When it comes to irr/ops, should stranded passengers displace confirmed passengers?
I watched a news story this evening about how airlines are dealing with stranded passengers, some who have been waiting for more than a week to cross the pond. Air France, for example, is not bumping off confirmed passengers for stranded passengers and that decision has led to a minor protest at LAX among many anxiously wanting to return to la Patrie.
Other airlines, though the news story did not list which ones, are displacing confirmed passengers in order to accommodate stranded passengers first.
I am of the opinion that same-day confirmed passengers should have priority. If you have a ticket for 25 April, it is not right to be told that you need to wait a couple days because others have a more pressing need for your seat: airlines are not suited to make such a determination. I wish I did have a trip to Europe this weekend so I could volunteer my seat and go at a later time, but I have two words for all those remain stranded: tough luck. I find it beyond ludicrous that not only are some passengers being forced onto later flights as a matter of equity–but that the boneheads running the EU are requiring airlines to compensate passengers for a force majeure. That’s a subject for another post, though, and I’ll spare you any further political political ramblings for now…
What are your thoughts?
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