“Garter snake causes stir aboard United Airlines jet in New Jersey”
Summary:
On October 18th, a United Airlines flight took off from Tampa Florida arriving at Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey. Onboard there was a major disruption due to an unexpected snake. Passengers were alarmed once the snake onboard became known while still in the air. After arriving at the New Jersey airport the snake was removed effective immediately by animal-control officers. Although no injuries or major incidents occurred on the plane, passengers were nonetheless disturbed. Following the disturbance, the airline returned to operating as normal.
Stakeholder:
- United Airlines
- Airport Security
- Employees and Faculty working for United
- MilagePlus Program Members
- United Customers
- Prospect Travelers
- Animal-Control Officers
Analysis:
The airline has some major adjustments to make regarding safety and regulations. United Airlines should have prevented the passengers from the high-quality experience that’s expected when traveling. As an airline, there should be several occurrences in which the isles are cleaned and cleared before passengers enter the plane. Although the garter snake posed no major threats to the members aboard this United Airlines flight, this incident should have been avoided altogether. As a passenger, I would want to know how a snake even got aboard the aircraft. Passengers are paying a lot of money when booking flights and they deserve to have a normal, if not excellent experience.
Recommendations:
Compensation Measures:
I think that the airlines must take compensatory measures for the passengers. If they want the current and future passengers to return to their airline, then I would suggest giving passengers credit and the money for this flight can be used toward future flights on United. As their flight was disrupted which made it an inconvenience for those onboard.
Acknowledgment:
It is important that the passengers and flight crew feel understood and validated in a public matter. Such acknowledgment shows the empathy they have towards the incident and does not ignore the uncertainty the passengers may have. Having a wild snake roaming the aircraft during flight caused people to feel unsafe. Regardless of no major danger or threat, United Airlines should have admitted and taken the initiative in the accident that had occurred in the aircraft.
Proactive Safeguard Measures:
Once the disturbance is publicly recognized by the airline it is then important they do their best to explain how and why this incident occurred. The next and final piece will be for the airline to prove what will be done in the future to fix this problem and prevent it from happening again. They should release a step-by-step plan that explains what steps will be taken before passengers board the plane and before the plane takes flight. Sanitation protocols should be clearly stated and performed before each flight.
Transparent Communication Strategy:
The best thing they can do is be transparent with their customers and do whatever they can to have the customers return. Further rebuilding trust with your customer base so that you can retain your customer loyalty.
Citations:
Gorman, Steve. “Garter Snake Causes Stir Aboard United Airlines Jet in New Jersey.” Reuters, Thomson Reuters, 18 Oct. 2022, https://www.reuters.com/world/us/garter-snake-causes-stir-aboard-united-airlines-jet-new-jersey-2022-10-18/.
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