Comments on: Bumped – or Dragged – From Airplanes

By: kimberly crisel

kimberly crisel — Fri, 21 Apr 2017 00:34:05 +0000

This is my first time to Vegas. I’m 53 and going with my sisters. This information was very helpful! Thank you. Kim.

By: Raymond Ray

Raymond Ray — Wed, 19 Apr 2017 18:20:23 +0000

Love, love, love the bump. I’ve earned at least a dozen free flights to Vegas over the years getting off and waiting. Almost got a “double bump” a couple times. Got on the list for the second flight but there were just enough open seats both times for us not to hit the jackpot.

By: Steve D

Steve D — Tue, 18 Apr 2017 03:03:16 +0000

I don’t understand why in the United Airline case they did not simply keep offering more money as a incentive to get someone to get off the plane. Everyone has a price. I heard Delta now can offer as much as $8000 to change flights. For$ 8000 I’ll walk home!

By: Jw

Jw — Tue, 18 Apr 2017 00:18:46 +0000

It’s 300 miles so more like a 5 hour drive so I can see the passenger not wanting to do it but the airline could have rented a car and made their employees drive it.

By: Bruce McGrew

Bruce McGrew — Mon, 17 Apr 2017 17:34:31 +0000

It’s possible the bumpee may have been asleep and didn’t hear the announcement, or not fluent enough in English to understand why he was being bumped. Perhaps he was over medicated…he appeared confused in one video.

By: Jeanette

Jeanette — Mon, 17 Apr 2017 16:28:49 +0000

You probably will think I’m crazy but Delta was offering a $1200 voucher for anyone giving up their seat(s) on a flight we took from Las Vegas a few weeks ago. We did not take advantage of it because of one reason: We were babysitting my first grandchild the next day! LOL! 3-month old baby trumps airline voucher!!!!

By: stu

stu — Mon, 17 Apr 2017 11:59:31 +0000

I’m with you Jean. My wife and I used to make an easy $2400 in vouchers every year just by annually booking the last flight to Los Angeles or Las Vegas out of Newark, NJ on the Eve of Thanksgiving. We would also negotiate in that our morning flight, a mere 7 hours later, would need to be a first class seat (which they always obliged since the upgrades for their frequent fliers do not go through until much closer to flight time and first class rarely sells out). The most difficult part for us was knowing how long to wait to volunteer. If you waited too long, you sometimes lost the bump. But never on Thanksgiving.

As to the United situation…I’m sure you think like us and would have gladly traded a three hour car ride (they would have certainly paid for the rental car) for an $800 or so voucher. If I was Dr. Feelgood (I would have refused to leave unless they offered me this and the same for his wife. Heck, I can’t remember the last time I got paid $267 an hour (or $533 combined) to drive for three hours.

By: Kevin Lewis

Kevin Lewis — Mon, 17 Apr 2017 05:55:32 +0000

What made me curious is that the United flight was going from Chicago to Louisville–what, a three-hour drive? There aren’t taxis or limos in Chicago? Or charter aircraft available at one of the world’s largest airports? They couldn’t have gotten their employees to Louisville one of those ways?

In any event, this suggests a refinement of the Frugal tactic. That flight was on a Sunday night, and even an $800 inducement wasn’t enough to get anybody to give up their seat. So I suggest that people wanting to get bumped should pick Sunday night as their travel time, and hopefully their untravel time. That has been the time when I’ve gotten the best bribes to get bumped.