- Kristen Horabin waited at DFW International Airport as all other bags came out
- Asked a member of staff who gestured to a ripped-up bag inside a black bin
- Half belongings missing and the others were ripped and smeared with grease
- American Airlines said it would pay for the damages and give a travel voucher
A mother-of-three returned from a weekend getaway to find her bag had been shredded by American Airlines, which left half her belongings in a bin and the others missing.
Kristen Horabin had just returned from a break in Tampa when she and her husband waited at the luggage carousel at DFW International Airport as all the other passengers’ bags came out.
When Horabin asked a member of staff where her bag was, the woman said, ‘Oh, maybe its your bag other there’, as she gestured to the ripped up-suitcase dumped in a black plastic bin.
Kristen Horabin was waiting at baggage reclaim at DFW International Airport when she saw her bag had been shredded by American Airlines and left in a black bin
The suitcase had been broken into two pieces and the most of the clothes inside were ripped and smeared with black grease and toothpaste. Half of the contents was missing, according to Horabin.
‘It’s just stuff. Stuff can be replaced. It was really just more shocking the way it was handled,’ she told WFAA.com.
‘I guess what I find so appalling is that, after it happened, someone gathered up what was left of my bag and my belongings and put them in the bin and sent it on its way.’
Horabin says she hopes the airline will avoid sending such a heavily damaged bag onto the luggage carousel without any explanation.
Horabin’s (left) suitcase (right) had been broken into two pieces and the most of the clothes inside were ripped and smeared with black grease and toothpaste
Horabin says she hopes the airline will avoid sending such a heavily damaged bag onto the luggage carousel without any explanation.
American Airlines said: ‘We apologize for the damage that occurred to Ms Horabin’s bag; we know how difficult it is to arrive at your final destination and a find a bag extremely damaged.
‘In 2017, American transported more than 160 million checked bags. While it is extremely rare to receive a report of a broken and/or damaged bag such as this one, our team will always work with our customers directly to resolves these claims.’
The US flag carrier said it would send Ms Horabin $3,500 for damages and a $300 travel voucher. It is still unclear how the damage happened.
A damaged pair of shoes which were found with the bag (left) and exploded toothpaste containers next to some jewelry
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