dp
United Airlines is preparing for customers who may object to flying into an airport named for President Donald Trump, and reservation agents have been authorized to move those passengers to Fort Lauderdale or Miami without charging more.
United Airlines is giving reservation agents unusual flexibility to accommodate customers who no longer want to fly to West Palm Beach after the airport was renamed President Donald J. Trump International Airport.
According to an internal memo shared with Live And Let’s Fly, United is the process of updating its systems to rename West Palm Beach Airport (PBI) to President Donald J. Trump (DJT).
But the most interesting guidance concerns customers who object to the airport’s new name.
United tells reservation agents:
“If a customer does not want to fly to the airport, use your empowerment to offer acceptable alternatives such as Fort Lauderdale Airport (FLL) or Miami International Airport (MIA).”
The memo even provides a suggested response:
“I understand that you’d rather not fly to this airport anymore. We can look at nearby airports like Fort Lauderdale or Miami instead. Is that an acceptable alternative?”
Agents are then instructed to process the change as an even exchange.
United Is Effectively Offering Free Changes For Customers Who Object To DJT Airport
That appears to mean a customer booked to West Palm Beach can ask to avoid the newly renamed airport and be moved to Fort Lauderdale or Miami without paying a fare difference. Thus, United is empowering agents to provide a concrete alternative for passengers who would rather not travel through an airport bearing Trump’s name.
Fort Lauderdale is roughly 45 miles south of West Palm Beach, while Miami is even farther. Neither is a perfect substitute, but both provide access to South Florida without requiring the customer to use DJT.
Airlines generally do not permit complimentary destination changes simply because a traveler dislikes the name of an airport. Yet United appears to recognize that the renaming may be sufficiently objectionable to some customers that allowing an even exchange is preferable to forcing the issue…a pragmatic approach that is. more generous than I would personally offer, since it wasn’t like United was responsible for the change (or even the airport itself).
There are still limits. The memo says agents should offer an “acceptable alternative,” which suggests the change remains subject to availability and whatever discretion United grants its reservation staff.
But the central policy is clear: customers who do not want to fly to the Trump-named airport may be accommodated at another South Florida airport without being charged more.
CONCLUSION
United has already prepared employees to handle confusion over whether West Palm Beach should be called PBI, DJT, or Donald J. Trump Airport.
Now we learn the airline is going a step further. Passengers who object to flying into DJT may be moved to Fort Lauderdale or Miami as an even exchange. In practical terms, United is offering customers a free way to avoid the newly renamed airport.
