United Airlines will refund the ticket fares of all passengers who were on the infamous Flight 3411 after a passenger was dragged from his seat after refusing to leave the plane due to an overbooking.
The airline announced that all passengers would be compensated equal to the cost of their tickets, and could take the refund in cash, travel credits or miles.
The flight was preparing to leave Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport on Sunday when David Dao, a 69-year-old physician from Elizabethtown, Kentucky, was ordered to leave the plane due to United Airlines overbooking its seats.
When he refused to do so, three Aviation Department police officers boarded the plane and one of the officers grabbed the man from his window seat and dragged him down the aisle by the arms.
A bloodied and distressed Dao was caught on camera and the video was soon be shared over social media, prompting a massive backlash.
United Airline’s CEO Oscar Munoz apologised to Dao and the other passengers, describing the incident as a “system failure” and said the airline would reassess its procedures for seeking volunteers to give up their seats when a flight is full.
However, after the video first emerged, Munoz had described Dao as “disruptive and belligerent” before changing his tune on Tuesday and issuing the apology.
