An American Airlines passenger’s luggage was run over by a truck after being forced through a gate check
An American Airlines passenger was forced to check in her carry-on bag at the gate – but it was destroyed after it appeared to have been run over by a truck.
The frustrated traveler collected her suitcase from baggage claim, where she was told it was “broken”. shared on Reddit.
“But… it was actually garbled,” the passenger wrote. “All non-clothing items were completely destroyed and all my clothing items were dirty.”
The interior of the luggage, including clothes, shoes and other items, was covered in powder makeup that had been crushed and turned into dust, photos shared by the traveler show.
“I didn’t know what to do, so I just started crying (I know, silly, but I was in a strange city now and had literally nothing but my phone and a bunch of dirty clothes),” she said.
The woman’s Invisalign retainer was also destroyed in the crush and she said she was concerned the airline would not cover the additional cost of the dentist visit that would be required for the replacement.
She said a nice baggage worker helped her file a claim for the damaged goods and she was given a new carry-on bag — “but how… what the hell am I supposed to put in there?” she added.
Other Reddit users recommended making a detailed listing of all items destroyed and their cost.
One commenter, a maintenance engineer, said the flight passenger’s bag was likely run over by a work truck on the tarmac.
The engineer admitted that they once ran over a piece of luggage themselves.
“One night it rained heavily – with that stupid mix of asphalt and concrete that seemed to turn into a black hole and yet every light was glaring in my eyes – I just drove as usual with a colleague in our work truck to one of ours Night planes,” they wrote. “I swear there’s a strange noise coming up ahead.”
They said their colleague shrugged because he thought it was just a “piece of shit work van.”
The Redditor said they stopped the truck after another thirty yards.
“Of course – a standard black bag is practically wedged under the front of the truck like any other piece of luggage,” they wrote. “It looked very similar to the OP’s pics above, except the top had some wear.”
The maintenance technician warned many travelers who have ordinary black luggage.
“Those black bags [are] “It’s impossible to see anything on those rainy nights,” they said. “Just an accident. Falls off a cart. Will be picked up in another vehicle.”
A Delta passenger just two days earlier shared a picture of their checked baggage — which has been massively shredded and torn apart — on Reddit.
