Losing Lunch On American Airlines

I'm torn over this letter.

On the one hand, I'm completely grossed out that you got covered in
puke while your seat mate was passing his "barf bag" to the steward.
That alone is awful.

I guess I don't understand why the steward didn't immediately get you
the gloves right when the incident happened instead of making you
leave the plane covered in puke and get them from a supervisor at the
desk.

Personally, I think if you were seated in first class, the guy who
actually caused the incident should have offered to take care of the
damages. That would have been the polite thing to do and if he's in
First Class, he should be able to pay for it with no problem. After
all, no one from the airline threw up, he did.

However, judging by the way you speak throughout your letter, I can
only imagine what kind of scene was thrown in the airport. While the
entire situation is unfortunate and inconvenient (and gross!), to be
honest, the airline didn't really do anything wrong.

And adding the comment about "Do whatever additional compensatory
action deemed reasonable to make me want to use this carrier again in
the future." is just greedy and adds to the impression that you are
out for freebies rather than seeking to have damaged items replaced.

Oh, and FYI, the most expensive Thinkpad currently on Lenovo's website
is $1799. If you paid $3000, you have bigger issues than vomit on
your carry case.

you might have done better going to one of the food establishments in
the airport for getting some latex gloves to handle the 'stuff'.
Yikes that's gross. Hope you got it all cleaned up. I don't think
you will get much else from them though.

Not to make light of your unfortunate ordeal, but this letter (and
comments) is a major breakthrough in the diet/weight loss industry.
Forget counting calories, carbs, fats, exercising and wasting your
money on pills. Whenever you're tempted to eat, simply read this, and
I guarantee food will be the last thing on your mind. It's working
for ME!

Ewww...ewww...I think I would have started throwing up myself if this
happened to me. There is no way I would have been able to sit through
the landing smelling of puke.

I hope the airline does something for you.Or at least reinforces their
barf bags before I have to fly again.

Ok, see, I would have blown chunks the moment this happened to me so
I'd say you're a pretty strong-stomached person.

I hope the airline reimburses you for the items that were destroyed.

you can't always get what you want.... but if you try sometimes you
just might find....you get what you need.
How about a slight oversight on your part that could have made this a
whole lot more easier to deal with?
One Can of Scotchguard...not sure of the cost.... well applied to One
Thinkpad executive notebook bag, Or one dollar store zip lock bag for
one set Centrios Headphone set. Or one "plastic document holder" for
Metra Monthly A-H (I can think of a word or two for "A" "H" btw but
i'll be kind just this once) pass.

funny I see no mention of replacement clothing or at least cleaning
bills...was this vomit dropping orchestrated only to fall on certain
items and not effect your person in any way????

"Whatever additional compensatory action deemed reasonable to make me
want to use this carrier again in the future." is way too vague. One
MUST be succinct in one's demands and not let it left to the cruel
twists of fate. What one person deems "reasonalble" ( a pack of
salted nuts, for example) may make someone else non appreciative of
what one deems "reasonable". See where I'm going with this?
Nowhere.... just like your letter.

I am grateful that your $3000 Think Pad (you actually PAID MSRP??? tsk
tsk tsk)... was undamaged (have you sniffed it sufficiently? Maybe
there's the faint smell of vomit you may have inadvertantly missed
being exposed to the odor for so very torturously long...it's like
perfume/ cologne...to the wearer it may seem like "just right" but to
someone else it may well be nauseating, causing one to get ill, and
tossing chunks into a defective bag etc etc etc)

So I would include the 3000 dollar computer in with the list of
"gimme's" as a cushion should they decide "salty peanuts" is deemed
reasonable. So do make those changes to your letter along with
"furious"....and get used to "furious" because I have a certain
feeling I can see what course of action the letter reciever will take
after hopefully having a short "chuckle" break in an otherwise
productive, busy day dealing with real issues...

Very well written and conveys your true intentions. Proper grammar,
punctuation, and day/date skills. Very well documented in all the
critical areas you chose to share.

Do write us back on your new Lenovo Think Pad.... do be wise and pick
the micro carbonfiber platinum finish...maybe a more watertight think
pad case or sleeve at the very least. I hope it's the first email you
send.... we at planet feedback love the aroma of new pixels...well at
least I do.

Lucky it wasn't another company's product's battery or the possibility
of a fire on an aircraft would have been a much more leveraging proof
of need for compensation from the airline turning your "furious" back
to "annoyed"

I know this is beside the point, but did the person who threw up on
you act as if they were embarassed/horrified/sorry, etc?

Good letter. I like how you pointed out that the plane staff was
helpful and courteous.

I am in this industry, but I can find no precedent to give you a
response on this. I'm sure it's happened before, but I just don't know
whose responsibility it is.

At the very least, the supervisor could have been more helpful and
sympathetic. A request for gloves was not unreasonable and she should
have responded respectfully.

This is a pretty good letter. The subject isn't trivial, and it's
well-written and doesn't go overboard. There's perhaps a bit too much
focus on compensation, but nothing outrageous there either.

I think if this had happened to me, I'd have just let it go.
Accidents do happen, and an exploding bag of puke is only indirectly
the airline's fault, at best.

You might get something, you might not. As I've said before, our
lawsuit-happy society has led to companies giving compensation much
more rarely than in ages past. If they compensate you, they're
essentially admitting fault, and who's to say you won't be back the
next day with three lawyers and a psychiatrist saying you've suffered
trauma and are now afraid to fly, etc? Sure, it's a bit farfetched,
but it wouldn't be the silliest lawsuit ever filed, either.

First, and I think we'd all agree... gross! I'm very sorry that this
happened to you.

Second, the airline should, from a customer service standpoint, have
assisted you. Nothing major, but they certainly should have given you
the gloves you asked for.

Third, airlines get very nervous about breaking security rules. Some
people are able to make decisions, but many will just defer to "no,
that's the rules." In this case, having your bags brought to you or
being provided access to a private area appeared to be security
problems. Unfortunate, yes. But most airline employees are not going
to do a whole lot.

I was once (pre-9/11) at the gate when I felt very ill. I told the
gate agent that I needed to get to a rest room quickly and needed help
with my bags. She told me that I needed to take them with me. If I
needed help, she could call someone, but that might take some time.
So, I know how it is. But, in retrospect, it's clear to me that it's
not safe to just let someone leave there bags at an airport gate.

If this happened last Friday (the 14th? The 11th?), you can certainly
understand the airlines position of making 0 exceptions.

As for being reimbursed for damages. If the flight attendant spilled
vomit on you (due to a broken bag or not), the airline should, as a
courtesy, offer you some consideration. However, they aren't REQUIRED
to do so. My guess is that the airline will offer you something.

Good luck. These things happen, although they are never pleasant.

I would think that it was the person throwing up that owes you any
compensation. Have you spoke to him or her yet?

I have a coupe of questions

First, you say this occurred on Friday August 14th. Today (Monday) is
August 14th. When did this really occur?

Second and much more importantly you say this occurred when on final
approach. FAA regulations require that when landing/taking off you
carry on bags be stowed under the seat in front of you or in the
overhead bin. Why were you holding the bag?

While what happened to you was unfortunate, I do not believe the
airline owes you anything. I agree with the other posters, check
with you homeowners policy, your employer if this was business.

It seems obvious that they owe you compensation under the
circumstances. Could the supervisor possibly not have understood that
the mess was caused by the failure of the airsick bag and not simply
by someone puking on you?

OTOH there is absolutely no way they could have allowed your checked
luggage into the secure area. That is dead-on illegal and has nothing
to do with the airline.

Good luck with your letter. It seems like a slam-dunk case.

Geez, that is just awful! I feel really bad for you as well as the
person who threw up. I imagine they were mortified....sorry to hear
that the supervisor did not treat you well. There is no excuse for
that. Good luck with your letter. I don't know what compensation you
are due since I have never heard of someone having this problem. But
you sound like a reasonable person and I wish you good luck with your
letter! If AA doesn't respond, they are idiots.

Jeffrey W.,
If it was me I'd file a claim on my homeowners insurance and they
would take on the airlines.
If you were traveling on business possibly your company can be of some
assistance.
Bill R.

Yuck...that is gross. I would be mad it happened too, did the person
that threw up even say they were sorry (I know that it wasn't their
fault, but I would have felt bad!) I get car sick, motion sick, all
kinds of sick and I would have went to the bathroom. I know not the
point of the letter. I think you deserve compensation, I would like to
know if you find out anything from writing this letter.