Honest Pilot Refuses to Flyby Michele Cheplic | More from this Blogger 20 Jun 2008 11:00 PM Is honesty truly the best policy? It's a question passengers onboard a cancelled United Airlines asked themselves yesterday after their pilot announced he was too upset to fly. It may be the first time in commercial aviation history that an emotionally distraught pilot has walked off the job minutes before he was set to take flight. His decision left hundreds of travelers stranded and many more scratching their heads wondering how a situation like this could have happened in the first place. According to news reports, the angry United Airlines pilot was scheduled to fly a plane full of people from Salt Lake City to Denver Thursday afternoon, but right before take off he reportedly told passengers he didn't feel he could fly the aircraft safely after he was involved in "a labor-related dispute with colleagues." A businessman booked on the flight told news reporters that he saw the pilot yelling into his cellphone at the gate before he boarded, and overheard the pilot saying that "he was going to complain to the union." The man went on to say that he didn't think much of his observation until he heard the pilot announce the following over the airplane's PA system just minutes before take off: "Some of you may have witnessed an incident I was involved in at the gate," the pilot told passengers onboard the United Airlines flight. "I'm not going to go into the details, but it was an interpersonal confrontation that upset me significantly to the point where I'm not focused enough to fly you to Denver. I feel like I may not be calmed and focused enough to fly to Denver for another hour." The passengers reportedly reacted to the pilot's announcement with a collective groan. Can you imagine? Think about all of the passengers who might have had connecting flights to other destinations or who were scheduled to be in Denver at a certain time to attend an important meeting, a doctor's appointment, a funeral, a wedding, whatever. One passenger said he gave the pilot credit for being honest about his state of mind, but still classified the decision to delay the flight as "highly unusual." According to United, passengers were allowed to get off the plane until it was ready to leave, and most people did so after the announcement. One passenger who allegedly questioned the crew about the incident was told that the pilot's refusal to fly stemmed from crewmembers from another United flight observing the pilot wearing his hat. United's pilots union has been urging pilots to remove their hats when they "are likely to be viewed by management," as a form of protest for stripping them of incentives in a bankruptcy deal. In the end United ended up canceling the flight according to company procedures designed to ensure flight crews are prepared to fly. The airline reportedly rebooked affected passengers on other flights and promised to give them "goodwill gestures," which may include miles and travel certificates. How would you have reacted if you were one of the inconvenienced passengers onboard the United flight? Related Articles: Freaky Flight Attendant Starts Fire on Plane The One Thing You DON'T Want To See On An Airplane Benadryl Flight Attendant Saga---The Untold Story Mom and "Chatty" Tot Get Booted From Flight Coughing Teen Gets The Boot From Airline Breastfeeding At 35,000 Feet = High-Flying Controversy Learn more about Michele Cheplic  Michele Cheplic was born and raised in Hilo, Hawaii, but now lives in Wisconsin. Michele graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a degree in Journalism. Relevanttravel tags User Comments No comments on this article yet. Be the first to comment! Community Tags air travel, delayed flight, flight, pilot, United Airlines Discuss this article
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