So Much For United Airlines' Pledge To Block The Middle Seat

[sl8]

From https://www.forbes.com/sites/suzannerowankelleher/2020/05/10/so-much-for-united-airlines-pledge-to-block-the-middle-seat/#105d159d3d6c

So Much For United Airlines’ Pledge To Block The Middle Seat

May 10, 2020,10:59am EDT
Suzanne Rowan Kelleher



United Airlines pledged to block the middle seat on flights through May 30. DR. ETHAN WEISS VIA TWITTER

“This is the last time I’ll be flying for a very long time,” Dr. Ethan Weiss tweeted yesterday from a crowded United Airlines flight from Newark to San Francisco. “People on this plane are scared/shocked.”

Dr. Weiss, an associate professor at the University of California San Francisco’s Cardiovascular Research Institute, had just spent two weeks volunteering at New York-Presbyterian Hospital during the COVID-19 crisis. “I am with a group of 25 nurses and doctors who have been working in NYC hospitals for the past 2-4 weeks. We are coming home,” he tweeted. (If you’re interested in learning what Weiss’s experience was like, his journal entries are in his Twitter feed. Here’s Day One.)

Since early April, United Airlines has been providing free round-trip flights to New York City for medical volunteers who wanted to help fight against the COVID-19 crisis.

Yesterday, Weiss tweeted a selfie that shows his jam-packed plane, with every seat on the 737 aircraft filled.

[...]

From https://onemileatatime.com/united-airlines-social-distancing-sham/

CORRECTION: United Airlines’ Social Distancing Sham

APRIL 22, 2020 BY BEN (LUCKY)

Earlier I wrote about what I perceived to be United Airlines’ new social distancing policy, based on a press release from the airline. I figured it was coming, since they’re a couple of weeks behind the competition here — Alaska, American, Delta, Lufthansa, etc., have all announced substantive seat blocking policies.

Well, as it turns out United’s policy is not much of a policy at all.

Let me quote United Airlines directly:

Beginning late April, we are implementing additional steps to promote social distancing on all United and United Express flights by making some temporary changes to seat assignments and adjustments to our boarding process.

Limiting seat selections in all cabins, so customers won’t be able to select seats next to each other or middle seats where available. We’re also alternating window and aisle seats when seats are in pairs.

[...]

[Phoenix61]

1. It's a free flight. I'm not surprised the

rules for paid flights aren’t the same.

[sl8]

2. It's not a free flight.

Some of the passengers flew for free, some didn't.

Where did you see that they had different rules for diferent flights? It sure doesn't sound like that's what United is claiming, to me. It sounds like they're saying that people "misinterpeted" their new seating policy.

[Phoenix61]

3. My mistake. nt

[sl8]

4. No worries.

I find the story a little confusing, also.

[mikalcharles]

5. I had to fly on United earlier this week to bring my 90 year old mother and Covid survivor back to

live with us and the flight from Denver to Newark was absolutely full. I was shocked.