Traveling by Air
 

Nothing is more frustrating than traveling by air to one destination
and having your luggage travel to another.  Unless it's your
wheelchair.  There are several things you can do to minimize this
possibility, and by planning ahead may of the other problems can be
minimized as well.  The US Department of Transportation has published
a guide called "New Horizons for the Air Traveler with a Disability".
This is must reading for the wheelchair user who travels by air
frequently.

My customers who fly frequently tell me that they always let the
airlines know when they make a reservation that they will be traveling
with a wheelchair, and what type of chair it is.  For those who travel
by air a lot, there are wheelchairs that will fold into a suitcase
that may be loaded into an overhead bin.  Even in the cargo
compartment, the suitcase does give these chairs an extra level of
protection.

Rule number one: arrive early.  Hours early!  Rule number two: plan to
be at the destination airport a long time as well (more on this
in a few paragraphs).  Airport security has every right to search you
and the chair.  They are aware that terrorists can obtain wheelchairs
too.  This may take some time.  But by arriving early at the airport,
you will have more time to see that the wheelchair is secured
properly, that a power chair's batteries are dealt with properly, and
to find a supervisor if things are not going as planned.  And by being
first on the plane, your (folding) chair may be stowed in the
passenger compartment instead of with the luggage (where it gets
wrecked).  That is because FAA guidelines provide:  "...One folding
wheelchair can be stowed in a cabin closet, or other approved priority
storage area, if the aircraft has such areas and storage can be
accomplished in accordance with FAA safety regulations.  If the
passenger pre-boards, stowage of the wheelchair takes priority over
the carry-on items brought on by other passengers enplaning at the
same airport, but not over items from previous stops.  Wheelchairs and
other assistive devices must be given priority over cargo and baggage
when stowed in the cargo compartment..."

UPON ARRIVAL,  THOROUGHLY INSPECT THE CHAIR.  If you don't catch any
damage now, chances are you'll never get compensated for it in the
future (exceptions made for frequent flyers where the airline want's
to maintain "goodwill").

OK, your chair makes it to the same destination as you do, but it's
broken.  You are tired and hungry and hurt all over.  Your ride is
waiting- with an attitude.  The chair does work, but not right.  The
baggage claim person hands you a paper with a phone number written on
it and says to call him/her in the morning and they'll "work it out".
DON'T DO IT!   DON'T LEAVE!  They won't respect you in the morning.
THEY WON'T EVEN REMEMBER YOU!  Get it in writing.  Every little
detail.  On a form.  With a claim number.  Spend three hours fighting
with them if you have to- you'll be spending a lot more time than that
just on "hold" in the weeks ahead if you don't do it NOW!

DOCUMENT EVERY THING WRONG WITH THE CHAIR.  In your words, not the
agent's.  You are the expert of that chair. S/he is the expert in
making you disappear- and once "out of sight, out of mind".  Make sure
that words like "minor" are not on the report.  Let an expert decide
what is minor and what is not.  The airline may claim that they have
the right to send you where they want to.  I have observed that if you
scream loud enough and have your own "mechanic", they will let you go
to that person.  This is very important if the chair is custom, power,
etc.  Some airlines will send you to a luggage repair company for
wheelchair repairs.  I do know that you are entitled to have a factory
certified person repair the chair.  You will have to make the
determination as to whether the person they send you to is competent.
But if you can wait to "get home", you may want your own wheelchair
dealer to call the airline (with the claim number and form) to get
authorization for the repair.  If the chair is a rental (most chairs
provided by Medicare are), it is even more important that the renting
dealer be involved (it's the dealer's property).

BATTERIES:  Under FAA guidelines, any power wheelchair with ANY kind
of batteries must be accepted by the airlines.  If the power chair has
gel batteries, or if the battery box is secure to the chair (not like
a standard E&J 3P, but like the slide out box by 21st Century
Scientific), nothing has to be done to the chair (by the airlines) and
boarding/loading should proceed in the same fashion as someone with a
manual chair.

If the chair has wet batteries AND the batteries are not "secure",
then the airlines will, at their expense and with their personnel/
contractors, remove the wet batteries and box them and load the chair
and batteries on the flight.  This of course takes time, and at least
an additional hour must be allowed prior to boarding.  The process is
reversed at the destination.

The problem with the guidelines is that no FAA inspector is at the air
terminal with you to tell the airlines the policy.  You have 20
minutes to boarding and some employee is telling you that they won't
take the chair.  While you may be right, you miss your plane.  I have
found as a general rule that if you travel with gel batteries, the
airlines will always take the chair with no hassle.  Anything with wet
batteries has the potential of a hassle/delay.  And since the Value
Jet, and the Flight 800 and Egypt-Air incidents, we can certainly 
understand why airline employees are cautious.

The FAA published a pamphlet in 1991 titled 
New Horizons for the Air Traveler with a Disability".
It is a "how to" regarding your rights, preparing to travel, what to 
expect, and your responsibilities.  This pamphlet has been updated and is now 
available online.  Click on the title (above) and a new window will open.

WHAT IS ALLOWED ON THE AIRPLANE8/29/2006
See my article here.

All the information provided herein is Copyright © 1993 1994 1995
1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 & 2006 Stuart L. Portner.  
All rights reserved.  May be printed and reproduced for individual use,
but may not be distributed without the permission of the author,

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