United Airlines Staff Humiliates Passenger Over Carry-On Baggage

Two passengers checking-in for a United Airlines flight from Chicago to New Jersey went through a tense interaction with the airlines staff regarding the size of a carry-on bag. One passenger even claimed she was humiliated during the encounter, reports said Tuesday.

Natalia Rutkowski, 27, was traveling with her mother Anna, 58, on Feb. 12 evening from Chicago to New Jersey when the incident occurred. Rutkowski said she was confronted by the airline staff about the size of her carry-on baggage. She recorded the entire incident on tape.

“I had already checked my bag and was helping my mom to check in on the computer when a prompt on the screen said a United staff member had to swipe,” Rutkowski, who works as an account executive in New Jersey, told News.com.au.

“At first, an old woman said, ‘No, she is not allowed to take her bag onto the plane,’” she continued. “It was a certain dimension that the bag had to fit, but the woman didn’t even allow us to put the bag into the personal item bin to show them that it fit inside. She was extremely rude.”

Rutkowski then stated that another United Airlines staff member at the Chicago O’Hare Airport got involved in the issue and asked her to prove that the carry-on item fit the specified dimensions — even though Rutkowski claimed she had already placed her purse in the carry-on bin as proof.

“She asked me to put the bag into the bin which I did and she said, ‘OK, well the person who swiped has to see it.’ I said, ‘This is the third time I’ve done it,’” Rutkowski said.

Then reportedly a third person got involved in the situation — who Rutkowski claimed pulled her bag out of the bin and said it was oversized and insisted she pay a $25 fee in order to check in.

“Then a man came over and shoved his badge in my face and took the bag out of the bin and then plopped it back in sideways so it purposely wouldn’t fit,” she said. “There was a lot of fuss. I was agitated and there were a lot of people starting to stare."

“I didn’t understand why we were treated like that. It was so ridiculous. It was like saying a dog is a cat,” she continued. “They told us we were not getting on the plane.”

After speaking to several members of staff, Rutkowski mentioned that she and her mother were able to board the flight with their baggage after one United staff member supported them.

“Finally the last person who came over and I put it in and it clearly fit perfectly and he was like, ‘Oh, yes, it does fit. I don’t understand why we have this issue,’” she said.

Although the pair was eventually allowed to board the flight, Rutkowski said the incident left her and her Russian-born mother, feeling extremely humiliated.

“I was shaking and I literally felt like I was sweating and agitated,” she said. “My mum was teary. It was just an overwhelming situation. I had never been so disrespected and mistreated and embarrassed.”

“Honestly I was just bewildered and my mom was emotional and angry,” she added.

The airline said it was investigating the incident, however, a spokesperson said the following to Fox News: "The customer was allowed to carry on her bag. We have reached out to this customer directly and are reviewing this incident with our team to better understand what happened.”