At the end of a wheelchair rugby tournament, Ryan Major was ready to get home. But instead of a smooth journey back, a series of operational issues hit his flight and delayed his return.
“This is by far the worst experience traveling I’ve had. I’ve never had to resort to sleeping at the airport to get a continuation the next day,” he told USA TODAY.
Major was traveling home from the Paralyzed Veterans of America Wheelchair Rugby Invitational in Louisville, Kentucky on Feb. 16 when things started to go wrong almost immediately.
According to Major, as well as Noah Currier and Seth McBride – fellow competitors on the same United Airlines flight to Chicago – there were at least 20 wheelchair users on their flight, which was ultimately canceled due to a series of compounding events including bad weather, a broken deicing machine at the airport and, eventually, the crew timing out.
“I had no idea that there were going to be 20 other wheelchair users on that flight. When we got to the gate, we saw all these wheelchairs and we were like, ‘oh boy, they’re going to need a lot of support here,’” Currier said.
He added that one of the big problems seemed to be that there was no way for everyone to let the airport or airline know in advance that they would require extra assistance.
Currier said that if you book through a third-party website, there may not be a field to request special assistance. Even if you do book directly through the airline, he said, a disabled traveler’s ground assistance needs aren’t always properly communicated to the various contractors at the airport.
“Nobody was aware of how many chairs were going to be on each flight. That becomes an issue for planning purposes,” Currier said. “When we asked to have multiple aisle chairs, they would call up and you could watch them doing it. But then only one aisle chair showed up.”
As the delays were extended and the flight was eventually canceled, all three competitors said they had to get on and off the plane multiple times, which is dangerous and especially time consuming for passengers who rely on wheelchairs, because ground staff needs to individually assist each person with the transfer.
“For wheelchair users getting on an aisle chair is always a terrible experience, they’re horrible for your body,” McBride said. “I have a minor pressure sore on my coccyx and I’m sure It’s from the aisle chair and all of the transfers.”
At least one of the times, McBride said, it took over an hour to deplane all the passengers who required assistance, because there were a limited number of aisle chairs available for use.
United Airlines acknowledged the incident.
“This wasn’t the kind of experience we want to provide for our customers. On February 16, severe weather in Louisville led to the cancelation of United flight 3640 to Chicago O’Hare. We reached out individually to each customer and shared updates on the status of their wheelchairs, the ways in which we’d reunite them with their belongings and offer compensation,” Charles Hobart, a United spokesperson, said in a statement to USA TODAY. “We have since reunited the customers with their baggage and chairs.”
Wheelchair damage: Airlines damage thousands of mobility aids every year. Here’s how 30+ flyers were affected.
Wheelchair users call for additional improvements
While all three passengers acknowledged they got their wheelchairs back undamaged within the required time, they said the airline should still be doing more to accommodate travelers with disabilities.
“This is a learning moment, and I think that we need to be a part of that solution, whether it’s disabled passengers or nonprofits advocating for people with disabilities,” Currier said.
United Airlines has a pre-existing partnership with the United Spinal Association. McBride works for the organization and said advocates have been clear about what’s needed.
“We know it’s better training airline staff and gate workers,” he told USA TODAY. “It’s about airlines being held accountable with fines and things like that when this happens. It’s about airlines treating us like humans.”
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Wheelchair damage isn’t the only problem
The Department of Transportation tracks monthly statistics of airlines damaging wheelchairs and other mobility devices, and while advocates say that is a huge problem, it’s not the only one facing mobility-impaired travelers or those with other disabilities.
“Injury to the body, that is because of all of these transfers and movements, and that is just as problematic,” Heather Ansley, chief policy officer at Paralyzed Veterans of America, told USA TODAY. “There’s no list of here are all the individuals we injured just in the process of getting on and off an aircraft. That’s the unseen statistics here of people trying to travel by air.”
Alex Bennewith, vice president of government relations at the United Spinal association, agreed.
“I see flashing red lights everywhere. I’m glad that more serious adverse events did not occur, but I know the entire team will be submitting their complaints to both United Airlines and to DOT,” he said in a statement.
And while some improvements to traveler protections were recently enacted by the DOT, many are worried that they may not be here to stay.
Major U.S. airlines said they are challenging the DOT’s rule increasing penalties for damaged or lost mobility devices, arguing that the rule’s definition of discrimination is too broad and that some situations, like turbulence damaging a wheelchair, are beyond their control.
“It felt like some progress was finally being made and with everything that’s happening right now it feels like it’s trying to be clawed back,” McBride said.
Zach Wichter is a travel reporter and writes the Cruising Altitude column for USA TODAY. He is based in New York and you can reach him at [email protected].
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: One flight cancelation disrupted at least 20 wheelchair rugby players
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