A passenger was forcibly dragged off a plane because United Airlines overbooked his flight

A man who refused to give up his seat on an overbooked United Airlines flight on Sunday was dragged off the plane by security.

Four passengers on the flight scheduled from Chicago to Louisville were asked to reschedule so that United employees could arrive in Kentucky in time for their subsequent flights, according to Courier-Journal.com.

Multiple videos of the incident were posted online, with many commenting that they were shocked by the behaviour of law enforcement, requested by the airline.

United reportedly offered passengers $400 and a free night in a hotel to take a flight the following day, then doubled the offer to $800 when no one accepted.

After this they said a computer would randomly select passenger to disembark the flight.

Two passengers gave up willingly, but one, who said he was a doctor and had to treat patients in Louisville early Monday, refused.

The man was dragged from his seat forcibly, as passengers filmed and watched the incident.

The man was later allowed to re-board flight 3411 which took off from O'Hare International Airport two hours late.

A United Spokesperson said:

Flight 3411 from Chicago to Louisville was overbooked.

After our team looked for volunteers, one customer refused to leave the aircraft voluntarily and law enforcement was asked to come to the gate.

We apologize for the overbook situation. Further details on the removed customer should be directed to authorities.

Their responses to the video on Twitter have also not been received well:

More: How likely you will actually survive a plane crash, according to an expert