Long flights + Electric wheelchair, whats the drill these days?

FranknFurter

Last time I flew any distance it was such a major hassle with a manual chair.
I'll be flying from Dublin to Texas in November, anyone any experience of the drill for getting a immobile person on an off the plane these days?
Will I still be handled like a birthing heifer or is it any more dignified these days?

b

Amz

Ask the airline you intend to fly with.

snorlax

last time I saw a person with a wheelchair boarding a plane (2 years ago/ aer lingus), they had they're fold-up chair and they lifted the person from their regular wheelchair into this and i think they had to be brought in first onto the plane before any of the other passengers were seated. I very much doubt they even have things like slidding boards, mostly it's man power how they move you in my experience.

FranknFurter

Amz wrote:

Ask the airline you intend to fly with.

Of course I will be, hardly going to just show up on the day having asked them nothing am I.

I'm more interested in what people have seen & experienced than the usual "your dignity is vitally important to us" usual speil every company gives.

Thanks Snorlax, thats what I was looking for, seems not much has changed then eh?
Ah well.

B

Amz

FranknFurter wrote:

Of course I will be, hardly going to just show up on the day having asked them nothing am I.

I don't know Barry, sometimes people do things like that. Hence my suggestion.

FranknFurter

Amz wrote:

I don't know Barry, sometimes people do things like that. Hence my suggestion.

I guess there are some people who would.
(Again, I request you not use my full name, B, FnF or whatever will be fine as it is for everyone else on boards, I have'nt ever called you by yours as I said before, I have my own personal reasons for this)..

b

Amz

Sure thing sweetie *lol*

FranknFurter

Thank you


B

/me resists temptation to add hon, dearie, babe, etc to sentence for fear of being executed and/or maimed at whatever beers I eventually get to.

Amz

Don't worry pet you're safe enough.

FranknFurter

Aww, thats great hon, I was worried about getting a pint over me head!

B

Victor

My aunt is in her 80s and life is catching up with her. On a recent trip back London-Cork she had to use the freight lift they normally use for the food trolleys (the old terminal in Cork had no airbridges).

Amz

Good god, that's awful.

FranknFurter

Yeah, I remember on a flight to france some years ago, I was strapped into what I can only describe as a hannibal lecter style gurney and yanked up the entire flight of boarding steps. Felt like a dangerous criminal being transported, and then unstrapping me to get me into the seat, (they wouldnt let me do it myself "for insurance reasons" :rolleyes: ) I was manhandled by four seperate security guards & flight attendents.

Now normally I dont mind being manhandled (;)) but this was just so bloody degrading.

b

cotton

FranknFurter wrote:

Yeah, I remember on a flight to france some years ago, I was strapped into what I can only describe as a hannibal lecter style gurney and yanked up the entire flight of boarding steps. Felt like a dangerous criminal being transported, and then unstrapping me to get me into the seat, (they wouldnt let me do it myself "for insurance reasons" :rolleyes: ) I was manhandled by four seperate security guards & flight attendents.

Now normally I dont mind being manhandled (;)) but this was just so bloody degrading.

b

This happened my partner last time he flew, plus when he got his wheelchair back, it was broken!
Middle of the night so nobody was available to give out to.

Sualtam

It's pretty bad, exactly how bad is down to the airport and the facilities they have and how strict the flight crew are about following "regulations". Like making disabled passengers sit in the window seat...
Normally all other passengers get on first so everyone gets to see the show. There's very little chance of dignity with air travel.

I found it helps to label where it's safe to lift the chair as there's less chance of breakage.

FranknFurter

*sigh*
Looks like I'm going to have to rent a bloody chair when I get there then, I cant risk this one getting damaged as having it fixed is a nightmare in itself. Even less chance of being able to have it repaired by a stranger in another country.

b

Brian017

Everytime I flew, they just wheeled me onto the plane (empty) in my chair and then, helped me on to my seat

The first time I happened (when I was 7). This guy in a yellow jacket with a walkie talkie started wheeling my away from my parents. I thought I was being kidnapped so I slammed on the breaks, had a fit and kept telling him to leave me go. It was so embarrassing.

CtrlSource

I have flown numerous times and I don't think I've ever had the exact same experience with chairs and transfers.. particularly when I brought my electric chair. Manual is generally fairly okay and if I'm travelling that way there will usually be a family member or friend along as well, so getting the lift on isn't an issue.

I hate when passengers board before - it is a bit degrading being wheeled backwards down the aisle with arms tucked in and lying almost flat. Usually, I feel the process of getting me on board is holding up the flight and in the past, this has sometimes been the case! I try to deal with by just telling myself "feck it" and being chatty/flirty with the airline & transfer staff Remember, it's completely beyond our control and is NOT our problem / fault.

Although the general process is the same in most airports I've gone through, your experience on the day can vary significantly and it's best to just accept that it's not going to be the highlight of your trip!

• Do try to advocate for yourself and make it clear what assistance you want from them. It's still very easy to be spoken over as a person with a disability - particularly in a situation like that

Regarding the transportation of electric chairs, ground staff always disconnect the batteries and sometimes pack them separately in a special container. I'm usually transferred to a airport issue generic chair at this point or pushed in my now 'disabled' electric chair through security. When I wave bye bye to the chair, I usually recite a little private prayer and cross everything I can that it'll be in one piece a few hours later.

As regards wheelchair damage, this is indeed a problem and has happened to me 3 times on long haul journeys, twice where the chair was unusable when I sat into it at the destination airport. Thankfully, it was able to get it more or less usable within a few minutes and only had to get it repaired once (paid for eventually by the airline).

I remember when I was about 5 and was travelling with my family to the Canaries with a very cool "Sweeda" manual chair, I saw the airport guys throw my chair out of the hold and onto the tarmac at the airport in Gran Canaria. The main frame basically disintegrated and I had to spend the whole holiday in a 'loaner' adult sized chair!

Humour and stoicism are required traits when travelling with your chair! If you have those, then you might just have a good experience

FlutterinBantam

Welcome to the club Amz.

I gave the same advice on a different thread and some dude called Stepbar took the snot of me.

Best advice anyone can give re travelling is ask the carrier you are travelling with,especially if its their home base.

rlawless

If you fly Ryan Air they let everone else board first the transfer you on to an aisle chair out on the runway then manhandle you backwards up a flight of steps on front of a plane load of impatient, gawking passengers and then manhandle you into your seat in front of everone.

How Dignifying !!!!!!!!!!!!

Their excuse for doing this was they were refuling the plane while loading passengers and if there was a fire while refulling the could not get me off fast enough. Am I the only person that sees a major problem here ?

CtrlSource

The boarding process is undignified. I don't think it's always the airlines' fault but it sounds like your experience wasn't fun rlawless. I always hate being 'last on' especially when my seat is well down the plane.

Am flying with them next week (because they're the only ones going Dublin - Gatwick at the moment and I have to go to that airport). It'll be my first time using them in a couple of years. I've used them twice before, first time was on my own with a manual chair and I was pretty happy with their lift on service. Second time was with friends who helped me get on the plane.

This time however, I'll be bringing my electric chair and will also be travelling alone. So it'll be interesting to see how they compare to other carriers.

CtrlSource

CtrlSource wrote:

I have flown numerous times and I don't think I've ever had the exact same experience with chairs and transfers.. particularly when I brought my electric chair. Manual is generally fairly okay and if I'm travelling that way there will usually be a family member or friend along as well, so getting the lift on isn't an issue.

I hate when passengers board before - it is a bit degrading being wheeled backwards down the aisle with arms tucked in and lying almost flat. Usually, I feel the process of getting me on board is holding up the flight and in the past, this has sometimes been the case! I try to deal with by just telling myself "feck it" and being chatty/flirty with the airline & transfer staff Remember, it's completely beyond our control and is NOT our problem / fault.

Although the general process is the same in most airports I've gone through, your experience on the day can vary significantly and it's best to just accept that it's not going to be the highlight of your trip!

• Do try to advocate for yourself and make it clear what assistance you want from them. It's still very easy to be spoken over as a person with a disability - particularly in a situation like that

Regarding the transportation of electric chairs, ground staff always disconnect the batteries and sometimes pack them separately in a special container. I'm usually transferred to a airport issue generic chair at this point or pushed in my now 'disabled' electric chair through security. When I wave bye bye to the chair, I usually recite a little private prayer and cross everything I can that it'll be in one piece a few hours later.

As regards wheelchair damage, this is indeed a problem and has happened to me 3 times on long haul journeys, twice where the chair was unusable when I sat into it at the destination airport. Thankfully, it was able to get it more or less usable within a few minutes and only had to get it repaired once (paid for eventually by the airline).

I remember when I was about 5 and was travelling with my family to the Canaries with a very cool "Sweeda" manual chair, I saw the airport guys throw my chair out of the hold and onto the tarmac at the airport in Gran Canaria. The main frame basically disintegrated and I had to spend the whole holiday in a 'loaner' adult sized chair!

Humour and stoicism are required traits when travelling with your chair! If you have those, then you might just have a good experience

Well, I was fortunate last week - things went well from an assistance point of view. Although, I was last on and last off on both the outbound and return journeys, I was satisfied with the service received. They didn't damage the electric chair either

Ryanair now reserves half of Row 2 on all their flights, for passengers with reduced mobility. Once I was lifted on the plane, it was a very short distance to transfer to the seat.

The most unpleasant part of the airport process is being frisked. It's slightly humiliating for everyone, but it's more so when you already attract more attention as a wheelchair user. I have come to expect it at this stage, as I always set off the metal detectors.

When I travelled as a kid, security staff didn't bother searching me or my wheelchair much. Understandably, they need to be more cautious nowadays and I usually get properly 'felt up'! They even swab the battery box for explosives residue and my shoes (like everyone else's) are routinely x-rayed (in UK and US airports).

Based on my experience, I would travel alone with confidence on Ryanair. But as I've never had exactly the same experience twice with airlines and assisted travel, I wont holding my breath...

Victor

CtrlSource wrote:

Understandably, they need to be more cautious nowadays and I usually get properly 'felt up'! They even swab the battery box for explosives residue and my shoes (like everyone else's) are routinely x-rayed (in UK and US airports). .

Don't worry, I got this in Germany for having 4 one pound coins in my back pocket that I forgot about. Remember, only allow them the back of the hand.

keynesian

Amz wrote:

Good god, that's awful.

you seem short on advice, sweety

Btw, How do u find Hotels when you get to your destination.

CtrlSource

keynesian wrote:

you seem short on advice, sweety

Btw, How do u find Hotels when you get to your destination.

You're not too specific with your question!

Do you mean hotels with accessible rooms or just hotel hotels?

I usually book accommodation before travelling, but if stuck for somewhere to lay the head, I'm sure the nearest Tourist Information place or net café would provide some answers.

keynesian

Well I know the law says hotels should have accessible rooms, but I know they don't.

I was wondering if u's found, difficult to find hotels that have access and if they do, is it adequate.

RainyDay

keynesian wrote:

Well I know the law says hotels should have accessible rooms, but I know they don't.
.

The doesn't state that every hotel has to have accessible rooms. Any new hotels, or hotels undergoing a material extension should meet the Part M requirements for accessibility and visibility. There is no explicit legal requirement for older hotels to have accessible rooms.

You could consider a complaint against an older hotel under the Equal Status Act, but I don't think there are any precedents for such claims at the moment.