Posted on 07/16/2012 9:58:22 AM PDT by rawhide
A United Airlines flight from Shanghai,China,to New Jersey should have taken just 13 hours,but it took some folks three days to make that trip,after a firestorm of protests,threats,even violence.
United Flight 87 was scheduled to leave Shanghai Wednesday and bring 225 passengers to Newark Airport in New Jersey.
The flight was canceled twice because of maintenance on the Boeing 777, and a third delay came because the flight crew had been on duty too long. Passengers say they couldn't get to their luggage, some of which was unceremoniously dumped off carousels, leading to fist fights.
"They [airport officials] grabbed him by the tie, and they pulled him physically across the counter and started slapping him," said passenger Pat Sinko, describing what happened to another passenger.
The nightmare began, passengers say, after the first cancellation because of maintenance. The airline put all the passengers up in hotels. Thursday arrived, and so did a second setback: The replacement generator, which has to be shipped from the U.S., didn't make it to China in time. On Friday, United Flight 87 passengers were promised they would leave, even if travelers on another flight had to be bumped.
That's when the pilot of the flight told the passengers the original plane had been fixed and was located at another gate. One Chinese passenger refused to go to the other gate and organized a mini revolt to block newly arriving passengers from getting on the plane.
"He was like if we're not getting on that plane, nobody is getting on that plane," said Borowka.
Eventually, Borowka and the other passengers were ushered to the other gate and began boarding their new plane, and were dealt a final humiliating blow: The flight crew had been on duty too long. The passengers were bumped off the plane again.
(Excerpt) Read more at gma.yahoo.com ...
I’ve been through a lot of airline horror stories myself, but never one this bad. Just, WOW!
EXACTLY why I avoid United Airlines.
Free bowls of ramen noodles and cups of hot tea in a cramped boarding area filled with could-not-care-less staff and rowdy, sweaty, and cursing Chinese passengers (my last experience with a much shorter equipment delay at a Chinese airport - Chengdu IIRC) will only carry you so far.
If I can’t drive there, I ain’t going....
Shanghaied in Shanghai
driving is not allowed. You will restrict yourself to government sanctioned mass transit route zones. Any travel outside those zones will require your big sister documentation which must be presented upon request. Failure to have your travel documents or take government sanction mass transit will be subject to immediate arrest and criminal conviction.
(/s)
Why wouldn’t they just send another jet since they were having so much problems.
This is exactly how the Soviet Union operated. They would put zone checkpoints between cities, and stop you. If you did not have the proper docs, they would turn you around. Or maybe arrest you!
I have been to Russia many times and have seen these checkpoints. They are all basically closed now, at least the ones in northern Russia. But it would be easy to reopen them. Now they just have agents sitting in cars on the sides of roads, stopping anyone they choose. I have been stopped numerous times. But never hindered where I was going.
I’m guessing they did not expect it to mushroom like it did?
Like taking you car in for a minor repair, and it turns out to be a nightmare. Many of us have been there.
Just one more reason to add to my list of why I will NEVER fly again.
“The passengers are revolting, sire!”
“The passengers are revolting, sire!”
And here I thought they just smelled bad.
Evidently, United couldn’t chink outta there.
I’ve only been stranded,overnight,once while traveling.It was due to mechanical trouble and the unavailability of parts.It was in Honolulu...not China. (China? Yikes!)
After 3 days the passengers must have become dis-Oriented!
These passengers should consider themselves lucky. If they think a three-day delay for a flight to Newark, NJ was bad, imagine how much worse it would have been if the flight had only been delayed for TWO days.
A number of spots on earth are quite difficult to reach without the use of an airplane.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.