Category: Conditions of carriage

Airline not liable for refusing to transport customer who lacked required travel documents

March 28, 2011

Reed v. Delta Airlines, Inc. (S.D.N.Y. Mar. 23, 2011).  The plaintiff and her dog, Blondie, arrived at John F. Kennedy International Airport to check in for their flight to Ghana.  Delta personnel informed the plaintiff that she lacked certain documents that Ghana required for Blondie to enter the country.  The plaintiff put Blondie in a cab to … More Airline not liable for refusing to transport customer who lacked required travel documents

DOT enforces consumer-friendly interpretation of Montreal Convention baggage liability provisions

January 4, 2011

As previously reported, on March 26, 2009 DOT issued a “Guidance on Airline Baggage Liability and Responsibilities of Code-Share Partners Involving International Itineraries” that states in part as follows:  “Although carriers may wish to have tariff terms that prohibit passengers from including certain items in checked baggage, once a carrier accepts checked baggage, whatever is … More DOT enforces consumer-friendly interpretation of Montreal Convention baggage liability provisions

Passenger’s second visit to Fifth Circuit yields additional baggage damages but no attorneys’ fees

May 31, 2009

Muoneke v. Compagnie Nationale Air France (5th Cir. Tex. May 12, 2009).  In 2004, the passenger traveled from Texas to Nigeria on Air France’s flights.  During a change of aircraft in Paris, Air France personnel required that the passenger check the baggage she had carried onto the prior flight.  The passenger claimed that when she … More Passenger’s second visit to Fifth Circuit yields additional baggage damages but no attorneys’ fees

Court denies passenger recovery against airline for loss of itinerant robot head

June 30, 2008

Hanson v. America West Airlines, Inc. (C.D. Cal. Mar. 29, 2008).  Sometimes the truth is stranger than fiction or even science fiction.  The passenger in this case, a roboticist, sued the airline for the loss of “an artistically and scientifically valuable robotic head modeled after famous science fiction author Philip K. Dick.”  According to the … More Court denies passenger recovery against airline for loss of itinerant robot head

Fifth Circuit vacates summary judgment against passenger in baggage case

September 30, 2007

Muoneke v. Air France (5th Cir. Tex. Sept. 17, 2007).  The day after her flight from Texas arrived in Nigeria, the passenger went to the airline’s lost baggage office at the airport and claimed that several items were missing from her checked baggage.  The passenger alleged that she submitted a written claim regarding the missing … More Fifth Circuit vacates summary judgment against passenger in baggage case