When you prepare to study abroad next quarter or leave for the inevitable around-the-world backpacking trip after graduation, one of the things you probably won’t plan for is being imprisoned on an airplane.
But the time to be concerned is now, before you find yourself held prisoner for hours next to a screaming infant in cramped coach.
That is exactly what has happened to hundreds passengers during the past few years.
In December 2006, American Airlines passengers were confined for eight hours on a runway without food or working restrooms.
A short while later in February 2007, passengers on a flight with JetBlue were trapped for 10 hours without food.
As a healthy adult, I am unable to go more than 10 minutes without a snack. I can’t imagine how young children or elderly passengers would be able to manage for 10 hours.
In response to incidents like these, several states such as New York and California began working on legislation known as a passenger bills of rights.
Of course, when I compare airplanes to prisons, I’m only half-serious. In prison, it’s required that you’re provided with adequate food and water.
As MSNBC travel columnist and National Geographic Traveler’s ombudsman Christopher Elliott points out in a recent article, the “rights” consumer advocates are fighting for ““ access to food, water and functioning restrooms ““ are the same ones accorded to dogs traveling with your checked baggage.
New York successfully passed the bill of rights, but it was struck down about a week ago by a federal appeals court.
The radical legislation, which was vehemently opposed by the airline industry, doesn’t even assert airline passengers’ right to leave the plane ““ no matter how many hours they’re trapped.
This is bad news for states such as California, which has its own passenger bill of rights in the making.
No, the federal court doesn’t support starving airline passengers. But in order to streamline airline procedures, federal law prohibits states from regulating the airline industry.
This saves airlines the hassle and expense of keeping up to date and complying with different lists of rules for every state or county they fly into, which is a completely reasonable idea.
So while the states’ efforts are admirable, they are clearly problematic and cannot make up for the federal government’s failure to act.
In February 2007, California Sen. Barbara Boxer and Rep. Mike Thompson helped introduce legislation into Congress that not only requires basic necessities such as food and water but also states that passengers have a right to escape their captivity after spending three hours trapped on board. Exceptions are made if passenger exits would be a safety hazard or the pilot believes a departure is imminent.
Yet the bills have languished, partly because of lobbying on behalf of the airlines.
I can agree with the airlines that, in theory, we shouldn’t need to pass such legislation.
In fact, the whole idea is just as ridiculous as imprisoning paying customers and depriving them of basic human necessities.
Imagine if movie theaters held viewers hostage for hours while they worked on fixing broken projectors, instead of allowing ticket holders to walk out and collect a refund.
Unfortunately, airlines have proven that they simply cannot be trusted to take reasonable care of their customers.
In 1999, 12 airlines signed voluntary customer service commitments. But according to a 2006 audit by the Department of Transportation, only five of those airlines were prepared to keep their promises.
This is why we, the customers, must pressure Washington to push the federal legislation through.
New York Sen. Charles E. Schumer pledged at the beginning of this week to help pass the year-old bill introduced by Boxer quickly in response to the setbacks faced by his state.
It’s important for us to support his and Boxer’s efforts. It is easy to forget about the incidents as they slowly fade out of our news media and minds.
But instead of taking the recent court ruling in New York as a defeat, let’s follow Schumer’s example and use it as a reminder that our national representatives need to hear from us before the next fiasco happens, while we still have access to food, water, telephones and e-mail.
After you finish e-mailing your representative, tell Strickland about your airline horror stories at kstrickland@media.ucla.edu. Send general comments to viewpoint@media.ucla.edu.