The chief executive of embattled United Airlines has finally issued an apology after a torrent of criticism of the carrier’s action on a flight Sunday, April 9, and its initial explanation of it.
United Airlines felt the backlash on the Internet after a viral video of a bloodied passenger from a Chicago-to-Louisville flight who was forcibly removed from his seat.
Tuesday, the other shoe dropped: Wall Street.
United Continental Holdings, closed Monday at $71.52 a share, with a market capitalization of $22.5 billion.
In a report by Matt Pressberg on The Wrap, it turns out that once investors apparently realized United’s handling of the situation and its aftermath turned off millions of potential customers around the world, they changed their tune.
A United-related hashtag was the top trending item on Weibo, China’s version of Twitter, and plenty of social media users in the world, including the UAE.
Meanwhile, a similar incident is unlikely to happen in the Philippines because of existing regulations, the Civil Aeronautics Board said on Tuesday.
CAB Executive Director Carmelo Arcilla said, “There would not be any involuntary deplaning of passengers in the Philippines because the airlines are required to sweeten the pie so that there would be volunteers.”
