Passenger advocate finally sues American over 2006 ground delay

Kate Hanni, the California woman who single-handedly launched a nationwide lobbying effort for legislation to protect airline passengers’ rights during long ground delays, has finally sued American Airlines over the incident that got her started, according to press reports from Ft. Worth. Hanni and another passenger from that flight have charged the airline with false imprisonment, negligence and fraud, seeking unspecified damages. The two were among scores of passengers on an American flight in late DecemberlateDecember 2006 that was diverted from DFW to Austin, where it sat on the ground for more than eight hours. The two filed class action suits on behalf of themselves and other affected passengers, the reports said. As a result of her experience, Hanni formed a passenger advocacy organization to push for legislation guaranteeing passengers’ basic rights in such situations. She has appeared repeatedly in the media and before congressional committees to advance her cause, and was named one of the most influential people in travel for 2007 by Travel Weekly, a travel industry trade newspaper. Hanni’s group, with 22,000 members, has web sites at www.flyersrights.com and http://strandedpassengers.blogspot.com.