A United Airlines passenger has been caught on camera violently kicking a seat in a fit of rage that resulted in him being restrained and strapped to one of the seats which he had taken such an issue with.
The exact date of the incident isn’t clear, although sources claim the outburst took place on a recent United flight from Austin to Los Angeles.
United Airlines passenger goes wild, violently kicking seat in fit of rage before being restrained and strapped down
— Matt Maszczynski (@mattmaszczynski.bsky.social) 21 November 2024 at 16:43
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United Airlines has made much of the fact that it is improving the passenger experience with a push into the ‘premium’ travel space with major improvements coming to its fleet in the coming years.
The upgrade program, known as United Next, will see the Chicago-based carrier’s short-haul fleet retrofitted with new, more comfortable seats throughout, seatback televisions, larger overhead lockers and mood lighting.
Unfortunately, only around 30% of United’s Airbus A319 fleet currently features the Next interior, while less than a quarter of the slightly larger A320 model have so far been upgraded.
The vast majority of United’s passengers still get to experience bum-numbing slimline Recaro seats that were first installed across the airline’s fleet in 2017.
We can’t say for certain that the man’s outburst was the result of the uncomfortable travel experience, although there are rumors that the incident started over a seat recline argument.
On long-haul flights, it should be expected and accepted that passengers are going to recline their seats, although, on shorter flights, there is much debate over whether reclining your seat is acceptable.
Some airlines have got around that issue by installing slimline seats that don’t actually recline… although seat manufacturers claim that the seats are ‘pre-reclined’.
