Airlines Must Let Paxs Off Stuck Planes

[scoreboardII]

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[IBNAV8R]

"I'm sorry Mr. Smith, we are REQUIRED to return to the gate now after a three hour delay."
"Yes sir, I understand your flight was next in line for departure, but our hands our tied. What can I say?"
"Of course we can rebook you on the next available flight. And it looks like everything is oversold until next Tuesday."
I'm sorry, sir. If you don't mind waiting, I can confirm you on a flight back to your home city on Saturday. "

 

[ImbracableCrunk]

"I'm sorry Mr. Smith, we CANNOT to return to the gate now after a SIX hour delay."
"Yes sir, I understand your flight was CANCELED, but our hands our tied. What can I say?"
"Of course we can rebook you on the next available flight WHEN WE MAKE IT BACK TO THE GATE." etc.



Yep, I can see it both ways. However, it was in the airline's powers to prevent this, but they crossed their fingers and hoped that an occasional lawsuit would be cheaper than fixing things.

For all of you that say this is stupid, when is the cut-off? 6 hours? 10? 16? Up to the PIC? Well, pilots have tried to handle this, and in some cases have forced their way through the BS, and in some cases not. Without any penalties and regs, it's much easier for the company to ignore the bad PR for a few months.

 

[CaptJax]

Ryanair Paxs Denied Water In Five Hour Delay

Ryanair passengers denied water in a five hour delay

by Annie Scott (RSS feed) on Dec 28th 2009 at 9:00AM
Ryanair passengers stuck for five hours on the tarmac at London Stansted last Monday were given ice cubes to fight the stuffy, hot conditions. Just the cubes. Suck on that.

Six inches of snow fell tauntingly outside as passengers cooked, free of air conditioning, and flight attendants claimed that it was against regulations for them to hand out water.

"A Ryanair spokesman claimed that cabin staff could not open the bar while the aircraft was on the ground due to 'Inland Revenue laws'. The Air Transport Users' Council, the aviation watchdog, disputes this, adding that there is no law to prevent staff from handing out a few free cups of water," reports the Sydney Morning Herald.

The Irish airline is famous for cutting every corner to ensure low prices, including Michael O'Leary's pay-to-pee plan, charging for infants who sit on your lap, and hidden fees which make your total price a lot higher than you had anticipated when you clicked on that low fare.

Refusing to serve water to anyone for five hours on a hot, grounded airplane, when the water was certainly available, in this blogger's opinion, ought to be treated as a crime. Imagine sitting for five hours in a stifling plane, asking for water, and the flight attendant telling you "no." Imagine them saying "no" to your grandmother and your kids. I can't believe there wasn't a mutiny.