United Airlines fined $1.9m for long ground delays

United has been fined $1.9m over 25 flights in which the plane sat on the ground for several hours, the largest fine imposed by the government for such long delays. The Transportation Department said Friday that the incidents occurred between December 2015 and February of this year. More than 3,200 passengers were trapped on planes without being given a chance to disembark, the department said. In a consent order, United said most of the delays involved diversions caused by severe weather, when the airline is focused on making sure that planes land safely. The airline said it was a small number of the nearly 8 million operated by United and its United Express affiliates over the five-year span of the violations. United was ordered to pay $950,000. The airline was given credit of $750,000 for compensating passengers on delayed flights and $200,000 for the cost of developing a tool to improve the management of diverted flights.<br/>