No United Airlines Firings Over Passenger Dragging At O'Hare: CEO

CHICAGO, IL — The head of United Airlines said no employees will lose their jobs in the wake of the passenger who was forcibly removed by aviation officers from a Chicago-to-Louisville flight, the Chicago Tribune reports. During a conference call to discuss United's quarterly report Tuesday, CEO Oscar Munoz said firings were not a consideration, even after the outrage the company endured when video of the dragging April 9 spread across social media platforms. He also repeated his characterization of the incident as a "system failure," and he described the entire experience as "a true learning opportunity" and "a watershed moment for our company," the report added.

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The passenger — Dr. David Dao from Kentucky — suffered a concussion, broken nose and other injuries when he was violently pulled from his seat by aviation security officers. Dao was one of four people randomly chosen to be bumped from United flight 3411 so that airline employees could fly. Dao refused to give up his seat because he needed to return to Kentucky to see patients Monday, according to his lawyer.

Although United Airlines employees involved in the incident won't be sent to the unemployment line, three Chicago Aviation Police officers have been placed on administrative leave while the city's Department of Aviation, which oversees the airport security force, reviews their roles in the situation.

Munoz's assurances about employee job security is one of the immediate moves he and United have made in response to consumer backlash over Dao's treatment. Although an official internal review will be completed by the carrier by April 30, the company has already made changes to avoid a repeat of what happened aboard flight 3411 and begin creating policies that take a "commonsense approach" to how the airline handles its cusomters' experiences. As part of that, United will no longer use law enforcement to remove paid passengers from flights if they're not a security risk. Crew members also must be booked 60 minutes before a flight departs to avoid bumping passengers.

Patch's United Flight 3411 Coverage:

United Airlines, City Of Chicago Will Keep Evidence Related To Passenger Dragging: Lawyers for Dr. David Dao had asked for a court order last week so that video and records from the flight wouldn't be discarded.

Crew Members Will Be Booked 60 Minutes Before Departure Under New Policy: The policy comes after passenger Dr. David Dao was dragged off a flight and left bloodied when he did not give up his seat for a crew member.

Passenger Dragged From Flight Suffered Concussion, Broken Nose: VIDEO: A lawsuit likely after United forced a doctor off the plane to "re-accommodate" him so an airline employee could take his seat.

2 More Chicago Aviation Cops Suspended: PLUS: Passengers will get refunds | Congresswoman wants to end bumping.

United Won't Use Police To Pull Paid Passengers From Flights, Airline CEO Says: VIDEO: United CEO Oscar Munoz called Sunday's incident on a flight out of Chicago a "system failure" during an ABC News interview.

United Airline's Image Takes Online Beating In Memes, Comments: Social media reaction to video footage of a passenger being dragged from a full flight Sunday night has been swift and merciless.

Aviation Expert Defends United: Passenger Didn't Have Right To Stay On Plane: VIDEO: The airline was in "an impossible spot" and handled the situation as best it could, a DePaul transportation professor says.

The subject of the conference call — United's first-quarter results — did provide good news for an airline that's been struggling to find a silver lining among all the dark clouds in its friendly skies this past week. The company's first-quarter profits outperformed the expectations of financial analysts, and Munoz said it gave the carrier "a lot of confidence" going forward, the Tribune reports.

Enthusiasm for the airline's first-quarter financial results, in which United's profits beat analysts' expectations, was tempered by vows to learn from the incident and put the focus back on customers. Those results give the airline "a lot of confidence about the foundation we're building," Munoz said. "But it's clear we have further to go in terms of elevating the experience customers have with us."

More via the Chicago Tribune

United Airlines CEO Oscar Munoz in 2016 (photo by Richard Drew | Associated Press)

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