In response to the notorious dragging of a seated passenger in April, United is set to launch a program that lets passengers on overbooked flights make a bid on how much compensation they will take to give up their seats. The bidding program would be new to United, but a similar program was pioneered among major carriers by Delta several years ago. Delta takes bids from passengers via text and chooses the lowest bid until the carrier has accommodated every passenger. “As part of our commitment to further improve our customers’ travel experience with us, we plan to test an automated system that will offer customers an opportunity to voluntarily bid for a desired compensation amount in exchange for potentially changing travel plans if faced with an overbooked flight,” United said. Testing for the program will begin next month in select markets, but the airline declined to offer more details. The program is one of several changes the carrier is making since David Dao, a passenger on a fully booked United flight in April, was dragged off the plane by airport police when he refused to give up his seat to make room for airline crew members.<br/>
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As a strike by more than half its 1,300 pilots moved into the second week, Colombian flag carrier Avianca has activated what the airline calls an operational mitigation plan. “We have … adjusted our itineraries in the most efficient ways possible with active crews and available physical resources,” Avianca said, advising passengers to check flight status or request refunds if flights are canceled. Last week, all ticket sales for destinations within Colombia were suspended for three days as a measure “intended to mitigate potential damages,” the airline said. The 730 pilots, represented by the Colombian Association of Civil Aviators (ACDAC) went on strike Sept. 20, following a breakdown in contract negotiations. Avianca declared the pilot strike illegal, saying while the right to strike is guaranteed by the Colombian constitution, it is not guaranteed for essential public services. Avianca cited a public law saying transportation is an essential public service, “therefore, the strike called by ACDAC is illegal [and] should [the pilots] follow through, the airline will take the corresponding disciplinary measures.” However, ACDAC president Jaime Hernandez responded saying commercial aviation is not an essential public service. Avianca said it had presented more than 20 proposals to ACDAC leaders to improve pilot benefits, which were rejected by ACDAC. <br/>
Lufthansa named its former finance chief Karl-Ludwig Kley as new chairman of its supervisory board, replacing Wolfgang Mayrhuber, who resigned six months before the end of his term. Kley, 66, who is also the chairman of power company E.ON’s supervisory board, took over Monday, the flagship carrier said. He was Lufthansa’s finance chief for eight years through 2006 before joining drugs and chemicals group Merck KGaA, where he later became chief executive.<br/>