On a Sunday night in April 2017, a passenger, David Dao, was dragged off a full United Airlines flight from Chicago to Louisville. The first statement from CEO Oscar Munoz apologized for “having to re-accommodate these customers.” A second described the passenger as “disruptive and belligerent.”
Munoz then called the event “truly horrific” and said United would “take full responsibility.” The airline promised a review “to fix what’s broken.” It stopped removing seated passengers except for safety or security, raised the payment for giving up a seat voluntarily to as much as $10,000 and settled with Dao.