[MNDude]

Legally they can bump only for overbooked flights while the passenger is outside the plane.

[jjsheridan5]

Legally they can bump only for overbooked flights while the passenger is outside the plane.

If that is true, then those responsible for the decision to bump him should be punished accordingly. Since bumping someone from a plane in the wrong place (outside, versus inside) is a relatively small infraction, I would expect that punishment to be relatively mild. (I know many will say that bumping someone once they are on the plane is the worst and unfairest thing that can happen, there are a million and one reasons why no rational person should rely on a plane transporting them on-time, or transporting them togenther with their companions -- anyone expecting, and relying, on those things is an idiot).

However, I was always under the impression that airlines are bound by law to make room for airline personnel. If that is the case, I am not willing to cede the point that the ordinary rules of bumping apply. Either way, the one that should not happen is that future airline travelers should be punished via a huge settlement from United, to this passenger. This, of course, is exactly what will happen, in our lottery-style judicial system, egged on by a reason-free public feeding frenzy. But it shouldn't.

[CodeToad]

Got a legal reference for that “legally...”?