Wheelchair accessibility Aer Lingus

miss choc

I gave two issues regarding my mother who flew with Aer Lingus recently she is 90 with Alzheimer's

first issue

We flew Dublin to Heathrow I had a transit wheelchair and seated air cushion. While I was helping my Mam onto her plane chair the other staff were sorting out her items when I got to Heathrow they took her wheelchair out of hold but no air cushion it wasn't in the hold or overhead lockers I've been trying to contact aer lingus and emailed wereturnit site but no luck she spent all her holiday with no air cushion.

Second issue

Flying from Dublin Mam was preboarded first no problem but flying back from Heathrow she was first at the gate at her assistance seat. And the staff boarded everyone else on first and Mam was last she was very tired and agitated due to her dementia and it upsetting she had privacy or dignity being lifted onto a plane seat in front of staring passengers. I rang aer lingus to lodge a complaint. Is there any reason why they would have done this I've travelled with her in a wheelchair before on priority and also got on first.

ted1

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058342872/wheelchair-accessibility-aer-lingus

Heathrow is a mess. I was connecting through it while in a wheelchair ( only a temporary injury, thank F€€k)

anyway the assistant who meet me brought though the terminal to the next one

and then abandoned me saying , a different company has the contract for this terminal and ran away. In fairness to EI the staff member didn’t hold back giving out to the assistant.

what seat was your mum in? Maybe it was a full seat and if in an Aisle seat they were waiting for the tao

inner seats to be full.

spurious

Aer Lingus are not the ones to complain to about being boarded last, you need to find out who handles the special assistance for Heathrow. It is a service offered by the airport, not the airline.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121925298#Comment_121925298

It is contracted by the airline, the airlines are the ones who mostly arrange the assistance and sometimes you are required to do it via the airline you are travelling with. No harm though also approaching the assistance company in the airport, but mostly the overall responsibility is with the airline, same as a shop holds the responsibility for a product they sell you.

in the noughties I brought my mother to NYC using her wheelchair. It arrived minus one of the footrests. Had to buy a new wheelchair, and it took over 6 months to get Aer Lingus to pay for it. They apologised in the end, making done excuse about changes in staff leading to it not being followed up.

miss choc

The special assistance in Heathrow itself was fine ie going through security checking her gate it was the aer lingus staff at gate checking everyone in I thought they were doing priority them Mam but Everyone! Got on we were row 3 aisle/middle it felt like like we had no privacy Everyone looking while accessibility company lifted her to plane seat. I'm so disappointed with aer lingus its never happened before. I'd love a reason why they did this.