A middle school teacher says he was involuntarily bumped off his flight and forced to leave only one chaperone with 16 students. American Airlines says the man voluntarily gave up his seat in exchange for compensation. So who is telling the truth?
There are all sorts of twists and turns in this story, which makes it an interesting one to reason with. Let’s start with a synopsis of what happened:
- Mark Westpfahl and 16 of his students (along with one other chaperone) were scheduled to travel from Washington National (DCA) to Minneapolis (MSP) on American Airlines
- The flight was oversold
- Westpfahl claims that an AA agent told him that “his name had been drawn” and he had to get off
- Westphal was given a $525 American Airlines voucher and a hotel room
- He flew via Philadelphia the following day
- Via Twitter, he implied he was bumped off against his will
- American Airlines claims he voluntarily gave up his seat
Why Would American Blatantly Lie?
Westphal live-tweeted about this incident. Read the following tweets with the assumption that he voluntarily gave up his seat:
Well, @AmericanAir overbooked our flight…. and guess who can’t fly. Yup. Me.
My name was pulled.
So, my trusted best friend chaperone will be on the flight with our #CHCougars alone.
So was his name pulled because he volunteered?
Update: It’s 11:00 p.m. & my students are probably flying over part of West Virginia or Pennsylvania right now… but I’m still sitting here in Reagan National Aorport, because I got bumped from an overbooked @AmericanAir flight. I’m disappointed & bummed I’m not w/my #CHCougars.
Did he say he was involuntarily denied boarding?
I’m not so much worried about getting to my destination. Sure, it would be really nice to see my own family again… and I understand how airlines overbook, and what procedures are, but I just really wish they would have reconsidered, knowing that I’m traveling w/16 students.
Did he say he was involuntarily denied boarding?
And maybe my skepticism is misplaced, but please indulge my observations:
- Westphal claims to “understand how airlines overbook, and what procedures are” but he accepted a $525 voucher for the delay – this is not a matter of dispute.
- DOT regulations require a check (money, not a voucher) of 400% of the cost of the one-way fare (up to $1350) for an involuntarily denied boarding plus hotel and meal expenses
- American has recently awarded vouchers as high as $5,000 each to avoid involuntarily denied boarding situations
- Would American have really bumped him if they knew he was chaperoning sixteen pre-teens/teenagers?
Maybe. Maybe AA is the nefarious actor here. And maybe giving him a voucher instead of cash is just a standard trick in the AA overbooking playbook.
But AA opens itself up to slander charges when it issues statements like this:
According to our records, and after we consulted with our team in Washington D.C. as well, he volunteered. As part of that process, he received compensation as a volunteer in addition to American paying for his hotel accommodation for the night and meals. We always seek volunteers before denying anyone boarding.
They are calling him a liar.
CONCLUSION
Either the gate agents are liars (which could certainly be the case) or Westphal is. I’ll be watching this story closely.
Where in writing does it state he voluntarily neglected his duty to escort the Cougars in exchange for a voucher? Like judge Judy repeats,if it doesn’t make sense it most likely isn’t true. Jeopardizing his career is not a logical choice.
Any tips and tricks on how to use points or the best credit card while travelling with 16 students?
He changed his mind once he found out the 16 cougars were high school kids.
I am more likely to believe an american will lie than american airlines will lie. Sad state of our culture.
The gate agent very easily could have presented this as a situation where the pax had no choice but processed it as a voluntary bump. Basically being deceptive without explicitly lying. Infrequent fliers wouldn’t know to ask specifically “Are you involuntarily denying to board me?” When they hear “You can’t get on the flight the computer gas selected you.” they assume they have to be the one not to fly, that they have no choice.
My thoughts exactly. He was “technically” a voluntary bump, but the agent may have probably worded it in a way that implied he had no choice but to stay behind.
What I still can’t get my head around is the concept of being voluntarily offboarded for less compensation than you’re entitled. Why can airlines get away with it?
I’ve seen GAs at Continental (pre-merger) try to do this type of thing years ago in Houston and Newark. They were trying to convince the PAX they denied boarding to that they needed to sign this document to get a voucher. I recall in Houston once that one of the PAX was raising heck over being denied boarding and refusing to sign.
That’s why, when I hear these stories, I’m skeptical of the airline. The official paper is neat and tidy and makes it look voluntary, but the actual story at the gate can be very different.
Does American automatically ask you at check in to put in a bid for a voucher if the flight is oversold?
My bet is that when the truth comes out we will discover he entered $525 during check in and was the lowest offer. He either didn’t know or forgot he did this, or is trying to make a story out of nothing. AA would be very unwise to process an involuntary bump with David Dao back in the news 2 years later.
I don’t know how it works on AA, but with United and Delta, you still get called up to the desk by the gate agent and confirm face-to-face that you accept the terms of compensation you indicated on the monitor before volunteering your seat. Maybe AA doesn’t do that? Also, they claim to take the lowest bidder and not to leave it up to chance which of the bidders is given the offer.
I am an AA Platinum for life. AA was not perfect, but I had very few and truly minor complaints for 25 years, but, under the new “regime,” I have had several recent very unpleasant interactions with gate agents who are focused on getting the plane off ASAP, and get on power trips with executive decisions and making statements which I know are not true, but, as a passenger, they are aware I am at a distinct disadvantage, and they make sure you are keenly aware of that when you interact with them, as you might be declared “disruptive.”
It does not get any better when we are on board.
Mind you, I strive to be the most polite and gracious person with whom you might have interacted in a while, and I am shocked by the responses and attitude I get in return.
Unfortunately like many of you, my family has received poor treatment by American Air. To say that some of their staff are callous and rude would be an understatement. It seems that in addition to the unfortunate handling of this situation at the time, the airline has now taken the additional step of impuning this poor man’s reputation afterward. However, they are not fooling very many people with their unlikely explanation. Too many of us have experienced American Airline’s brand of customer service. From my own experience with them, I avoid this airline wherever possible. I feel very sorry for this teacher and these poor kids and particularly, their parents. What an awful situation. I’m so glad the kids made it home safely with only one chaperone. How reckless of the airline!