News and notes from around the interweb:
- Should the airline compensate you if another passenger throws up on you inflight? You had a bad customer experience, but the airline didn’t do it, shouldn’t the other passenger be the one to provide compensation?
On a flight on 2/21 from LAX to PDX. Had a delay on the tarmac due to maintenance logs. About 30 min into our wait, a woman comes running up the aisle spewing vomit in the walkway and, by the time she reached row 1 she hit both myself and the lady on the other side of the aisle with full on chunks and spew. Flight attendants and cleaning crew mopped up, my clothes went into a biohazard bag and we eventually got off the ground and home. Question is: they offered 6 of us 1000 points on the plane and then when I got home they emailed me another 3000. Is this reasonable or should I request more?
…No Alaska did not throw up on me. Yes the flight attendants and crew were terrific… It seems like 4000 points for dry cleaning a linen outfit is fair. Alaska was an absolute champ in this whole situation
- Trump’s 757:
Apparently this 757 has built – in air stairs pic.twitter.com/0YCm8VBfyq
— Thenewarea51 (@thenewarea51) March 5, 2025
- Ritz-Carlton Portland faces foreclosure
Block 216 has struggled to land office tenants. Just 23% of the office space is leased, according to Ready Capital. Nor has Bowen been able to sell many of the 132 Ritz-Carlton condominiums. Only 8% have sold, according to Ready Capital’s earnings report, at an average of $1,105 per square foot.
The hotel is underperforming, too, Ready Capital said. Its average revenue per available room was $188 in 2024, compared with $343.28, the average for all Ritz-Carlton hotels during the same period.
- Retro livery.
Flying America West Airlines Today
byu/Dontoweyouathang inamericanairlines - They say Starbucks is in decline. Counterpoint:
- At a Deluxe Dining Room on the 100th Floor, a Chef Toils in Obscurity “In New York, private restaurants in luxury towers are a popular amenity. The public cannot eat there, and residents only drop in occasionally.” (NYT)
Reality: No one pays, except the person who gets vomit on them–they’re screwed!
Most of the attention at DEN gets directed at TSA and the trains but it’s aesthetically pleasing airport especially in the newer areas imho
@1990 Who wants chowder?
@L737 — Oof. 8 crates of Ipecac! ‘I feel fine… OHMYG..BRRR’ Classic.
It is nice that Alaska Airlines gave them some points but I don’t think that Alaska owed anybody anything. The person puking likely had no control. As a passenger, being away from the aisle is probably best to minimize chances of someone puking on you. Of course, putting a large folded trash bag in your pocket and offering at the appropriate time would probably help in a lot of cases.
I’d rather fly on America West than the garbage that AA has become nowadays. At least with HP, you knew what you were getting up front, unlike AA.
If it was me throwing up I’d totally offer the passengers affected compensation. Probably at least $100 each. A couple of years ago my wife splashed a minor amount of squid sauce on the sleeve of the guy sitting next to us at a restaurant in Munich and even when we didn’t speak the same language I flagged the server and refilled his and his friend’s beers. People appreciate the gesture. But I realize most people today would be like “oh well, I feel better after vomiting. Here’s my vomit. Now it’s your problem”. And you are not going to sue them for compensation. Also, hasn’t anyone heard of sick bags? They’re literally right within your reach.
I wish we could move past a point as a society where everything bad that happens deserves compensation. If the person throwing up had manners they would offer to help but I am sure they wished they hadn’t thrown up also!!
Think about these things the next time you complain about your insurance rates increasing.
@Michael — Aww, you’re a nice guy to offer that. But, you don’t have to–as you say, no one is likely going to sue for compensation–the tort of ‘having been vomited on’–but they probably should!
@Connor is wrong–pay up! And insurance should pay out! Or else, Mario’s brother is coming! /s
Likewise, you could fart all you want and no one can do much about it. So, fart away, fellas! Bean-burritos before each flight! Let ’em rip!
the airline did not make the passenger eat whatever he chucked, the airline did not designate the passenger intentionally to be seated in range of the tosser. nor did they force the sick passenger to board, the airline has no liability. this is strictly between the two individuals..
@Doug — So true, sir. Though, I’d go a step further: The passenger receiving the vomit should pay *the airline* for that ‘benefit’–after all, some people pay good money to get other peoples’ fluids on them–fair is fair. Well said!
The vomiting passenger is liable. But the airline is in exclusive possession of the identity and contact information of the liable person, and stands as a information wall between the damaged person and their ability to be compensated. The responsibility of the airline therefore is to act as an honest broker or mediator, contact the liable person and ask them to assume responsibility for the damages they caused, and then mediate between the liable person and the damaged person until the matter is satisfactorily and agreeably resolved. If the liable person refuses to reasonably participate in the process, they should be banned. If the liable person makes a reasonable offer which is refused by the damaged person, then the airline should give the damaged person the name, address, email address, and phone number of the liable person, so they can take any legal action they want against the liable person, at which point the airline can step aside without any further responsibility.