Delta Airlines reportedly offered $10,000 to anyone who volunteered to be bumped from an oversold fight, passengers have claimed.
According to reports, Delta was offering to pay the $10,000 sum on an oversold flight out of Grand Rapids, Michigan, on Monday morning.
Jason Aten shared the details in his column for INC, stating he had been waiting for his flight to Minnesota when he heard Delta's announcement for eight people who would be happy to catch a later flight.
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Aten wrote: "In exchange for their seats, Deltawas offering $10,000 cash", before explaining the flight attendant announced that Apple Pay users would receive the money immediately.
Speaking to Fortune, Aten told the media outlet that he and his family did not volunteer as they weren't initially aware of how many volunteers were needed - a decision that cost them an easy $80,000.
He said: "Had we known it was eight, we would have gotten off. By the time that was clear, four or five people had already left."
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The prospect of being paid $10,000 to be bumped off a flight might sound completely unbelievable, but another passenger on the flight was able to corroborate Aten's story.
Todd McCrumb confirmed Aten's experience on social media, writing on Twitter: "It's a true story. I was on that flight."
He then explained his reasoning for not volunteering, writing: "Unfortunately, I could not take advance the offer, as I was flying with my wife who has very limited eyesight. She has to have me nearby when traveling."
McCrumb claimed that originally the airline was offering $5,000 while people were were waiting at the gate. After this failed to entice any passengers, it allegedly bumped this to $7,500 once boarding began and reached the eye-watering $10,000 when most passengers were on board.
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Aten said that although some passengers volunteered immediately, it took a second announcement and a 20-minute wait for enough passengers to agree to be bumped from the flight.
While the airline could not confirm the alleged $10,000 payout for the Monday flight, a Delta spokesperson told UNILAD: "The ability to provide compensation on full flights empowers our employees' efforts to care for customers and get aircraft out on time."
Delta is just one of the many airlines that has cancelled a large number of flights recently due to major staff shortages.
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The airline has also offered flight changes at no cost over 4 July weekend to prevent further chaos.
Delta CEO Ed Bastian apologised to passengers for the increase in cancellations and delays. Writing in a letter to Delta's SkyMiles frequent flier program members, he said: "We’ve spent years establishing Delta as the industry leader in reliability, and though the majority of our flights continue to operate on time, this level of disruption and uncertainty is unacceptable."
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Shiala Mahmood