Southwest Airlines has sent $5,000 checks and $1,000 travel vouchers to passengers on Flight 1380 that was forced to make an emergency landing after an engine exploded in midair Tuesday, killing one person, CNN reported.
Jennifer Riordan, a bank executive from Albuquerque, New Mexico, was killed when the engine exploded 20 minutes into a flight from New York to Dallas, blowing out a window next to her, People magazine reported. Other passengers kept her from being completely sucked out of the airplane as it made an emergency landing in Philadelphia.
One of the passengers, Kamau Siwatu, told CNN he received a letter from Southwest this week, along with at least two other passengers, containing a $5,000 check and a $1,000 travel voucher.
"We value you as our customer and hope you will allow us another opportunity to restore your confidence in Southwest as the airline you can count on for your travel needs," Siwatu's letter said, per CNN. "In this spirit, we are sending you a check in the amount of $5,000 to cover any of your immediate financial needs."
CNN transportation analyst Mary Schiavo told the network that airlines have made such offers in the past.
"It gets money in the hands of people that need it for counseling or something," Schiavo told CNN.
The network said that Southwest Airlines has yet to comment on the letters and checks.
The U.S. Department of Transportation website said U.S. airlines are required by law to provide information on how customers can file a complaint for compensation. Airlines are required to acknowledge written complaints within 30 days and send a response within 60 days.
"Like other businesses, airlines have a lot of discretion in how they respond to problems," the website said. "While you do have certain rights as a passenger, your demands for compensation will probably be subject to negotiation and the kind of action you get often depends in large part on the way you go about complaining."
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