Another Sleeping Passenger Left On Board
Posted on 6 June 2010 by LynThomas in Travel
Kris Lines, a British school teacher, was left sleeping on an Air Canada long haul flight between London and Vancouver. He was woken by an engineer, to find himself sitting in an empty hanger, an hour and a half after the plane had landed.
After complaining to the airline, Lines received an email apologizing and promising him 20% off his next flight.
Now a Michigan woman, 36 year old Ginger McGuire, is suing United Airlines for locking her into an aircraft, after the United Express Flight 8080 from Washington DC to Philadelphia, which touched down after midnight.
McGuire claims she was left sleeping in the aircraft, after it landed and was locked in for four hours, before a cleaner discovered her. The cleaner promptly locked the plane again and alerted Transportation Security Administration.
The passenger was questioned by the agents, who were concerned about terrorism. McGuire claims she was ‘wrongfully detained and interrogated’.
McQuire is seeking between $25,000 and $75,000 damages for false imprisonment, infliction of emotional distress and breach of contract. “Waking up on an empty airplane and not being able to get out was very horrifying.” McGuire said.
“We are working closely with our partner Trans States Airlines to investigate the cause and remedy the situation with the customer,” said a spokeswoman for the airline, Fred Oxley. “Our procedures would call for the flight attendant before leaving the aircraft to do a sweep of the aircraft to ensure that there are no passengers left on. So our focus is certainly on whether or not that procedure was accomplished in this case.”
James Harrington, an attorney working with Fieger on the case, said the incident highlights a major safety issue.
“If my client, a completely unassuming person who was just exhausted … and falls asleep, could go undetected, what if somebody is really trying to go undetected?” Harrington said.
Trackbacks/Pingbacks
[...] A British school teacher, was left sleeping on an Air Canada long haul flight between London and Vancouver, on Kris Airlines. He was woken by an engineer, to find himself sitting in an empty hanger, an hour and a half after the plane had landed. Read more… [...]
[...] A British school teacher, was left sleeping on an Air Canada long haul flight between London and Vancouver, on Kris Airlines. He was woken by an engineer, to find himself sitting in an empty hanger, an hour and a half after the plane had landed. Read more… [...]