Passengers are requesting wheelchair assistance at the airport even when they don’t need it, in order to get priority all the way through the journey. Not only don’t they have to walk through the terminal, but they skip security lines and they board the plane first too.
When they get to the plane, suddenly they can walk. They’ve been healed! The phenomenon is often called “Jetbridge Jesus” because it’s a miracle on jetway.
✈️ When miracles happen at 35,000ft pic.twitter.com/iGv2HRdP0A
— True Patriot (@gen_z4961) January 21, 2026
In the U.S., no airline accommodates more wheelchair passengers than Southwest. If you’re in a wheelchair, you board first. And the earlier you board, the more seats you get to choose from. Wheelchair passengers just aren’t supposed to sit in an exit row. But assigned seating comes January 27. We’re just days away from Southwest becoming a ‘normal’ airline with fake wheelchairs.
Seriously @SouthwestAir? There are more than 25 pre-boarders on my LAS-AUS flight. Just because you get a C on your boarding group shouldn’t mean you can cut the line. pic.twitter.com/ni0RGVPdq4
— Steve Stauning (@SteveStauning) November 15, 2025
It still happens at other airlines, even when it doesn’t get you better seats. There are up to 120 wheelchair requests per international flight on Air India. 90 wheelchairs are common. Data suggests that 30% of Air India passengers flying to the U.S. and U.K. request wheelchairs.
Data from early 2025 shows that nearly 30% of passengers booking Air India flights to USA from India requested wheelchair assistance. On February 19, for instance, Air India’s nonstop Delhi to Chicago flight had 99 wheelchair bookings for almost one-third of the passengers on board. On March 20, the airline had to cater to a whopping 90 wheelchair service requests for passengers scheduled to travel on the Delhi-Newark flight. Precisely, Air India alone processes over 100,000 wheelchair requests every month from passengers, domestic and international.
Air India says 30% of passengers on India-US flights ask for wheelchairs.
Most are able bodied travelers scamming the priority boarding system.
Real disabled passengers get left short.
— Bruce (@bruce_barrett) November 15, 2025
Passengers who request wheelchairs when they don’t really need them hogs available wheelchairs and staff time pushing those chairs. People do it selfishly, though, because it means:
- Guaranteed bin space near your seat. For many once-a-year travellers with big carry-ons, “my bag is right above me” feels like a huge win.
- The whole entourage boarding with the wheelchair, so 3–6 family members board early too. They can get kids settled, claim overheads for multiple bags, and rearrange seats before the cabin fills.
- Avoid standing in a packed jetbridge.
- No long walking distances in the airport.
- No long waits at security, either.
Requesting wheelchairs remains about converting the airport day into a half-baked VIP meet-and-assist product for free. Either that, or there really are miracles happening inside of airports every day.
Since airlines foot the bills for airport wheelchair service, I wonder how much this expense increases the cost of each airline ticket?
It is totally out of controlled and being abused. You have to also wonder how much this is costing airlines. Those attendants do not work for free.
On every single flight I see deplaning I see wheelchair attendants coming up with an empty chair.
My solution it should be required that people either provide a doctor’s affidavit that they are unable to walk that distance OR in lieu of a doctor affidavit incur a $25 fee for the service. That would stop the fakers right away because they won’t spend even $25 to support their con. And yes for the truly disabled and elderly this really sucks that they would need to go jump this hoop. But that’s where our society has devolved to.
Easy fix…I would board them last. They are not in the rush and i would always check in their bags if.they use wheelchair service.
I would even offer free bags for them but nothing larger to purse would be allowed with them on board.
The solution is simple. Board all wheechair persons first and seat them in the rearmost seats on the plane. Upon landing, all other passengers are allowed to deplane first, then those who were sitting in the rear of the plane deplane last. That will stop this bullshit.
Flying Qatar ATL to DOH there were at least 80 wheel chair passengers, nearly all were Indian
So… I’m about to request wheelchair assistance for the first time in my life. Flying to LHR from the US, and it’s a VERY long (>1 mile) walk from gate to curb or train platform. I can walk, but I have pretty bad knees and spine at this point, a lot of pain, and I need to protect my body for the rest of the trip, especially after such a long haul flight. I’m on UA with assigned seating, so I’m not really taking anything away from anyone else. I fly SWA a lot too, but in those airports I don’t need a wheelchair because they’re smaller and I’m A-List Preferred, and now with seat assignments coming it doesn’t matter. To be clear, I don’t need assistance getting down the aisle to my seat, but I do need the ride to the plane door. And yes, I see this being abused all the time too, but I’m just saying that SWA aside, you don’t know what someone’s limitations really are, so don’t be so quick to judge.
There is an easy solution: a $50 charge refundable when the passenger sends in a prescription for the wheelchair assistance from their doctor
….. or $200 in Bilt Cash (if they follow Gary’s advice they should have plenty.)
I like the word “jetway” better than “jetbridge”. Jetway Jesus is my preferred term. That being said, I can see the possibility that I will not be able to easily walk the ever increasing distances at the airports in the future. There really should be a better transportation system for those challenged by walking the long distances to the gates. Maybe oversized versions of the golf carts that you have to jump out of the way of every so often. Properly done, that should reduce some of the requests for wheelchairs.
I just wonder if the people making some if the suggestion realize that their suggestions could cause a hardship for those of us who actually need to use the wheelchair system?
I get the frustration as I also have been very frustrated about it myself, but harming those who actually need to use it is then HARMING people who are actually DISABLED!
I agree the simple solution would be requiring carryons to be checked and only allow a personal item under the seat for meds, etc. only. And they board last….when the aisles are clear. Also, the wheelchairs wait in the regular line like everyone else. It would be a bit of a workload management initially cuz people realize they dont get priority anymore……then the numbers will shrink….
This will solve a lot of the abuse.
My suggestion would be that if you need wheelchair assistance to board the plane, you’re committed to that for all boarding and deplaning throughout your trip. If you do not use the wheelchair service upon landing (Which is booked and waiting for you) then you will be billed for that leg of the service. Since you’ll have to wait for passengers to disembark prior to getting your wheelchair service at your destination that should hopefully deter a bunch of this.
Seems unnecessary. In Seattle, I’ve seen folks with collapsible walking sticks who limp up to the boarding gate, then fold them up and stride with purpose ten feet into the jet bridge, smugly congratulating themselves on their brilliant travel hack.
All you ableist asshats need to have several seats. About 28% of the population has a disability. Airports, by their design are disabling places. People who have some degree of capability loss but do not consider themselves disabled may need assistance in airports. So, a 30% wheelchair use rate is actually not shocking. We don’t need “fees,” prescriptions or whatever assholish and clusless “solution” you lot have. We need better design of airports and of services. One of the, many, many problems with airline assistance is how clumsily it is handled. I am low vision. I also have a degree in human factors, so I actually understand the design challenges here. I used to leave detailed notes about my needs until I realized no one read them. I need assistance navigating unfamiliar airports. (I do not need nor do I request assistance at my home airport. I also do not usually request assistance when traveling with someone.) I need assistance navigating crowded spaces as I lack peripheral vision and depth perception and people are assholes. I need assistance putting my cabin bag in the overhead bin because, do you really want the short, clumsy person with no peripheral vision or depth perception swinging a hard cabin bag around? I need a flight attendant to orient me to my closest exit and bathroom. Like most low vision people I am also very light sensitive and have found myself in a very bad spot with airport lighting causing migraines. For the most part, I prefer to walk when moving in the terminal and I find being pushed in a wheelchair very disorienting. Honestly, I do not want to board first. I’d prefer to be last to be strapped into a confined space. Airport assistance services are not designed with human needs and dignity in mind. Oh, and my personal favorite, trying to find my assister on the jetway. Yes, that tiny sign is the perfect solution for someone who uses assistance because they are low vision. They are designed with efficiency in mind. There are a few experimental setups with internal navigation beacons and accompanying aps in large buildings. This would be tremendously helpful in airports. Actually getting to the point where I can find assistance is problematic in some large airports. I used to see, and still do in Europe, electric trams to help people navigate large concourses for whatever reason they may need assistance would help many people. If I knew I could easily find assistance if I found myself in need, I would be far less likely to request wheelchair assistance if I had access to an alternative that could meet my needs. Now, the real question, is Gary willing to listen and learn or is he an ableist asshat who just likes to post anti-disabled screeds?
How exactly is an aircraft with so many passengers “needing” wheelchairs supposed to evacuate in an emergency?
I beg to differ when it comes to the Indians.
At my home airport (SF), the Indian passengers off of the Emirates flights are still in the wheelchairs upon arrival – I’ve seen at least 50 Indians parked in wheelchairs waiting to go through immigration. No speed benefit there. No Jetbridge Jesus.
What I’ve heard is that many of the wheelchair people have never been out of India, don’t speak much English, are coming to visit their kids or grandkids, and use the wheelchair service because they are nervous about finding their way in a strange country.
Not the purpose of the wheelchair service, but a bit more defensible than using it for a better seat or early boarding.
As a disabled traveller who primarily travels internationally i find some of these suggestions very amusing as we are still people traveling and have the same rights for carrying on luggage as others.
As a person who also works at an airport and has flown from YVR – DEL – i was embarrassed with the 25% of economy that required wheelchairs to get to the flight and just how many were “cured” during the flight and only a dozen were used getting off the plane. While I was in J class, where we exited through a different door, the flight attendants know about this cultural issue and sat in the provided wheelchair until i got off the plane and mine was provided later on once in baggage.
One thing that is different in Canada is you get better service if you register with the medical desk for the airline in advance of the flights so that the request is in the system already and on your PNR for the airline. Then when at the check in they cannot deny you service.
The other thing that is different in Canada than in other parts of the world which works well in this case but frustrates me as I cannot get onto them are the use of transportation carts. Only the “disabled” person is carried along with up to 5 other people going to the same flight. The rest of the party – which can be several people – have to go through security themselves and do not get priority treatment. That is the case also ar the gate – it is the disabled person plus 1 accompanying person to get on the plane in advance – not the whole family. If traveling with young kids they are allowed onto the plane AFTER business class and frequent flyers.
The airlines and airports can fix this.
1) Limit pre-boarding companions to one adult unless the party has only two adults plus minor children. Don’t let hangers-on pre-board
2) Most effective, maybe, is to have two classes of assistance – full, and transit only. I may soon get to the point where I can no longer walk the long airport distances even though I could easily board with my group from the gate. Airlines and regulators should create a path to wheeled (chair, multi-passenger cart, etc) assistance for airport transit that ends at the boarding area, not at the airplane seat
I agreed with many readers here – Let’s assign them the last two rows before the toilets in the back of the plane. They will get priority to go through security, TSA… so they will not miss their flights. Plus, it makes sense as if they need to use the toilet, they are “handicap” so it is closer and easier for them to access to those lavatories.
@Patrick Jacobs – 100%! We had the same experience. I understand it’s a popular path fm US to India, but the number of wheelchairs was tremendous…
I agree with most solutions and suggest;
– charge a refundable $50 USD charge for the service
– issue a document/sticker indicating “wheelchair” which is handed to the wheelchair assistant upon deplaning. This will serve as proof for refund
– board them first
– deplane them last
I have seem too many unused wheelchairs upon deplaning an aircraft or cruise ship.
Having said that, there will be those who will find a way to scam the system. At least, a charge will deter some.
@Angie I doubt many readers of this blog would object to people who request it getting a cart ride from the curb to the gate area then boarding under their own power. I used to travel with my grandparents who went about their daily life without assistance (did not want a disabled parking tag even), but an airport was never going to happen without a ride at least part of the way. If 25-30% of passengers on an aircraft cannot get from the gate to their seat without a wheelchair, over 50% of the passengers on that aircraft would die in an emergency that required rapid evacuation. The whole idea of pre-boarding people who need “a little extra time” is ridiculous, since once you get past the first class group the jetbridge shuffle is a snails pace anyway.
There are truly people that need this and of course the scammers. Similar to the bogus service animal thing that people abuse as well.
I’d combine ideas between @Alex and @David R. Miller (I know, shocker, to agree with that piece of… work), board them all last and fill the final rows of the aircraft; last on, last off. (Huh, will you look at that… less wheelchairs all-of-the-sudden!)
I can understand how people with real disabilities can be offended by the implication of fraud on their part, but no-one is saying that real disability should not be accommodated. I was on vacation and while sitting around the pool at our hotel, I overheard a conversation where a lady was advising her friend how to do the wheelchair fraud. So disabled or not, don’t tell me that it doesn’t happen.
On the humorus side, Southwest recently ran a commercial where people celebrated the end of no assigned seating. I would change that commercial to show a very long line of wheelchair passengers waiting to board and then upon hearing an announcement that unassigned seating was ending, which would, like the original commercial, would. cause many (not really disabled) to jump out of their wheelchair to celebrate the end. High diving each other to, I suppose, celebrate their miraculous cure. As a famous sports announcer once said; “do you believe in miracles!”
Here’s a big to all you assh*les with your solutions for the many of us who are not disabled but sometimes require wheelchair assistance. I only request it when it is a very long walk from landing to next gate or the exit. I broke a hip several years ago and after a long flight I will have a lot of pain if I walk too far, especially going through passport control and customs to the gates at the farthest edge of the terminal. (Looking at you PHX.) I also tip the assistants generously.
*Edit: Here’s a big f u to…
Filipinos are just as bad as the Indians.
On my UA flight two weeks ago from SFO to MNL, there must have been 75 wheelchairs.
From NRT to MNL two days ago, even worse.
My husband has lung cancer but still wants to travel, so we’re trying to just live our best lives.
He’s very weak from cancer and is on oxygen 24/7.
He is more annoyed that anyone else ever could be that pre-pandemic, in his 80’s, he was still golfing several days a week, and working because he chose to, and now he can barely walk because of his condition.
I have witnessed time and again all the people lined up at the gate in wheelchairs, only to arrive at the destination and they walk out of the airport. It is a disgrace, and an insult to the people that really do have an issue.
My husband cannot walk 2 feet without increasing his oxygen from 2L to 6L, just to try and walk a short distance, then has to stop to regain his strength to go on.
Sometimes, a person does not look sick, but is. All of these phonies are making it more difficult for the people truly in need.
@Angie “Now, the real question, is Gary willing to listen and learn or is he an ableist asshat who just likes to post anti-disabled screeds?” That simply is not fair. In Gary’s posts on this subject, I have never heard him complain about people with disabilities getting special treatment. He consistently rants against people faking disabilities to get special treatment. Yet, every time he posts on this somebody (maybe they are the asshats?) can’t absorb the fact his issue is fakers. So, are you willing to listen to what he actually says?
Oh, yes, many of the solutions others suggest that punish the real and fake disabled with fees, no carryon, etc. are non-starters.
Electric carts would do as well as wheelchairs for people who are limited walkers. You could request a cart ride like you do a wheelchair and have your boarding pass marked to use as a ticket for the cart, instead of just anybody hopping on at will. There needs to be some form of documentation uploaded to the airline to get a wheelchair or cart ride if the need isn’t obvious, like blindness or wearing a cast. Finnair requires uploading documentation when you make a request for whatever specific assistance you need. People do pay in the form of a tip, $10 or $20. I haven’t used any of these services yet, but for the first time in an airport like CDG I might ask for a wheelchair because I could not stand in an immigration line for 2 hours. If they would accept a marked boarding pass or my handicap parking tag in a fast lane, that would be good enough. Walking through a huge airport to and from the gate you can sit down and take a little rest if need be but there is no help once stuck in a 2 hour line. I really dislike wheelchair scammers but also some of the punitive ideas here, like forcing wheelchair users to sit by the toilets in back or no carryon luggage. We pay for business class and seat selection too.
My simple solution for the Jetway Jesus syndrome is that if a passenger doesn’t wait for a wheelchair to pick them up after needing one to board then ban them for life. Alternately the airline could agree to let them buy their way out of being banned one time only for $500.
@Angie would love to learn about where you sourced your data. Per the last census in the US. 1.6% of the population reported using a wheelchair for mobility.
@This comes to mind — ‘Asshats’?! Jabronis, too!
@David R. Miller – Seating disabled passengers at the rear of the aircrat probably isn’t legal, and it wouldn’t be likely to survive a discrimination lawsuit. Boarding or deplaning wheelchair passengers last would also likely be deemed discrimination unless the airline can show it is required for safety or operational necessity for that specific passenger on that specific flight.
And to everyone else who has suggested some sort of financial penalty or fee, that’s clearly illegal. The Air Carrier Access Act (ACAA) prohibits air carriers from discriminating against an otherwise qualified individual on the basis of disability. Also, DOT regulation 14 C.F.R. § 382.31 states that a carrier must not impose charges for providing “facilities, equipment, or services” that Part 382 requires be provided to passengers with a disability.
So, if we’re going to find a way to stop this incessant wheelchair abuse, it’s likely going to have to originate in Congress with some creative legislative changes.
Great Article. I am a flight attendant. It should also be reiterated that when these slow moving fakers get on first with their extended families it slows the boarding process. What happens is they take their seats and then take a year and a day to get up to let the average Joe customer into the seat bank. The wheelchair itself provides the accommodation, no need to board first. It would actually speed up boarding and discourage the fakers. I do Northeast flights to SJU and Dominican Republic and on a 200 seat plane there is anywhere from 20-40 wheelchair frauds at a minimum. We arrive at destination and they pop up and walk off. Funny story. JFK to SJU delayed @4 hours for weather and reduced volume, Wheelchair costumers gate parked like sheep. Customer gets up, places roller board suitcase and pushes wheelchair to food court, nice long walk. Walks back to gate same way. Sits back down, then short time later makes wheelchair attendant push her to rest room literally 50 ft from where she was parked.
Very simple answer, charge $100 for using the\ wheelchair if its NOT used on both ends, most people use it only at the departing airport, if they know they will be charged $100 if they dont use it at the arriving airport and must remain seated till everyone else is off, bingo the # of people abusing it will be ZERO