Air Canada dumps family with disabled son at Toronto Airport in freezing cold

Dear Colleagues,

A passenger travelling with his disabled son has accused Air Canada of abandoning his family at Toronto Pearson airport.

Euan McGilp, 56, was flying back from Ohio to London with his wife and two teenage sons, one of whom has Down Syndrome, when delays meant they missed their connecting flight from Toronto Pearson airport.

Euan says that when they landed in Canada on 20 April, Air Canada’s treatment of them added up to a catalogue of failures. “After we’d all checked in everything started to go wrong,” he told The Independent.

Formerly a head teacher for 15 years, Euan had to retire on medical grounds after he suffered a sudden brain injury six years ago. He had been working with a specialist team for the past two years to prepare him for the trip to the States to see some old friends. He said: “This was the first break we’ve taken since I collapsed. I’m not sure I’ll ever be able to fly again. We can’t even talk about the holiday because I keep flashing back to the problems and getting angry and upset.”

Upon arrival at Toronto, the family were left on the tarmac in freezing temperatures according to Euan, while waiting for his son’s wheelchair to be unloaded from the plane. David, 14, has various other complex needs in addition to Down Syndrome, yet the family were left shivering in the cold for 15 minutes. “David has no internal temperature regulation, he was practically turning blue,” said Euan.

They were then taken to the special assistance area and told to wait to be taken onwards to their connecting flight. “All the lights were off and there was no one around,” said Euan. “We were dumped and abandoned there in the dark – we seemed to be too much trouble for anybody.”

The family had already missed their original 8.40pm flight to London Heathrow due to delays on the first leg of the journey, but had been rebooked onto the 11.10pm flight and assured by Air Canada that they would make their connection.

After half an hour’s wait, having been ignored by the various Air Canada staff members they’d asked for help, one man took pity on the McGilps and directed them to the flight connections desk. It transpired that, due to the wait at special assistance, the family had missed their connecting flight and would have to be rebooked to fly the following evening.

“The connections team were incredibly rude – I’ve never met such rude people in my life,” said Euan. “They couldn’t do enough for first class passengers and didn’t give a damn about economy ticket holders. You’d think airlines would be concerned about getting it right for vulnerable people, whether it’s youngsters or the disabled.

“One chap clearly struggling with PTSD was told to ‘shut up’. There were threats and intimidation, it was awful.”

The family were eventually given a voucher for a stay in a hotel, but by this point they were also worried about David’s health issues. “We explained that we had a doubly incontinent disabled child with us and that, at Air Canada's original instruction, we only had enough sanitary and medical products to last him the expected flight plus a few hours. According to staff, this was ‘not their problem’.”

The nightmare journey continued, as the family were taken outside to await a shuttle bus to their hotel. It was 12.50am. After waiting for an hour and a half for transport that never came, they eventually discovered from another driver that their hotel no longer offered a shuttle service.

“When asking for help, another member of staff told my wife that 'Travelling is stressful for everyone' and that we should just 'Deal with it',” said Euan. “She then got in the lift and left, leaving my wife in tears and clearly having no care for our situation with my disabled son.”

Finally, at 3.30am, the McGilp family say they managed to speak to a customer service advisor who was willing to help. She moved them onto a 9am flight – but the family were subsequently forced to spend the remainder of the night in the departure lounge. When they boarded the plane, they discovered they weren’t seated together, despite Melanie and their older son Rogan, 17, being designated carers for Euan and David.

The icing on the cake came when the family arrived into Heathrow to find only one bag out of seven waiting for them. The other six had been left in Toronto.

After complaining to Air Canada about their treatment, the McGilps were offered 25 per cent off if they booked more Air Canada flights in the next 12 months. “They’ve saved some money in compensation because there’s no way I would ever travel Air Canada again – I can’t,” said Euan. “I’m really frightened about what’s going to happen now. Part of my brain injury is to look for the worst in things. We’ll have to find an airline we can work with and try again in a few years.”

Euan paid more to fly with Air Canada because it claims to offer support for those with additional needs; the family could have saved over £1,000 by flying with a cheaper airline, says Euan. “We chose this airline because we thought it was a reputable company. We thought, with two disabled clients in a family, they would be able to get it right.”

The McGilp family’s dream holiday will be forever tarnished by the return journey from hell, says Euan: “We had the most fantastic time, a wonderful experience – but it’s been completely trashed, whether by incompetence or sheer callousness on Air Canada’s part, I’m not sure.

“I know things go wrong. I’m just asking people to do their job with a little bit of sympathy and compassion. That was frighteningly lacking from Air Canada.”

Air Canada has not yet responded to The Independent's request for comment.

This follows an incident where a 15-year-old passenger was abandoned overnight at Toronto airport by Air Canada, despite being a minor.

Source: The Independent 

How will visually impaired flyers manage in silent terminals?

DECCAN CHRONICLE. | SHRUTI SURESH

May 7, 2017

The orientation map will give him confidence that he is being taken in the right direction by the helper " said a senior airport official.

Chennai: The decision by Airports Authority of India (AAI) to declare Chennai airport as a silent one has raised concerns from people with disabilities, especially the blind.

While air travellers have demanded an increase in displays and sending of SMSs informing passengers well in advance, the question remained how visually-challenged travellers will be able to board the aircraft without hassles.

To cater to people with blindness, meanwhile, the AAI in Chennai is also working with a local institution for people with disabilities to create a tactile map of the airport that would provide them directions to move about. "This will be in addition to the helper's assistance.

The orientation map will give him confidence that he is being taken in the right direction by the helper "  said a senior airport official. "In a span of two months, the map should be ready," the official added.

"Till the orientation map materialises, however, the existing Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) of each airline operator providing a traveller with disabilities, a helper will still continue. Right from entering the airport boarding a flight, there is assistance, so the visually impaired travellers need not worry about missing announcements," said a senior AAI official at Chennai.

"Besides that, we haven't become completely silent, minor enhancements, including that of a gate change and delays are being made. Gradually, the airport will be made completely silent and all announcements will be done through SMSs," the official added.

According to senior officials, the move was taken to reduce the confusion caused due to multiple announcements.' "Passengers get frustrated with noise, and this move is to increase the comfort of travellers," an official said.

The official added that different zones in the airport are being earmarked for making announcements - last minute calls, gate change, delays will be announced in different zones.

For visually-challenged travellers, having a helper in case of extended delays is again troublesome. "Having an announcement system linked to an app will help them board their planes without the fear of missing their flights," said Smitha Sadasivan of Disabilities Rights Alliance.

No separate provisions for differently abled available

After Delhi, Mumbai and Hyderabad, Chennai has been declared as silent airport.  But officials at other airports say no separate provisions for the visually-challenged are available.

Ketan Kothari, a visually-challenged frequent flyer, from Mumbai, said that people like him are overly dependent on announcements, and there have been a few incidents in the past where people have missed their flights at airports like Delhi and Mumbai.

“Reducing anxiety and stress by making airports silent is a concept aped from airports in the West, and going by that logic even railway stations can be made silent. If an area around a hospital is made silent, it is understandable but why an airport,” he questioned.

He added that despite having assistance from airlines before boarding a flight, a person needs to have the confidence that he won't miss his flight, and for that announcements are imperative.

Speaking of the introduction of the silent airport concept in Delhi, a spokesperson of Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) said that with about 40 flight departures per hour, multiple boarding announcements in multiple languages for each flight is not a practical choice for an airport of a huge size, Delhi, for instance.

Rules for the provision of assistance applies to all Persons with Restricted Mobility (PRM) as per the international rules by the International Civil Aviation Organisation.

“Still, depending on the need, the announcements are made near the boarding gate area for last minute passengers and any emergency situations,” he added.

The spokesperson also said that the same provisions are provided for all people with special needs, by airports going out of their way to ensure a hassle-free experience with the help of the airport staff — right from CISF at the entrance, to help desks, airline staff, and assistance providers.

“All help provided is based on the regulations in place, and if there's a change in the regulations, similar arrangements would be made accordingly in future,” the spokesperson continued.

Source: Deccan Chronicle 

HT Editorial - Callous airline staff’s attitude reflects our apathy towards India’s disabled population

Apr 27, 2017 | Hindustan Times | Editorial

On Wednesday, cricketer Harbhajan Singh tweeted about an incident where an expat pilot abused and assaulted two travellers flying to Mumbai, one of them a person with orthopaedic disability. Apart from changing India’s famously inaccessible built environment we need to develop a culture of sensitivity towards the country’s 2.68 crore disabled.

There’s more to it than just racism. On Wednesday, cricketer Harbhajan Singh tweeted about alleged racism by an expat pilot from Jet Airways. According to Singh, the pilot abused and assaulted two travellers flying to Mumbai, one of them a person with an orthopaedic disability. When the flight landed, he had to wait for 25 minutes for the wheelchair to be brought to the seat. On top of it, the pilot screamed at him for checking-in the wheelchair and delaying the flight. This was done despite the airline allowing them to check it in at Chandigarh from where they had boarded.

This is not the first time a wheelchair-bound traveller has complained of misbehaviour by airline crew. Last year, Paralympics silver winner Deepa Malik filed a complaint against poor handling of wheelchair-bound passengers by the staff of Air Vistara. “The wheelchair handling is so poor that you do not know how to shift a person from seat to cabin chair. The entire staff stands and looks at each other for 10 minutes,” she had said. In 2015, disability rights activist Javed Abidi was forced to get off his wheelchair at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport. Despite protests, the CISF warned him to comply or miss his flight. Ironically, in 2014, Abidi was part of a panel of activists who had helped frame guidelines to ensure there was no discrimination on the basis of disability in air travel.

According to the 2011 Census, the number of disabled in India stands at 2.68 crore, or 2.21 per cent of the population. India’s built environment is infamously inhospitable to the disabled and the elderly, confining them to their homes. Most public buildings lack ramps and even ATM machines have steps leading up to them. The recently passed Persons with Disabilities Bill, 2016, promises barrier-free access to buildings to the disabled, but implementation is lax. Merely de-rostering the pilot, as Jet Airways did, won’t be enough to change the ground reality on discrimination. We need to inculcate a culture of sensitivity towards the physically challenged.

Source: Hindustan Times

UK enforces changes in Equality Act effective 06 Apr 17 that makes it illegal for taxi drivers to discriminate against wheelchair users

Dear colleagues,

In UK the Law change makes it illegal for taxi drivers to discriminate against wheelchair users.

Taxi drivers face a fine of up to £1,000 if they refuse to transport wheelchair users or attempt to charge them extra, in a change to the law which comes into force today (6 April 2017).

From today taxi and private hire vehicle drivers will be obliged by law to:

• transport wheelchair users in their wheelchair
• provide passengers in wheelchairs with appropriate assistance
• charge wheelchair users the same as non-wheelchair users

Transport Minister Andrew Jones said:

We are building a country that works for everyone, and part of that is ensuring disabled people have the same access to services and opportunities as anyone else – including when it comes to travel. People who use wheelchairs are often heavily reliant on taxis and private hire vehicles and this change to the law will mean fair and equal treatment for all.

The changes apply to England, Wales and Scotland affecting vehicles that are designated as wheelchair accessible and apply to both taxis and private hire vehicles. All taxis in London and a significant number in most major urban centres are wheelchair accessible.

Drivers found to be discriminating against wheelchair users face fines of up to £1,000 as part of provisions being enacted from the Equality Act. Drivers may also face having their taxi or Private Hire Vehicle (PHV) licence suspended or revoked by their licencing authority. Drivers unable to provide assistance for medical reasons will be able to apply to their licensing authority for an exemption from the new requirements.

Robert Meadowcroft, Chief Executive of Muscular Dystrophy UK, said:

Today’s change in legislation is positive news, as we know that disabled people often have to rely on taxis where accessible public transport isn’t an option.

Taxi drivers can provide a vital service in getting wheelchair users from A to B so they are able to maintain their livelihoods and play an active part in society. Today creates a level playing field for both drivers and passengers.

Taxi drivers can lose their licence and face a fine of up to 1000 Pond
if they fail to transport wheelchairs

The law now makes clear the rights for wheelchair users and the responsibilities of taxi drivers, including the penalties that will occur if they aren’t observed. Wheelchair users are frequent customers of taxi services, so instead of being apprehensive of these new rules, taxi companies should promote their accessibility credentials.

The new requirements complement those already in place to prevent discrimination against users of assistance dogs and underline the government’s wide-ranging commitment to supporting transport networks which work for everyone.

The government will be consulting on a draft Accessibility Action Plan later this year, which will seek to address the barriers faced by disabled people in accessing all modes of public transport.

Source: Gov[dot]UK

Easyjet Pilot offloads Deaf-Blind independent flyer for last 35 years

Dear Colleagues,

This discriminatory incident being reported from Scotland where a Deaf-blind flyer Mr. Frankie Thomson, 52 who has been travelling independently for past 35 years and uses a guide dog for mobility, was escorted off a plane moments before the take-off when the pilot refused to let him fly unaccompanied for ‘safety reasons’.

The incident occurred on an Easyjet Edinburgh to Gatwick flight last month and has left Mr Thomson confused. ‘I could feel people watching me wondering what I’d done. I felt people were talking about me,’ he said through a guide communicator.

‘I wasn’t embarrassed or anything – just confused and thinking what was going on. I’ve never had any problems before.’ After being escorted off the plane Mr Thomson was put in a cab and taken back to his girlfriend Katie Swinton’s flat in Loanhead, Midlothian.

She was the one who booked the tickets for him in October for a weekend visiting friends in London and she had requested special assistance.

‘I was so stressed and upset. They asked me to contact them on a phone number but how could I? I’m deaf,’ Ms Swinton added. Mr Thomson’s case has been taken up by SNP Edinburgh East MP Tommy Sheppard.

Easyjet has apologised and a spokeswoman said they offered him assistance and free flights the next day for him and a companion. He will also receive a refund.

The spokeswoman said: ‘Easyjet is sorry that Mr Thomson was unable to travel on his flight and understand how upsetting this would have been for him. ‘The captain took the decision to offload him prior to departure due to concerns over his welfare after he was unable to communicate with the crew about the safety procedures. ‘The safety and wellbeing of our passengers and crew is always Easyjet’s highest priority.’

Mr Thomson is deaf from birth and a degenerative eye condition has left him partially sighted.

Source: Metro

Mother’s outrage after ‘power-tripping’ airport security pat down 13-year-old son

30 March 2017

This is the moment airport security patted down a 13-year-old boy for two full minutes, leaving him ‘traumatised’, according to his mother.  Aaron Williamson, who suffers from Sensory Processing Disorder, was stopped while heading through security at Dallas/Fort-Worth International Airport.

His outraged mother Jennifer hit out at the transport security agency (TSA) in a Facebook post, claiming she and her son were ‘treated like dogs’. She was allegedly detained for ‘well over an hour’, during which time an airport officer extensively patted down her son, who was wearing cut off shorts and a T-shirt.

As an SPD sufferer, it is not known whether or not Williamson took advantage of TSA Care which takes into consideration certain conditions for travellers. His mother said: ‘He set off NO alarms. He physically did not alarm at all during screening, he passed through the detector just fine.

He is still several hours later saying “I don’t know what I did. What did I do?”. I am livid. Please, share [and] make this viral.’ In her post, which has been seen 7.1 million times, she calls for the TSA to be ‘reined in’. The American security agency brought in new rules recently calling for ‘comprehensive pat-down procedures’ for passengers.

Making searches more intrusive the standardised system replaces the choice airport customers previously had between body scanners or other technology only if they set off alarms. The TSA is standing by the controversial Texas incident.

‘In total, the pat-down took approximately two minutes,’ they wrote in a statement, ‘and was observed by the mother and two police officers who were called to mitigate the concerns of the mother. ‘The passengers were at the checkpoint for approximately 45 minutes, which included the time it took to discuss screening procedures with the mother and to screen three carry-on items that required further inspection.’ People on Twitter deemed the incident inappropriate with some calling it ‘near-molestation’.

Source: Metro dot co dot uk

Pratyush Nalam, an IIT-B techie outrages against Air India after airline left his wheelchair in India

New Delhi | Published:February 15, 2017 

Enraged on learning that his sole support of movement had been kept away, he took to Facebook to express his discontentment with Air India's "unprofessional" service.

Despite having a condition that rendered him immobile since birth, Pratyush Nalam – a software whiz graduated from IIT Mumbai – has always lived his life to the fullest. The 23-year-old suffers from spinal muscular atrophy due to which he can’t walk, and uses a motorised wheelchair to commute. All set to join Microsoft in Seattle, Nalam flew from Chennai to New York via Delhi on two Air India flights.

Facebook Post by Pratyush Nalam

On February 12, when Nalam landed at the John F Kennedy international airport in New York, he was in for a shock as Air India had not transported his battery-operated wheelchair on-board. Moreover, the vehicle was held back by the security staff in New Delhi without any prior information or notification.

Hopeless and helpless, he had no other option than to be stranded at the airport and wait for his travel aid. Citing the reason that the wheelchair contained batteries that are apparently not allowed on the flight, Air India could not transport it to US. Enraged on learning that his sole support of movement had been kept away, he took to Facebook to express his discontentment with Air India’s “unprofessional” service.

“The least you could do was to contact the passenger before the flight took off and at least confirm. Fortunately, you know, the passenger didn’t die an untimely death yet,” he wrote, adding, “That motorized wheelchair is the only way I travel from Point A to Point B. It is more than a person’s legs for me. Do you leave behind your aircraft’s landing gear because it didn’t clear security? Try to use some empathy before you take such decisions next time.”

Several users were upset about the incident. While some posted angry comments, others went on to share similar ordeals that they had earlier faced

Nalam was later informed by the Air India staff that his wheelchair has been loaded on the next flight and would reach him the next morning (February 13), but without its batteries.

Nalam posted an update on Facebook and wrote: “Those are dry, non-spillable, gel batteries. Perfectly allowed under domestic and international civil aviation rules. You see, as a passenger, I am careful about what is allowed and not allowed under the rules as I travel pretty often.”

Wondering if his wheelchair would reach him in one piece, he added, “This is the same Air India that damaged this very wheelchair when I flew them in August 2015 on the same sector.”

“Disabled passengers are not second class citizens. Neither are we a liability. We live fulfilling lives and the least you could do is to treat us and our equipment with dignity and respect,” he also wrote in another post to express his dismay.

When it finally arrived in New York, the wheelchair had to be taken to a service centre to be made operational. Not just the battery, but the wire that connects it for motorised travel was also missing. Adding a fresh post to elaborate on how he got it fixed, Nalam wrote: “As my wheelchair is not sold in the United States, Mr Jeff got a set of custom wiring to be made for my wheelchair so that I can be mobile again. He took special care and treated it as an emergency and this reaffirms my faith that good people are still left in this world.”

Source: Indian Express