United Sorry “For Having To Re-accommodate” Passenger

United Airlines belatedly issued an apology over the forced removal of a passenger from one of its flights, but only “for having to re-accommodate these customers”, after the carrier had overbooked the service.

United Express flight UA3411 from Chicago O'Hare to Louisville, Kentucky on Sunday descended into chaos as security officers dragged a passenger along the aisle as he was removed from the plane prior to departure.

Images posted online by other passengers showed the passenger being pulled from his seat and onto the cabin floor. He was then dragged along the floor and taken off the aircraft.

United said on twitter “Flight 3411 from Chicago to Louisville was overbooked. After our team looked for volunteers, one customer refused to leave.”

Another official tweet said “We apologise for the overbook situation. Further details on the removed customer should be directed to authorities.”

United’s chief executive Oscar Munoz issued a terse statement on the company’s website saying: “This is an upsetting event to all of us here at United. I apologise for having to re-accommodate these customers. Our team is moving with a sense of urgency to work with the authorities and conduct our own detailed review of what happened. We are also reaching out to this passenger to talk directly to him and further address and resolve this situation.”

Reuters news agency reported that Munoz in a letter to staff did not apologise for the way the passenger was handled.

Passengers on the flight were more critical of the treatment of the man.