Clifford and Kathleen Gowing were on a multi-leg journey from their home outside Reno, Nevada, to St. Maarten (via Dallas and Miami) on March 3 and 4 when they hit a snag.
“Every time we go through Dallas, his mobility device seems to stay there,” Kathleen, 70, said. “This was the second time in less than a year that we had had a connection through Dallas, and both times when we got to our destination after a layover in Dallas, his wheelchair was still in Dallas.”
Clifford, 69, has degenerative disc disease and has lost his ability to balance himself after a series of spine surgeries, leaving him reliant on a wheelchair to get around whenever he leaves the house.
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“What the handicap go through in dealing with their luggage, their wheelchairs, their walkers, is really getting to be, you’re at (the airlines’) mercy,” he said.
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The Gowings spent a night in Miami without Clifford’s wheelchair and were reunited with it the next day on their flight to St. Maarten. In the meantime, Kathleen said, the airline loaned Clifford a “big, heavy duty scooter, which barely fit into our hotel room.”
Although Clifford’s own chair was useable when he got it back, Kathleen said its kickstand was broken and would need to be repaired.
“Our situation was minor compared to other people, who, if they’re damaged, they can’t use an off-the-shelf wheelchair,” she said. “If we ever got to our destination and we got there, and the wheelchair was so damaged that he couldn’t use it or there was no wheelchair, what do you do? You’re out of luck, and the airlines don’t seem to understand that.”
American Airlines acknowledged the incident and said they worked with the Gowings to get the situation addressed.
“We want all of our customers to have a positive travel experience when they fly with us, including those traveling with wheelchairs. A member of our Customer Relations team has reached out to apologize to the customer and worked with them to fully repair their mobility device,” American Airlines spokesperson Curtis Blessing said in a statement.
Both Clifford and Kathleen said they hope airlines can find a way to handle mobility devices more carefully and in a more standardized way.
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“They need to start treating these mobility devices as something that is lifesaving for somebody and handle them with care,” Kathleen said.
“I just wondered if they would put it in a bag so it couldn’t be seen and use some of that webbing to cinch it down to a tray, something that’s universal so if it shows up at another airport they don’t go, ‘what do we do with this junk?’ and throw it away,” Clifford added.
How common is mobility equipment damage in air travel?
According to the Department of Transportation, airlines “mishandle” on average about 1.5% of the mobility equipment they transport.
This year, USA TODAY wants to highlight what those figures mean for travelers with disabilities. We’re looking to track these incidents throughout 2023 with the goal of bringing light to an all-too-common problem.
If your own mobility equipment was damaged or lost by an airline this year, please share your story with us using the form below: