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United Airlines: Passenger takes first legal steps, as new footage emerges

Dao remains in the hospital but a family member is expected to take part in a press conference today.

UNITED CONTINENTAL CHIEF executive Oscar Munoz has said he will not resign and again apologised for the removal of a customer from an overbooked flight by force – an incident that drew global scorn.

It comes as passenger David Dao takes the first steps in potential legal action, and new footage of the incident emerges online.

“I was hired to make United better and we’ve been doing that and that’s what I’ll continue to do,” Munoz said, when asked about calls for his resignation as leader of the embattled airline on ABC’s Good Morning America.

Munoz reiterated his regret over Sunday’s incident, which sparked widespread outrage and mushroomed into a global public relations disaster after video of passenger Dao, 69, his face bloodied, being dragged off the plane, went viral.

“Probably the word ‘shame’ comes to mind,” Munoz said, adding that he had not yet spoken to Dao, but his team had tried to reach out to him.

“We’ve not been able to contact him directly,” Munoz said.

I do look forward to a time when I can as much as I’m able to apologise directly to him for what’s happened.

Munoz pledged a thorough review of United’s procedures and promised that police would not be used in the future to remove passengers.

United also said it would compensate all passengers on Dao’s flight.

United shares fell 1.1% to end the trading day at $69.93.

‘Tone deaf’ response 

Meanwhile, attorneys for Dao filed papers in Cook County courthouse in Chicago demanding preservation of surveillance video, passenger and crew lists and other evidence, a first step in potential litigation.

“After being duly processed by the ticket agent, checked in by the attendant and seated in his assigned passenger seat, Petitioner was forcibly dragged and removed from the said aircraft by City employees, sustaining personal injury,” the filing said.

A spokeswoman for law firm Corboy and Demetrio said Dao remained in the hospital but that a family member is expected to participate in a news conference today in Chicago.

Munoz also faced criticism for his initial response to the crisis in which he appeared to put partial blame for the incident on the passenger, saying he had “defied” authorities and “compounded” the incident.

Meanwhile, new footage, by passenger Joya Cummings, shows Dao politely telling officers that he is a physician and has to work tomorrow. “I am not going,” he tells the officers.

He tells them the only way he’ll leave is if he’s dragged out of his seat.

Storyful News / YouTube

PR disaster 

Magazine PRWeek blasted the United CEO for his “tone-deaf” comments in the wake of the incident that seemed to be heavily lawyered and cast the incident “purely in terms of its effect on United, rather than the injured passenger.”

The magazine had last month named Munoz its ‘US Communicator of the Year’ for 2016 based on his steadying of the airline after the prior chief executive resigned amid a scandal and Munoz himself suffered a heart attack.

“It’s fair to say that if PRWeek was choosing its Communicator of the Year now, we would not be awarding it to Oscar Munoz,” editor-in-chief Steve Barrett said in a column.

Reputational risk is a huge concern for modern enterprises and relates to the value of a brand or company just as much legal and liability risk – lawyers cannot be the first line of a communications defense.

Overbooking under scrutiny 

The incident has spotlighted the common practice of overbooking and bumping passengers from flights, which airlines rely upon to avoid losing money on seats left empty by no-show passengers.

In this case, United needed to make room for a flight crew and called security personnel when no passengers volunteered to give up their seats.

© – AFP, 2017 with reporting from Daragh Brophy 

Read: Trump recalls moment he launched missiles, confuses Iraq for Syria >

Read: Luke Ming Flanagan: ‘Regulation, like taxes, is only for the little people’ >

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    Mute TOP CAT
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    Jul 27th 2014, 8:56 AM

    Can’t really see James Reilly going too quietly to Africa in the rear of a cargo plane…

    211
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    Mute Glen
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    Jul 27th 2014, 10:10 AM

    A roll of duct tape and some tie wraps is just the medicine the good Dr needs.

    33
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    Mute Joe Harbison
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    Jul 27th 2014, 9:00 AM

    There are fairly bizarre regulations as to the use and reuse of medical equipment which is far more about maximising manufacturers profits than protecting patients. A basic example is crutches. Hospitals no longer want them returned as they are only guaranteed by the manufacturer for a single patient use. Those that are returned are quickly checked over and collected for dispatch to the developing world.

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    Mute SeekingUniverslTruth
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    Jul 27th 2014, 9:03 AM

    i;ve noticed that too, also the dear old arm sling used to be no more than a bit of sheet, now hospitals have to spend money on the new improved versions that do the same thing,

    59
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    Mute Martin O'Rourke
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    Jul 27th 2014, 8:59 AM

    Great to see this happen, free up dead space and assist others as well. I hope Cuba is also label to benifit. with the US imposed embargo I am sure they would also find the equipment helpful in their free training of doctors for third world countries.

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    Mute SeekingUniverslTruth
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    Jul 27th 2014, 9:04 AM

    Are you mad, do you think reilly would say to the yanks “btw we’re sending stuff to cuba”

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    Mute SeekingUniverslTruth
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    Jul 27th 2014, 8:58 AM

    Excellent,

    39
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    Mute Oisín O'Connor
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    Jul 27th 2014, 9:36 AM

    I fully support helping countries such as Uganda and Zambia to improve their public health services.

    I’m interested to hear what gay rights campaigners who condemned Sochhi Winter Olympics have to say about this support of Uganda, a notoriously homophobic state. (I’m unaware of Zambia’s laws)

    I’m not saying we shouldn’t make donations to Uganda. But when we do, it’d be worthwhile putting some pressure on them about their human rights record.

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    Mute Barry McCormack
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    Jul 27th 2014, 9:37 AM

    I’m no economic genius but isn’t our Country broke? Don’t we currently borrow 2 billion a month. So giving our stuff away would seem to me as being the wrong option. The Africans are laughing at us, sound, dead on paddies.

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    Mute Vincent F
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    Jul 27th 2014, 9:43 AM

    I’d rather see medical equipment going to Uganda over cash. Least the equipment will help people whom need it. Assuming it’s not sold on black market.

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    Mute Bobby
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    Jul 27th 2014, 9:47 AM

    Ireland borrows €600 million a month to keep going. The majority of western countries borrow each month to keep the country running.

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    Mute Ablitive
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    Jul 27th 2014, 11:41 AM

    How about sending this equipment out to Gaza? They could do with this after all the hospital equipment that hss been destroyed by Israel shelling.

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    Mute Bobby
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    Jul 27th 2014, 11:49 AM

    Israel says no. They wont let paracetamol in never mind medical equipment.

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    Mute Dr Udegbe
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    Jul 27th 2014, 9:14 AM

    Hope these equipment don’t cost these poor countries a fortune to maintain in the immediate term.
    Think of the disposal !!

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    Mute Barry McCormack
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    Jul 27th 2014, 10:04 AM

    It’s been widely reported that the hse down through the years has been paying over inflated prices for medical supplies that we borrowed cash, at over inflated rate. Now the same organisation has probably gone and done the same with new equipment but the old equipment, that actually still functions and is given away. But as long as we viewed as the Florence Nightingale of Europe that’s all that matters, we deserve to be broke!

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    Mute Mary Kavanagh
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    Jul 27th 2014, 10:31 AM

    I agree with the first part of your comment, Barry. The mark up for medical equipment is eye watering. However, if the equipment is not going to be used here why not send it where it will be used?

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    Mute Bobby
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    Jul 27th 2014, 10:43 AM

    Ireland pays over the odds for all things medical. Up to 70% more than the UK. Maybe a deal done with the government and pharmaceutical companies if they locate in Ireland.

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    Mute William Nunan
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    Jul 27th 2014, 9:21 AM

    They learned from the e voting machines.
    Will they also be sending out the equipment from the closed wards in their cost cutting exercises?

    For export, nurses, doctors, hospital equipment !!
    I have a premonition that hospital services will be outsourced to Africa, Ryanair will get us there. Ambulance service rationalized as well

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    Mute Barry McCormack
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    Jul 27th 2014, 10:50 AM

    Look if we had economy of let’s say Norway I’d to be all over this noble cause. But let’s no kid ourselves,we are painting over the cracks, borrowing money to pay debt. Sorry my thinking doesn’t fit liberal agenda but look at medical card debacle, home help cut, elderly dieing alone etc. So I cant subscribe to the good will without being practical and inward looking.

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    Mute Bobby
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    Jul 27th 2014, 10:59 AM

    Maybe if you didn’t hand over your only natural resource to the EU (fishing grounds) you would have an economy a bit more like Norway.

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    Mute Mary Ryan
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    Jul 27th 2014, 10:59 AM

    Read the article! This is equipment that is no longer being used. Rather than cluttering the basement level corridors outside supplies in the hospital or just being trashed, it gets sent to somewhere it can be of benefit. What’s wrong with that? Equipment is sidelined for a variety of reasons so why not let it help someone else?

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    Mute Barry McCormack
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    Jul 27th 2014, 11:41 AM

    Bobby from bobby. The biggest sell off or give away has been our oil and gas to shell British and statoil Norwegian. But sure we are sound like that!!!!

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    Mute Bobby
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    Jul 27th 2014, 11:47 AM

    What would you like me to be? :) to date, Ireland has handed over €600 billion to the EU from it’s waters since the 70s. No oil or gas production from Ireland just yet.

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    Mute Barry McCormack
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    Jul 27th 2014, 9:54 AM

    The hashtags down the bottom should include #eejits #economics101

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    Mute Bill
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    Jul 27th 2014, 9:47 AM

    Why was this not done until now

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    Mute Jed I. Knight
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    Jul 27th 2014, 7:24 PM

    It is done on a regular basis, but a few people within the HSE have got together to organise it. Rather than individual hospitals sending old equipment out to different countries it’s all gathered in one place and all sent to the same countries. You be the judge.

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    Mute Barry McCormack
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    Jul 27th 2014, 12:46 PM

    The Rhcp unwittingly penned our national mantra ‘Give It Away’

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    Mute Barry McCormack
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    Jul 27th 2014, 11:20 AM

    Agreed bobby but if we Irish then who are you?

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    Mute Bobby
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    Jul 27th 2014, 11:25 AM

    Bobby

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    Mute Barry McCormack
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    Jul 27th 2014, 11:58 AM

    €600 billion in fish!!! I’m out.

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    Mute Bobby
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    Jul 27th 2014, 12:10 PM

    I know crazy amount but true.

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    Mute Bobby
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    Jul 27th 2014, 12:21 PM

    Interesting read, backed up by official European Union statistics. After Germany, Ireland is the second largest indirect contributer to EU coffers. Not only did Ireland get a raw deal on the bank bailout, but the EU has robbed you since joining in the 70s. Time to take back!!

    http://www.sceala.com/phpBB2/irish-forums-25255.html

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    Mute Paddy Jaye
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    Apr 10th 2017, 12:43 AM

    HI WE HAVE AN SUPPLIER WHO NEEDS USED MEDICAL EQUIPMENT THE REFURBISH IT AND EXPORT IT TO INDIA OR AFRICA IF ANY INTEREST email pesgreen@eircom.net Please regards Patrick.

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