‘Game over’ for bill of rights opponents?

There’s an interesting interview with Passenger Bill of Rights opponent Kevin Mitchell in the March 5 issue of US News & World Report. Asked if the recent runway imprisonment incidents were a wake-up call for the airline industry, the chairman of the Business Travel Coalition said: “Let’s put it this way. I think if something like this happened again in two weeks, it would be lights out, game over, and there would be no stopping legislation.”

Well, why wait? It’s happened again.

The Chicago Tribune reports that a United Airlines flight was trapped on the tarmac last weekend in what looked like a replay of the events in Austin and New York that have unified the passenger rights movement.

“The Boeing 757 languished on the tarmac for seven hours before the pilots finally canceled the flight,” the Tribune reported. “It took another agonizing hour to get the plane back to the gate, where exhausted and frustrated passengers stumbled off the jet after midnight.”

So is this really ‘game over’? I think so.

With the exception of some right-leaning newspapers and the Air Transport Association, there are no credible opponents left to the passenger bill of rights.

Now all we need is a wise lawmaker who can take the best elements of previous bills and add them to the current legislation, to make it truly effective for all air travelers. Not just the ones stranded on the runway for hours on end.

(Incidentally, I’ve seen a working draft of Rep. Mike Thompson’s new bill. It requires airlines to provide a mechanism for handling customer complaints, forces airlines to allow passengers to deplane after three hours of waiting — with certain exceptions — and to provide basic necessities when there is a delay. It also makes airlines disclose chronically delayed flights. In addition, there’s also a provision that obligates airlines to return misplaced luggage within 24 hours.)

Christopher Elliott is the author of Scammed: How to Save Your Money and Find Better Service in a World of Schemes, Swindles, and Shady Deals. Critics have called it “eye-opening” and “inspiring” — it’ll “grab your attention and won’t let go.” Order your copy now on Amazon, Barnes & Noble or iTunes.

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