Marine Lance Corporal Christian Brown is a veteran of the war in Afghanistan, who lost both of his legs and a part of a Marine Lance Corporal Christian Brown is a veteran of the war in Afghanistan, who lost both of his legs and a part of a finger after stepping on an explosive device in the war-torn Helmand Province last year. The Washington Post reportsthat on Sunday, Brown was treated poorly on a Delta Air Lines flight from Atlanta to Washington:
Worse yet, according to retired Army Col. Nickey Knighton’s detailed “customer care” report to Delta, efforts by several fellow vets to shift Brown from coach to a first class seat offered by another flyer, were rebuffed by the crew. Flight attendants insisted no one could move through the cabin because the doors were being closed for takeoff, she wrote.
Knighton, a former helicopter pilot with nearly 30 years of service, who turned out to be seated in the same back row as Brown, assumed that because he boarded last, he would be seated up front for comfort and ease of exit in case of emergency. Instead, she wrote in a complaint obtained by “She The People,” he was squeezed into a narrow aviation wheelchair that “bumped up against stationary aisle seats as he was wheeled through the aircraft. [He] was obviously humiliated by being paraded through the aircraft and was visibly upset. I touched Brown on his shoulders and asked if he was okay. Tears ran down his face, but he did not cry out loud.”
In an official statement to the Post, Delta communications employee Michael R. Thomas said, “The story in no way reflects either Delta’s standard operating procedure or the very high regard we hold for our nation’s service members. We are sorry for the difficulties that transpired and are investigating this event to determine the appropriate next steps.”
When contacted by THE WEEKLY STANDARD for more information about the incident, and to see whether or not Delta CEO Richard H. Anderson has contacted Brown or his family to apologize, a Delta employee said the company was “working on reworking” the statement released to the Post and other media outlets. Kelly Regus, a spokesperson for the Delta council of the Air Line Pilots Association, said any questions about the identity of those piloting the plane “would be better addressed by Delta.”
Delta’s vice president for customer Care, Allison Ausband, posted on the company’s blog Friday afternoon that the Atlanta-based airline was “unsettled” by the episode. “We attempted to reach the customer as soon as we became aware of the situation, but so far have been unsuccessful in speaking with him directly.”
