True but it is highly regulated on both sides.

Is it the same as living in a home you don't own but only rent?

Actually, it is more like that than you may think, while not an apples-to-apples comparison. There is neither a right to fly around in the air nor a right to a place to live in the US.

It's only fungible regulation that interferes with an airline's ability to make their own decisions in cases like this.

As a landlord, I can get you out of a building I own at any time (with a court order), unless I have entered into a contract with you, and I am not require to do so.