An unfortunate ending for a United Airlines pilot has resulted in Captain Cynthia Clifford losing her job when the charter flight she was operating saw a passenger sit in her seat and post it on social media. The flight was a charter service on board a Boeing 757 aircraft between Denver International Airport (DEN) and Toronto Pearson International Airport (YYZ).

Clifford was the captain of the charter flight for the Colorado Rockies baseball team when, during the flight, the captain went to the bathroom. During her time away from her seat, unknowingly, a coach had entered the cockpit and sat in her seat. Clifford learned what happened once she returned and escalated her concerns through the airline’s Flight Safety Action Program.

A Three-Person Event Review Committee Accepted Clifford’s Report

Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Following the process, Clifford had submitted the report through the FSAP, which is a program that is built on the idea that pilots can report safety issues without the concern of retaliation. According to the report, a three-person Event Review Committee had accepted her submission, which was expected to then close the matter; however, unfortunately, it didn’t.

Instead, this was brought to the attention of the Federal Aviation Administration, and when the agency found out that no actions were being undertaken, they replaced the FAA member on the board who would be able to vote differently, resulting in Clifford losing her job.

The case was argued that the FSAP was not possible in this incident, due to alcohol being involved with the coach member who had taken a seat. While usually this would not be considered as it applies to crew members, in this case, it was decided that, due to the passenger consuming alcohol, further precautions should have been taken.

United Airlines Pilot And First Officer Fired Following Incident

Credit: United Airlines

The first officer was in the cockpit at the time of the incident, and in a report by One Mile At A Time, has noted that they lost their job as well (given that they may not have intervened to stop the incident from happening). Clifford, who took the expected steps to report the incident, has now been fired from the Star Alliance airline.

Karlene Petitt, a retired captain who remains working in the industry to actively improve safety outcomes, has suggested that United’s CEO Scott Kirby used Clifford as a scapegoat. This was to cover up the systemic charter program safety issues, which have been challenged for years. While the ALPA Master Executive Chair, Captain Anne Worster, provided a testimony to protect Clifford’s job, it fell short.

Allegedly, no actions were taken against the coach who made their way onto the flight deck, and what likely started as a joke by the coach has ended terribly for two pilots at one of the world’s largest airlines.

What Other Factors Could Have Influenced The Dismissal

Credit: Shutterstock

Charter flights can be big money, and as every passenger is treated like they are in first class, this has somewhat led to an unwritten policy where they ‘can do whatever they want’. It can be common practice in charter flights for the cockpit door to be left open; this should have been monitored, and the first officer should have stepped in to stop the coach from taking the seat.

This has raised questions as to whether Clifford’s termination was due to flagging the safety concern on charters, or due to an FAA evaluation of the airline (which they passed), despite the firing. Clifford continues to fight for the sanctity of filing these safety reports without retaliation, but instead, as Petitt put it, has ‘killed the messenger’.

Passengers remain prohibited from sitting in a pilot’s seat due to life-threatening distractions and unauthorized control tampering. It is only permitted for certified, trained operating crew and authorized aviation officials to sit in the flight deck. These are strict security laws that were mandated after 9/11 to prevent unauthorized access and hijacking.