Originally Posted by
DawnGrab
This is my first time on this site. I am a brand new member. I am seeking advice. I have already filed a complaint with Delta Airline, and The TSA at John F. Kennedy Airport in New York City.Please Note: I have left out my booking number, and the contact information of the friend that got my home back to LAX, but it is in the original complaint filed already with Delta Airlines & TSA. Any further guidance would be greatly appreciated. Thank you All! Arriving from Rome FCO to New York City Kennedy airport on October 17, 2022, On flight DL153. Delta refused to allow me to board my second flight . That flight was supposed to be JFK to LAX leaving at 5:45 PM and landing at 8:55 PM. I am a person that requires special assistant I am a wheelchair user. The person I was traveling with was sent up ahead to let them know I was coming and was delayed at TSA Because they did not have a female TSA agent for a female pat down. I waited for over 35 minutes at TSA. I will be filing a complaint with them, too. The plane was still there. It was 5:25PM. The flight was supposed to depart at 5:45 P.M. I said if they were not going to allow me to get on the flight, I needed to get my purse, which had my apartment keys, cell phone, money, credit card, glasses, and supplements for my condition of Cerebral Palsy, my crutches, my travel bag. a Delta representative went down to get my belongings, but she only came back with my crutches. I told her I needed my purse, and travel bag. She informed me that the flight had already taken off. I was at JFK airport with only my passport and ticket to board the flight that had just left. The only reason I had passport in my hands was I never had time to put it back in my purse. I was left at JFK airport with my personal wheelchair, my crutches, my passport, and ticket that was now useless because the plane took off. I then had to borrow a wheelchair pusher's phone to call the one number that I could remember to get a hold of a friend. (See More in Attached Word Document. This is where the Delta complaint stopped. It limits you to only 1,500 characters).
I was left at JFK airport with my personal wheelchair, my crutches, my passport, and ticket that was, now, useless because the plane took off. I then had to borrow a wheelchair pusher's phone to call the one number that I could remember to get a hold of a friend to see if she could get a hold of the other flight. I was rebooked on another delta flight that flight took off at 7:25P.M. October 17,2022 from the JFK airport and landed at LAX at approximately 10:00 PM. I don't think I got a ticket for that. I can't find it. At the rebooking counter for Delta, I asked for supervisor’s name and card. I was told I would need to go to the website for that. (I can only stay and argue for so long before I’d miss another flight).
The wheelchair pusher pushed me back to TSA to see if, perhaps, my purse was left there. Since I was not sure if the person, I was traveling with truly grabbed it or not. TSA would not let me back to look at the footage. So, I had to describe the person I was traveling with and tell them the approximate time we came through TSA which was 5:00 PM Eastern Time. I asked TSA for supervisors’ card, and I was told that I would need to go on the website for that. I asked for the highest supervisor available, and no one came. TSA informed me that if I had been able to get up and walk through the metal detector, I never would have missed my plane. I would have been willing to do that with my crutches, but my crutches were taken away at TSA to go through the X-ray machine. I argued with TSA that they were in violation of the Americans with Disabilities act the man told me to calm down that they were not in violation of anything because this was Delta’s fault.
According to My friend, the only contact information I could remember, Delta's texting app, website, phone calling was all useless, as a matter of fact, several representatives hung up on her when she said how do you get a hold of a passenger on a flight, if it's an emergency. My friend had to call the tower at LAX, and the police at LAX to get in touch with the person I was traveling with figure out how to my personal belongings back. I am told by my friend that officer Hernandez at the Police Department at LAX was extremely. From start to finish that took eight hours. When I arrived at LAX, they still could not find my bags that I was told was left at lost and found. Eventually, I did find all my belongings. I feel that I was discriminated against because of my disability. Delta has no compassion whatsoever. Why didn't they call ahead to let them know that I was coming? I had a ticket on that flight? Why didn't they let me get on the plane when the plane was still there? I believe Delta is in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Thank you for allowing me to post.
Okay. I needed a break from the family thanksgiving activities. Let's break this down and see what's going on.
1.) You stated you were on DL 153 from FCO-JFK on October 17. That flight departed at 1:18 PM local time and arrived into JFK at 4:05 PM local time (scheduled to arrive at 4:20 PM) local time. Your connection was at 5:45 PM; giving you a connection time of 1 hour and 25 minutes. This is a LEGAL connection time, meaning Delta will sell the ticket (and you accepted the ticket) with the expectation that you will make your flight. In fact, you actually had an additional 15 minutes. So Delta is not at fault by selling you a ticket with an illegal connection time.
2.) You stated that TSA held up either you or your friend (It wasn't clear). While unfortunate, that DOES happen and it is not the fault of the airline or of TSA. There could be a myriad of reasons why there was not an agent. Your contract of carriage with an airline does not cover TSA delays. So neither Delta nor the TSA are at fault - it is a risk of travel that sometimes this happens (not downplaying the inconvenience, but this happened to THOUSANDS of travelers this summer).
3.) You stated you arrived at your gate at 5:25 PM for a 5:45 PM departure time. JFK requires check in at a minimum of 45 minutes prior to departure and 15 minutes at the gate prior to departure. If you did, in fact, arrive at T-20, you have a claim that you were IDB (involuntarily denied boarding).
4.) You stated you gave your personal belongings to a companion. This was your decision to make and not the fault of anyone else's.
5.) You state you now had a "worthless ticket". That is incorrect. In the event of a misconnection due to something like security, you will automatically be rebooked on the next available flight. You stated this happened, so it is unclear why you are saying your ticket was then worthless. Your same boarding pass could be used to board the next flight and would have clearly been explained to you. Rebookings are common procedure.
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TL;DR - You may have a claim for IDB if you were, in fact, at the gate 20 minutes prior to departure. Delta sold, and you accepted, a ticket with a LEGAL connection time. Missing a connection due to TSA does not constitute discrimination on the basis of the ADA. I'm sorry you had this experience. But nothing here suggests that AS A RESULT OF YOUR DISABILITY you were treated differently than any other passenger. As to your claims about lost luggage and belongings, you chose to give your belongings to someone else who then chose to board the plane without you. That is not Delta or TSAs fault or responsibility.