United’s PR team can’t catch a break.
Anger toward the airline peaked again after a family’s 10-month-old puppy died during a flight to New York. On the instructions of a flight attendant, the passenger placed her dog in an overhead bin, where the animal died.
The death is being investigated to determine the cause.
United confirmed the incident and expressed regret.
The Kansas City Star reported:
“This was a tragic accident that should never have occurred, as pets should never be placed in the overhead bin," United said in a statement given by United spokesperson Maggie Schmerin to several media outlets.
"We assume full responsibility for this tragedy and express our deepest condolences to the family and are committed to supporting them. We are thoroughly investigating what occurred to prevent this from ever happening again.”
The story was broken by several people on social media, including passenger Maggie Gremminger, once again highlighting how local stories go national with the help of modern technology.
I want to help this woman and her daughter. They lost their dog because of an @united flight attendant. My heart is broken. pic.twitter.com/mjXYAhxsAq
— MaggieGremminger (@MaggieGrem) March 13, 2018
Gremminger had positive words for some employees working the flight.
“Many other crew members were contacting additional help and offering a blanket to the young girl who seemed cold. They were confused at how that individual flight attendant could have done this, but did not seem to take any sides or blindly defend,” Gremminger adds. “They were professional and did a wonderful job gathering information and being as supportive to the mourning family as possible.”
The news comes after a series of scandals (and other pet deaths), including the infamous case in which passenger David Dao was beaten and dragged from his seat.
The latest bad news for the company provided reporters an opportunity to trot out the full list of United’s shortcomings.
United has faced public outcry after other animals have died on its planes. The airline said it transported 138,178 animals in 2017, more than any other airline, according to the Department of Transportation.
The airline reported to the Department of Transportation the highest number of animal deaths of any U.S. carrier: 18, a rate of 2.24 per 10,000 transported animals.American and Delta each reported that two animals died on their planes last year. Those figures refer to animals that were transported in the cargo hold, not the cabin. United spokesman Hobart said many of the animal deaths were due to animals' preexisting conditions.
Other publications seemed loath to say anything good about the airline.
If we’re to learn any lessons from this latest tragedy, they are simple lessons. One, never put your pet in the overhead bin. Two, never ever ever fly United.
[RELATED: Prepare, protect and promote your organization and brand in a climate of crisis.]
United’s website did address in-cabin pet travel, but made no mention of overhead bins.
A pet traveling in cabin must be carried in an approved hard-sided or soft-sided kennel. The kennel must fit completely under the seat in front of the customer and remain there at all times.
On Twitter, some blamed the passengers:
United deserves to be blamed, fine. But article after article reports on this story without turning to the behavior of the passengers, who were cowed into listening as a dog died because a moron flight attendant said so. pic.twitter.com/5Qba7lIrve
— Jon Lovett (@jonlovett) March 14, 2018
Loath as I am to defend United Airlines, people: stop bringing your dogs everywhere. They don't belong on airplanes, they don't belong in restaurants. Fee-Fee will survive for an hour or two without you. If you aren't blind, leave the dog at home.
— Michael Knowles (@michaeljknowles) March 14, 2018
Others blamed the airline, vowing to take their business elsewhere:
And today UNITED AIRLINES KILLED A DOG UNNCESESSARILY. I think we can all be done with United Airlines now. Hey @united, WE WILL GO ELSEWHERE. https://t.co/3ce5DfDAHx
— Emmy Rossum (@emmyrossum) March 14, 2018
Hearing that a dog died on a united flight last night because a flight attendant made the passenger put it in the overhead bin really breaks my heart. 24 pets died on airplanes last year and 18 of those occurred on United.. beware fellow travelers!
— Meghan Baker (@megbaker737) March 14, 2018
Omg omg omg omg omg I WOULD RAISE HELL. Not flying United EVER AGAIN RT @nycsouthpaw: United confirms a dog died on a flight to LaGuardia after its employee forced its owner to stow it in an overhead compartment. https://t.co/FklUbX9Klu
— Cyn Santana (@Cyn_Santana) March 14, 2018
The PR response got mixed reviews from industry insiders.
"It feels sterile, and loveless," Ed Zitron, founder of media relations company EZPR, said about the airline's statement.
United failed to appropriately communicate its concern for animals and pets, Zitron said, and instead appears to only feel bad that proper protocol was not followed.
Ronn Torossian, CEO of the public relations agency 5WPR, said he's not sure what else United could have said regarding the situation.
"I think they're owning up to the fact that a mistake was made," he said. […]
"People have very low expectations from United, and just about every other airline," he said.
What do you think of United’s most recent crisis response, PR Daily readers?
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