Tag Archives for wheelchair.
Wheelchair user Samanta Bullock says British Airways denied her boarding on a New York–London flight because she was traveling alone and might need help reaching the lavatory. She says American Airlines asked a similar question but still let her fly, while BA appears to have confused required aisle-chair assistance with prohibited personal care.
A double partial amputee was allegedly challenged by United Airlines over his disability preboarding request, though he ultimately boarded early after pushing back. Fake wheelchair and preboarding requests can make gate agents skeptical, hurting passengers who genuinely need extra time and assistance.
Southwest’s switch to assigned seating may have cured many of its wheelchair “miracles,” but the airport line-skipping incentive has not gone away. A single U.S.-bound flight from Taipei reportedly had more than 60 wheelchairs waiting — proving that when everyone gets airport priority, nobody does.
A passenger is suing Southwest Airlines, claiming the airline denied her wheelchair assistance and then left her stranded in an airport restroom, causing severe emotional distress—Southwest responded by offering just a $150 voucher.
Wheelchair assistance is increasingly being used as an airport “hack”: it can mean skipping long walks, cutting security lines, and boarding early—often with an entire family in tow. On some long-haul flights, as many as 30% of passengers now request wheelchairs, and the result is predictable: real disabled travelers get crowded out while “Jetbridge Jesus” miracles happen the moment boarding starts.
Passengers on a London-bound flight out of Málaga say they watched a family wheel an elderly woman onboard and insist she was already dead—after relatives told staff she was “just tired.” The airline disputes that, saying she boarded alive with a fit-to-fly certificate but died onboard before takeoff, forcing the aircraft back to stand and triggering an all-day delay.
Southwest will end its wheelchair-boarding advantage on January 26 when assigned seating takes effect. That change removes the incentive to preboard for early seat selection, but it doesn’t touch the real reason unneeded wheelchair requests have exploded across airlines.
A wheelchair passenger alleges she was abandoned overnight at Miami International Airport after an American Airlines attendant left her at a gate. She missed her connection, spent the night in a cold room, and has now sued the airline over the ordeal.
At the top of a crowded airport escalator, a woman in a red shirt lost her balance and toppled backward onto a man in a wheelchair, instantly clogging the landing and setting off a chain-reaction pileup.
Southwest Airlines had to take a delay on a flight from Las Vegas to San Jose on Thursday because of the sheer number of passengers in wheelchairs. At Southwest, customers asking for wheelchair assistance get better seats for free – and then usually walk off the plane and all the way out the terminal themselves on the other end of the journey. They don’t all need a wheelchair. They’ve just cracked the code.
Gary Leff is one of the foremost experts in the field of miles, points, and frequent business travel -- a topic he has covered since 2002.
Co-founder of frequent flyer community InsideFlyer.com, emcee of the Freddie Awards, and named one of the "World's Top Travel Experts" by Conde' Nast Traveler (2010-Present) Gary has been a guest on most major news media, profiled in several top print publications, and published broadly on the topic of consumer loyalty. More About Gary »
