Originally Posted by
megan
Please show me where it talks about provision of meals, toilets, a seat, a seat belt, cabin baggage storage or entertainment on the flight... all of which passengers will not receive from time to time and may necessitate their offload in the case of seat u/s or when an equipment change is made purely for the airline's operational convenience and some passengers are accommodated and others denied at random after they've boarded. It doesn't but it doesn't mean it can't be done. I am in no way defending the airline, I think their action was abhorrent, I am simply posing questions about the legality or lack of just as other people are going off half-cocked and saying things like "obviously, it's a stuff up by the airport staff who should have known at least 2 hours prior" when they have absolutely no idea when this information was provided or came to light.
Yes. 31 years in the industry and on many occasions including where a slide has been found to be inoperative we have had to randomly select people to remove from the aircraft and offer alternative transport to, also when an aircraft has been subject to an equipment downgrade en-route. The difference is, in all those instances, the passengers accepted it because we presented it in a professional and completely respectful manner. In some countries, the airline is able to do this and if the passenger refuses, they are required to increase the compensation until they get a 'volunteer' or acceptance by the randomly selected person.