Officer who violently dragged man off United Airlines flight put on leave

United employees explained the situation to the man several times, Hobart said.

"The DoT remains committed to protecting the rights of consumers and reviewing the involuntary denied boarding of passenger (s) from United Express flight 3411 to determine whether the airline complied with the oversales rule", Xinhua news agency cited the department as saying on Monday. His lip was cut as he was dragged off the jet for refusing to give up his paid seat.

Two officers tried to reason with the man before a third came aboard and pointed at him and ordered him to leave, before pulling him out of his seat.

According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, United forced almost 3,765 people off oversold flights. I apologize for having to re-accommodate these customers.

He said the airline is working with authorities and will conduct its own detailed review of the incident.

After the videos went viral, United CEO Oscar Munoz said in a statement on April 10 that it was "an upsetting event to all of us here at United", reports the Chicago Tribune. United said airline representatives chose four passengers to leave the plane at random based on ticket class, frequent flier status and check-in time, and that one man selected refused to leave his seat.

"We apologize for the overbook situation".

The managers then took the route which they say was the only "available option" and physically dragged him out, injuring him and leaving his mouth bloody. When no one volunteered, United made a decision to randomly select passengers.

The flight ended up being delayed by about two hours.

The man could be heard screaming when the officers grabbed him, and then he went silent as he was dragged down the aisle, his glasses knocked down his face, and his shirt riding up his torso, CBS Chicago reported.

The Chicago police department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

"We nearly felt like we were being taken hostage", Tyler Bridges said. Another man travelling with high school students stood up at that point and said they were getting off the plane, Bridges said.

Fellow passenger Jayse D. Anspach, who goes by @JayseDavid on Twitter, wrote: "No one volunteered (to leave), so @United decided to choose for us". The airport said it had personnel who needed seats to be at work the next day.

But the violent treatment sparked worldwide outrage, leading United Airlines to confirm the event and issue an apology.