I think this scenario is just as plausible as the one that played out. Your alternative scenario of a true overbooking (overselling to other customers) is plau

I think this scenario is just as plausible as the one that played out. Your alternative scenario of a true overbooking (overselling to other customers) is plausible but the subsequent escalation to violently pulling a seated passenger is not. The 2 situations put United personnel under very different psychological and monetary pressures: 1) overbook by overselling 70 seats to 74 paying customers. Nobody cancels and therefore, 4 of the customers have to be bumped. This is all visible on the computer reservations system and the gate agents can sort this out (offer vouchers, etc) before the last passengers board the plane. It would be very unusual to violently yank a seated customer out of the airplane just to accommodate one of the other 4 customers. 2) perfectly sell out 70 seats to 70 passengers but now you have a last-minute set of 4 airline employees who need a ride to Kentucky. If those airline employees (2 pilots & 2 stewards) don't get on that flight, it affects the plane in Kentucky with its own set of 60 passengers. The higher stakes in situation #2 is what escalated the situation into a broken nose and bloody face. United wasn't going to let one uncooperative passenger disrupt and cancel a 60-passenger flight in Kentucky. In other words, airlines prioritize their employees in a very different way than other overbooked customers waiting in standby for a seat on a plane. Flight #3411 just happened to shine a big spotlight on that difference.