It was two years ago that Dr. David Dao was dragged off a United flight for failing to give up his seat. Now he has resurfaced, recounting the incident in a surprisingly conciliatory tone.
Let’s not forget that Dao suffered a broken nose, concussion, and lost two teeth after he refused to step off an oversold United Express flight from Chicago to Louisville. The incident made headline news around the world for several days and forced United and other airline to re-evaluate their policies for involuntarily bumping passengers.
Dao appeared on Good Morning America, sharing that he had little recollection of the incident. After his head was bumped, his mind blurred until woke up in a hospital bed surrounded by a trauma team.
Dao has since retired but complains of lingering issues with balance, concentration, and sleep.
He claims he may have been willing to give up his seat had United asked him nicely rather than demanded he get off the plane. He also added that he held no grudge against the Chicago Department of Aviation officers who dragged him off, remarking that they were simply doing their job.
Here’s the interview:
Looking back on the incident, United remarked:
This year, we are focused more than ever on our commitment to our customers, looking at every aspect of our business to ensure that we keep their best interests at the center of everything that we do. As our CEO Oscar Munoz has said, we at United never want anyone in the United family to forget the experience of Flight 3411. It makes us a better airline, a more caring company and a stronger team.
While the incident certainly does not make a United a better airline, remembering it can. United’s new policy of offering up to $10,000 in flight credits before involuntary bumping a passenger serves as a fitting memorial to that horrific day in 2017.
> Read More: United Airlines Reveals Major Policy Changes
> Read More: $10,000 Voucher for United Airlines Bump!
CONCLUSION
It’s no surprise that Dao has appeared literally two years after the incident to the day. Knowing how non-disclosure agreements work, I have to imagine that we have not heard a peep out of him for the last two years because it was part of his settlement agreement (rumored to be as high as eight digits). But now he’s back and able to freely speak.
He told Good Morning America:
Well, the most important thing is the accident turned out the positive way.
It $ertainly did…
His appearance is a reminder that United has made great progress in its overbooking policy, but the raw emotions he expressed make clear that the pain is still there.
30% of Americans over age 55 have no retirement savings at all, I suspect that 100% of those people would happily sacrifice a couple teeth and take shot to the melon in exchange for an eight figure settlement.
Anybody know what the settlement ended with? I’m guessing at least a high 7-figure number, and maybe even 8 figures …
My guess is that it was the low 7 figures. That’s just a guess.
U.S. airlines need to be reminded of this incident. Customer service has to be higher on their list of priorities.
So it should only be anothear year or so when we hear about the outcome of your Aeroplan case then?
In some ways, I look at this guy as a troublesome passenger. Sometimes, they need to be dragged out. However, losing two teeth and being bloodied is not right.
I still see it as someone who disobeyed employees and got wrongly rewarded for it. I wonder what would have happened if United went through their flight crew ranks and had the captain request him to be removed (he certainly disobeyed and could be seen as an unruly passenger), it probably would have been a non-issue.
All my friends in Mainland China were joking that they couldn’t wait to fly United after that incident. Any airline that pays a few million for a quick beating and reaccommodation on a later flight. They’re in!
He did not get wrongly rewarded. The employees gave him an unlawful order by telling him he was required to deplane. Even Oscar Munoz said this on Good Morning America. He was asked point blank if Dr. Dao was at fault in any way and he said, “No. He can’t be.” In addition, numerous aviation attorneys say that there is nothing in the Contract of Carriage which permitted them to require him to deplane.
Wow! Only 2 years on NDA? United’s lawyer(s) must be idiot(s)….
This guy had his 15 minutes in the sun. He should just fade away and stop pushing things to what I presume will be a bitter end.
The problem is not so much the airlines, but the quality, or lack thereof, of law enforcement which at the various commercial airports, in the USA. I’ve seen U-Tube videos of belligerent passengers, who have used the most foul language imaginable, and have resisted arrest. Yet, in some of those cases, the police have acted very professionally, and have used a minimum of force in detaining, and escorting such an individuals off a flight. On the other hand, I saw a case last year at the Baltimore Airport, where a woman, who complained of a service dog being seated near her, was asked to leave a flight, because of a conflict between her and the flight attendants. The woman was not violent, and did not use foul language. Yet, the brutal cops who got on that plane (this occurred after the incident with Dr. Dao), manhandled that poor woman, who was much smaller than they were. They shoved her, and tore part of her sweater, in the process. She was a college professor, and had no criminal record. There was another incident some years ago, whereby a female senior citizen on a Jet Blue flight, from NYC to Phoenix, filmed an incident of an altercation between two passengers on the flight. It appeared that a child kept kicking the seat of a passenger in front. When the passenger objected to the Mother, she started a scene, which was potentially violent. For some reason, one of the flight attendants came over, and wanted the video of the altercation which the female senior citizen filmed. The woman asserted her legal rights, and stated that she was not going to hand over the film, which belonged to her. The flight attendant then threatened her with arrest, when the flight landed in Phoenix. The senior citizen lady, was not violent. However, when the flight landed in Phoenix, she was also manhandled by at least one Phoenix cop, who handcuffed her, and shoved her down a flight of stairs at the airport, She was never charged with any crime. I told her to sue the airline, and the Phoenix Police. She stated that she was afraid. The latter incident was a bunch of garbage. The point that I’m trying to make is that these flight crews have turned into school yard bullies, and will attempt to harass and intimidate any passengers, whom they feel has not kissed their behinds, enough. Also, in some cases, those brutal cops get away with their heavy handed actions. However, when it hits the fan, as was the case with Dr. Dao, everyone tries to cover their anatomy.
At some point, long after 9/11, TSA, police, and airlines took upon an “us vs. them’ mentality. They hide behind “never forget!” to cover their misdeeds and mistreatment of the public, but let’s be clear — it has nothing to do with 9/11. It’s a full abuse of power. Whether it be the TSA agent grabbing the breasts and crotch of a passenger, police using excessive force, or a lazy middle-age stewardess who is tired of working and taking offense to a passenger asking them to do their job then threatening the passenger, it’s an abuse of power and that person thinking of themselves as higher/better than the common public.
It needs to stop. And the only way to stop it is to NOT let people hide behind policies, agencies, and “Never Forget!!!” After all, those who participated in the Holocaust were “just doing their jobs” or “just following policy.”