Utah woman offered $3,000 to give up seat on flight amid busy travel weekend
SALT LAKE CITY (KUTV) — A plane was overbooked and delayed — but then came a big incentive to make it all work.
That’s what Utah’s Blanca Tirado said happened on her Delta flight to Salt Lake from Billings, Montana, where she had been on business.
At the gate in Billings, she said a deal was proposed.
“They were offering $700 to give up my seat,” Tirado said.
She added that once she boarded with other passengers, the offer became much sweeter.
Once I was on the plane, that’s when they said, ‘Hey, we’re offering you a $3,000 Visa card for you to give up your seat,’” she said.
The offer increased by $2,300, going from $700 at the gate to $3,000 on the plane.
“Did you think about it?“ KUTV asked Tirado.
I did, actually, but after that it was like, I just want to get home,” Tirado said.
The experience happened on Friday, the busiest day thus far at Salt Lake International Airport during Independence Day weekend, according to airport spokeswoman Nancy Volmer.
Volmer said 27,000 people were expected to walk through the door for outbound flights, and as many would be on arrivals.
Then there are people catching connecting flights.
In total, the number of passengers Friday may easily turn out to be larger than the population of the whole city of Logan.
FlightAware reported five canceled flights at Salt Lake International on Friday, and dozens of delays — but most flights, by far, were on time, and the airport did not seem overcrowded.
