Best and Worst Airline Stories of 2013

The year began with duct tape.

A man who was so intoxicated on an Iceland Air flight that his fellow passengers were forced to restrain him by duct-taping him to his seat was one of the first major airline stories of 2013. The story, and the photos that accompanied it, were so unbelievable that I hesitated to report it as it began to surface. But it was true.

Let's call duct-taped airline passenger a low point for air travel in 2013. There were others, of course, but there were also some incredible stories of airline service and compassion. Stories so beautiful they brought me to tears.

And then there was the woman escorted off a plane for singing Whitney Houston songs.

Click through the next few pages to see the best and worst of air travel in 2013. And that story that made me cry? It's the last one on the list, and my pick for the very best airline story of 2013.

A cellphone video showed passengers onboard an Iceland Air flight from Reykjavik to New York's John F. Kennedy Airport subduing an unruly passenger by tying him to his seat with duct tape and zip ties after he began screaming and hitting other passengers.

The unidentified passenger allegedly downed an entire bottle of duty-free alcohol, according to a man who posted a photo on his blog, who said the picture was taken by a friend on the flight.

The airline accused the man of accosting and hitting people on the flight. Passengers say he even tried to choke the person next to him and screamed, "The plane is going to crash."

Once in awhile, an airline employee does something that goes above and beyond the call of duty to help a customer. But it's probably safe to assume that none of those employees were the CEO of the airline.

Richard Anderson, Delta's CEO, gave up his seat on an oversold flight, making it possible for Jessie Frank to pick her daughter up from a summer camp for diabetic kids, she said.

Read the rest here:
Best and Worst Airline Stories of 2013