Jet Air apologies after seriously injuring Rustom Irani, a filmmaker with disability, while transferring him on seat

Filmmaker Rustom Irani, has pursued several interests particularly travelling, and his being a wheelchair user has never been a deterrent in any of those pursuits. However, what he went through at Nagpur Airport few days ago will definitely haunt him in the days to come. It was sheer insentivity and negligence on the part of Jet Airways that he ended up in hospital risking his impending work schedules including an urgent travel to London.

We have heard of the insensitivity and harassment travellers with disabilities seem to routinely face while flying. Some speak out, many don't. Irani, a person with "high support needs", while flying from Nagpur to Mumbai on a Jet Airways Flight S2880, was treated by the airlines so roughly that he had to be taken to hospital which advised him bed rest for an indefinite period due the knee fracture he sustained on the flight during the incorrect transfer technique by untrained staff.

Irani, a person with spinal muscular atrophy and a frequent air traveller, had informed Jet authorities in advance that as a wheelchair user, he will require the assistance of four people for transfer to the seat from the wheelchair in absence of any lifting mechanism available at the airports. But he faced several problems during his travel this time. To begin with, he was assigned a seat at the back of a plane, that too after his place was changed twice. When he reached the Nagpur Airport, Jet officials also refused to board his electronic wheelchair at first saying that wheelchairs only up to 30 kgs were allowed and then they realised their folly.  

When it came to boarding, instead of professional staff, a ground engineer and baggage loader were called for help. Other passengers were asked to start boarding while he was still getting on. The three officials called to assist in boarding were complete novices. They did not know how to handle me. First, they tried to lift me with their arm. When I objected, they used a sling and plonked me like a piece of luggage. My right leg was stuck at a right angle to my body in the on-board wheelchair.

Irani says he felt “three snapping sensations around his knee” and “excruciating pain, with the leg still caught.” His leg was forcefully pushed out and shoved under the seat. Upon landing in Mumbai, the airport doctor was called. “The doctor suspected multiple ligament tears, my pant leg was torn off, and I was injected with a powerful painkiller. He advised immediate hospital emergency treatment and diagnosis but no Jet representative accompanied me,” says Irani.

His injuries are so severe that he has been advised to stay immobile, putting his impending journey to London in serious doubt.  Irani’s tweet, when shared by disability rights leader Dr Satendra Singh elicited this response from Jet Airways –

“We sincerely regret the incident and are in touch with our Ground Services teams for a detailed review. We are already in touch with the guest and will connect with him post the review.”

Barring a few exceptions, airport travel remains an intimidating prospect for people with disabilities, says Shama Noorani, a disability rights activist, who works with Enable Travels.

“Either they break our chairs, or manhandle us while onloading and off-loading. By the end of every flight journey, my body is filled with aches and pains. The CISF has handheld testers, but they don’t use them everywhere. So many people don’t travel by air for this very reason.”

Noorani has even designed a transfer sling with six belts so that she can be lifted and carried with the sling instead of bodily. “Just because we don’t have movement and sensation in our legs does not mean you can push us around”, she says.

A Jet Airways spokesperson said, “While being seated, due to the aircraft’s limited pitch, the guest’s knee brushed against the seat ahead, causing him discomfort. The airline’s in-flight team quickly responded and provided him with requisite medical aid. Upon disembarkation at Mumbai, the guest was immediately provided with required medical attention. Jet Airways has noted the guest’s feedback with concern. The airline’s representatives have been trying to contact the guest unsuccessfully throughout the day for feedback and offer further assistance.”

Clearly, sensitization has to be more than just lip service and more importantly, it has be an ongoing effort involving people who are at the receiving end of this kind of treatment.

Media coverage: 

1. Mumbai Mirror

2. The Newzhook