the carrier’s reputation and vowed to reassess policies for seeking volunteers to give up their seats, for handling oversold flights and for partnering with airport authorities.

Meantime, two more airport police officers involved in the passenger removal debacle have been placed on leave.

On Thursday, the Chicago’s aviation commissioner is expected to address a city council committee about the incident.

Dao’s attorneys Wednesday filed papers asking the Cook County court to preserve reports and other material related to Sunday’s incident.

The attorneys want cockpit voice recordings, passenger and employee and crew lists, incident reports and the city Aviation Department’s personnel reports for the police who removed Dao from the plane. The attorneys also want United’s protocol for removing passengers from commercial aircraft. But no lawsuit has been filed yet.

They lawyers and a relative of Dao plan to talk to the media Thursday.

A Chicago alderman said representatives from United Airlines and the city Aviation Department have been summoned by his committee to answer questions about Sunday’s incident.

Alderman Mike Zalewski said he did not know who will represent the airline before the city council’s Aviation Committee. But the CEO of United’s parent company, Oscar Munoz, has been notified of the hearing scheduled for Thursday. </s> United Airlines called the police after a seated passenger declined to leave a flight to Louisville, Ky. Officers violently pulled him from his window seat and then down the aisle as passengers yelled at them to stop. A recording of the incident posted on social media sent people into an apoplectic rage over the carrier’s heavy-handed response.

The swift social media condemnation was because the man wasn’t being ejected for misbehavior or a security threat. It was because United overbooked the flight, its staff chose him, and he didn’t want to get bumped.

Video posted to Facebook and Twitter showed the man being dragged out of his seat and down the aisle of Flight 3411 Sunday night. He was reportedly a doctor who said he had to be in Louisville Monday for work and would not relinquish his seat, according to a Twitter account by a passenger who said he was on the flight.

“After our team looked for volunteers, one customer refused to leave the aircraft voluntarily and law enforcement was asked to come to the gate,” United said Sunday night. “We apologize for the overbook situation.” The flight from Chicago O’Hare International Airport arrived at 10:01 p.m., almost two hours late “due to operational difficulties,” according to United’s website.

On Monday, United Chief Executive Officer Oscar Munoz apologized for “having to re-accommodate these customers.” In an emailed statement, he said the airline is conducting a review and seeks to resolve the matter with the man who was dragged off the airplane.

The incident demonstrates how airline bumping can veer into confrontation. Carriers around the world routinely oversell their flights because it’s a rational response to a mundane situation that occurs daily: People don’t always appear for a flight they’ve purchased. Overselling is a way to cover that situation, while maximizing the airline’s revenue.

United should have increased the compensation offered to passengers to entice volunteers, CFRA Research analyst Jim Corridore wrote in a client note Monday. “We think this situation was handled in a deplorable fashion, but note that United has the right to refuse boarding to any passenger for any reason,” he said, adding that “demand for UAL flights are unlikely to be affected by this poor customer service incident.”

The incident comes two weeks after United drew social media scorn for enforcing its dress code for those who fly as nonrevenue passengers. A girl flying from Denver was told to change her leggings before boarding. In response, the airline then took efforts to tell “our regular customers” that “leggings are welcome.”

In its contract of carriage, United Continental Holdings Inc. says it chooses those to be bumped based on a fare class, an itinerary, status in its frequent flyer program, “and the time in which the passenger presents him/herself for check-in without advanced seat assignment.”

That means those who paid more for a ticket and those who fly the airline frequently are less likely to be selected as an involuntary bump, criteria that are not unique to the Chicago-based carrier.

Volunteers are paid for their seat and booked on another flight. But if there are not enough volunteers, an airline resorts to the involuntary method . And when it goes wrong, it can get very ugly. That’s one reason at least two U.S. airlines-JetBlue Airways Corp. and Virgin America-don’t do it.

Last year, the 12 largest U.S. airlines bumped slightly more than 40,600 of 659.7 million passengers, for a rate of 0.62 per 10,000 passengers, down from 0.73 per 10,000 in 2015, according to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics.

In 99 percent of cases, the benefits vastly outweigh the risks to the airline. The ultimate goal is to fill every seat on every flight, preferably in the order of who paid the most. Travelers flying on the lowest fares are those who also tend to volunteer their seats for compensation, while customers who pay the most-usually business travelers-can’t be tempted out of their seats.

Overbooking pays off, too: Airlines almost always make more from the extra fares than they give back to volunteers in future-travel vouchers. When an airline can’t find enough volunteers-“involuntary denied boarding,” as regulators call it-the cost can run as high as $1,300 cash per passenger under revised rules adopted in 2011.

Yet because airlines have amassed years of detailed data on passenger no-shows-down to days, times, seasons, and specific routes-they only rarely need to write customers fat checks. The data also help them to know how to tweak their oversales for each flight, part of the complex algorithms that power revenue-management systems, the backbone of fare pricing. As a result, bumping has decreased over the past decade and is likely to dip further over time.

Another factor weighs on the involuntary bumping issue: seat supply. Airlines that have rapidly dumped 50-seat jets in recent years aren’t adopting large mainline jets in response but turning to regional jets with 70-100 seats. The Embraer SA regional jet used on the April 9 flight to Louisville has 70 seats and is flown by Republic Airways Holdings Inc.

The supply constraints have been great for boosting ticket yields but can prove detrimental when it comes to oversales. That’s one of the lessons United may be seeing in the aftermath of the dragged-passenger episode. </s> Less than a month after enduring harsh criticism for denying boarding to two teenage girls over “inappropriate” clothing, United Airlines is again on the defensive over an incident involving a passenger dragged off an overbooked plane.

The Chicago-based carrier said it was following procedure Sunday night when the airline realized that it had overbooked an 80-seat jet flying from Chicago to Louisville, Ky., and could not get enough passengers to voluntarily give up their seats.

The incident, caught on video by several passengers, shows a man whom the airline picked to boot from the flight, screaming as airport police drag him out of his seat and down the aisle while some other fliers call out in protest.

A United Airlines spokesman said the man was delaying the flight by refusing to give up his seat. The flight was delayed by about two hours, according to online records.

“We are focused on our customers, on getting them to their destination on time,” said United spokesman Charles Hobart.

In a statement, United chief executive Oscar Munoz said the airline is reviewing the conduct of his employees.

“This is an upsetting event to all of us here at United,” he said. “I apologize for having to re-accommodate these customers.”

But public relations experts say United could have handled the incident more tactfully, perhaps by choosing another passenger to remove or by offering greater compensation to free up a seat. United Airlines declined to disclose how much money they offered passengers to voluntarily give up their seats.

“This is what we call in crisis management ‘creating your own crisis,’” said Eric Rose, a crisis management expert with Los Angeles-based Englander, Knabe & Allen. “They created their own crisis and handled it miserably.”

This incident comes a few weeks after United Airlines refused to allow two teenage girls onto a flight for wearing stretchy, form-fitting pants because they violated the airline’s dress code for employees and their family and friends.

That decision sparked swift outrage on social media, with critics calling the airline sexist and vowing to stop flying the carrier. It drew in celebrities, including comedian Sarah Silverman and actors Patricia Arquette and William Shatner, who chastised the airline’s handling of the “leggings incident.”

Last month, PRWeek, a trade publication for the public relations industry, awarded Munoz its coveted “Communicator of the Year” award for his “ability to connect and share with employees his vision for the airline, and get them to rally behind it.”

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United Airlines CEO Oscar Munoz issues an apology for the removal of a passenger from an overbooked flight on April 9, which has since gone viral. United Airlines stock drops more than 4%, a loss of £800 million to the company's value.