United to offer passengers up to $10,000 to forfeit seatsApril 27, 2017 - 10:31 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - United Airlines said on Thursday, April 27 it would offer passengers who volunteer to forfeit their seats on overbooked flights up to $10,000 as part of the carrier's efforts to repair the damage from the rough removal of a passenger, Reuters reports. The offer came after rival Delta outlined plans to offer up to $9,950 in such cases. United also said it would take actions to reduce overbooking flights and improve customer satisfaction. "Our goal is to reduce incidents of involuntary denial of boarding to as close to zero as possible and become a more customer-focused airline," the carrier said in the statement. United had spent the last two weeks embroiled in controversy after videos recorded by fellow passengers, which went viral, showed David Dao, 69, yanked from his seat aboard a Louisville, Kentucky-bound United flight before takeoff from Chicago's O'Hare International Airport to make room for crew members. Dao lost two front teeth in the scuffle, incurred a concussion and broke his nose, according to his lawyer, and will likely sue the airline. United typically oversells flights by less than zero to 3 percent of the plane's seat capacity to account for no-shows. United said it would no longer call law enforcement to deny passengers boarding, nor would passengers who are already seated be required to give up their seats on overbooked flights. United will adopt a "no questions asked" policy on permanently lost baggage, paying customers $1,500 for the value of the bag and its contents, beginning in June. Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads. Partner news | The Power of One Dram to benefit Road of Life charity The companies inform that the May beneficiary of The Power of One Dram is the “Road of Life” charitable organization. Ucom General Director gives lecture at French University in Armenia The General Director of Ucom Ralph Yirikian delivered a lecture at the French University of Armenia. Kazakhstan welcomes Yerevan, Baku’s agreement to meet in Almaty Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has welcomed the agreement of Baku and Yerevan to hold negotiations in Almaty. Armenia offers to temporarily host, preserve Gaza manuscripts The Armenian Foreign Minister has said Yerevan is ready to help preserve manuscripts from the conflict zone in Gaza. |