United Airlines sued by security officer who was fired for dragging man off flight

Tom Powell12 April 2018

A former airport security officer who was fired after a passenger was dragged screaming off an overbooked flight is suing United Airlines.

James Long is also suing Chicago’s Department of Aviation, its commissioner and the city over the incident in April last year.

He claims he was not trained on the level of force required, resulting in the shocking video footage which sparked outcry across the world.

The clip showed David Dao being dragged from the plane by his arms in order to make room for United Airlines employees.

The Vietnamese-American, 69, had been forcibly removed after refusing to give up his seat on the flight from Chicago to Louisville, Kentucky.

The treatment of Dr David Dao from United Airlines received widespread criticism
Reuters

Dr Dao, who suffered a broken nose, concussion and lost two front teeth in the ordeal, later received an undisclosed amount of money from the airline in a settlement.

United also publicly apologised for the incident in the face of demonstrations at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport.

Mr Long and three other security officers were placed on leave after the incident and he was fired in August.

He now claims the airline should have known that calling security would result in “the use of physical force”, according to the complaint filed on Tuesday.

"But for the CDA's negligence and failure to train [Long] how to respond to an escalating situation with an Airline Passenger, [he] would not have acted in the manner he did, which resulted in his termination," the complaint says.

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