Priority Boarding - is this a record?
Aug 15, 2014, 10:08 am
#16
Join Date: Sep 2009
Location: YYZ
Programs: AC SE MM, Bonvoy Plat, Hilton G,Nexus, Amex MR Plat,IHG Plat
Posts: 4,426
And as for queues in India - phew, that concept barely exists. Even LH has a hard time in FRA on flights to India. I have even seem PAX arguing that the bin space over their seats is reserved for their bags exclusively, till the FA threatened to offload them and their bags.
Aug 15, 2014, 11:23 am
#17
Join Date: Feb 2005
Posts: 7,156
Wheelchair service is another most abused special service.
Last summer, I was at VCE flying LH J to FRA. The flight had a lot of passengers off a Princess cruise ship and there must be about 10 wheelchairs at the gate.
The flight was delayed for about half an hour due to late arrival and loading problems. When this was announced, one of the American ladies in a wheelchair remarked that she had better go to the toilet if it's delayed an hour. She got up and walked away (presumably to the toilet)! She was holding an American passport.
Last summer, I was at VCE flying LH J to FRA. The flight had a lot of passengers off a Princess cruise ship and there must be about 10 wheelchairs at the gate.
The flight was delayed for about half an hour due to late arrival and loading problems. When this was announced, one of the American ladies in a wheelchair remarked that she had better go to the toilet if it's delayed an hour. She got up and walked away (presumably to the toilet)! She was holding an American passport.
Aug 15, 2014, 11:24 am
#18
Join Date: Feb 2005
Posts: 7,156
A lot of people put their parents in wheelchairs for India flights. As pointed out its not because they need the wheelchairs physically. Its because they do not speak English and putting them in a wheelchair gets them to the gate with less stress. Think of it as unaccompanied child. Not that I am condoning it as my parents walk even when told to use a wheelchair (knee problem).
And as for queues in India - phew, that concept barely exists. Even LH has a hard time in FRA on flights to India. I have even seem PAX arguing that the bin space over their seats is reserved for their bags exclusively, till the FA threatened to offload them and their bags.
And as for queues in India - phew, that concept barely exists. Even LH has a hard time in FRA on flights to India. I have even seem PAX arguing that the bin space over their seats is reserved for their bags exclusively, till the FA threatened to offload them and their bags.
Aug 15, 2014, 11:37 am
#19
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: YVR
Programs: OZ Diamond, Jiffypark Manhattan Gold
Posts: 4,485
A lot of people put their parents in wheelchairs for India flights. As pointed out its not because they need the wheelchairs physically. Its because they do not speak English and putting them in a wheelchair gets them to the gate with less stress. Think of it as unaccompanied child. Not that I am condoning it as my parents walk even when told to use a wheelchair (knee problem).
And as for queues in India - phew, that concept barely exists. Even LH has a hard time in FRA on flights to India. I have even seem PAX arguing that the bin space over their seats is reserved for their bags exclusively, till the FA threatened to offload them and their bags.
And as for queues in India - phew, that concept barely exists. Even LH has a hard time in FRA on flights to India. I have even seem PAX arguing that the bin space over their seats is reserved for their bags exclusively, till the FA threatened to offload them and their bags.
A friend of mine had the option of spending a bit more and have his parents connect within Canada before going to India or sending them through China. They speak a bit of English, and 0 Chinese. He went the smart route and at least let them connect in a country they could likely help themselves if something went awry.
My other question is, put yourself in that same situation...you speak no Spanish and you're arriving in Bogota...are you going to book a wheelchair for yourself based on the same principal?
Aug 15, 2014, 11:39 am
#20
Join Date: Mar 2007
Posts: 4,784
A lot of people put their parents in wheelchairs for India flights. As pointed out its not because they need the wheelchairs physically. Its because they do not speak English and putting them in a wheelchair gets them to the gate with less stress. Think of it as unaccompanied child. Not that I am condoning it as my parents walk even when told to use a wheelchair (knee problem).
And as for queues in India - phew, that concept barely exists. Even LH has a hard time in FRA on flights to India. I have even seem PAX arguing that the bin space over their seats is reserved for their bags exclusively, till the FA threatened to offload them and their bags.
And as for queues in India - phew, that concept barely exists. Even LH has a hard time in FRA on flights to India. I have even seem PAX arguing that the bin space over their seats is reserved for their bags exclusively, till the FA threatened to offload them and their bags.
Many use Wheelchairs to make the process easier/smoother, I think at Customs line also (they use the Special lane)
It's sometimes sad/funny to see 1 staff trying to move 10+ wheelchairs into Elevators 2-3 at a time, down and up, down and up, down and up, down and up, etc....
Sadly, I've usually only seen this with Indian passengers, even on Asia flights (like YYZ-TPE on BR, the line of wheelchairs is at least 10 deep)
Thankfully I have *G to board first
I'm sure it happens to Asians too
I cannot imagine loading up A380 with so many wheelchairs paxs
Aug 15, 2014, 2:02 pm
#21
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: YYZ
Programs: AC, Bonvoy, HH
Posts: 610
Wheelchair service is another most abused special service.
Last summer, I was at VCE flying LH J to FRA. The flight had a lot of passengers off a Princess cruise ship and there must be about 10 wheelchairs at the gate.
The flight was delayed for about half an hour due to late arrival and loading problems. When this was announced, one of the American ladies in a wheelchair remarked that she had better go to the toilet if it's delayed an hour. She got up and walked away (presumably to the toilet)! She was holding an American passport.
Last summer, I was at VCE flying LH J to FRA. The flight had a lot of passengers off a Princess cruise ship and there must be about 10 wheelchairs at the gate.
The flight was delayed for about half an hour due to late arrival and loading problems. When this was announced, one of the American ladies in a wheelchair remarked that she had better go to the toilet if it's delayed an hour. She got up and walked away (presumably to the toilet)! She was holding an American passport.
Aug 15, 2014, 3:12 pm
#22
Join Date: Aug 2012
Programs: AC E35K, NEXUS
Posts: 4,368
Wheelchairs and other accessible features are not a premium service that is being denied to everyone else. They are a parallel service that exists for whoever would be helped by it, for whatever reason the chair would help them. If you use a wide washroom stall when you have large bags with you, or toddlers, or that one shower at the gym that has the hand-shower when you are wiped out after a hard run, you aren't "abusing" them. You are using them because you need them, for a different reason than most people need them. Feel free to press the automatic door opener if you have tennis elbow or are carrying a large box and can't manage the heavy door. Feel free to turn on the closed captions on your TV. They're not just for me. Captions are useful for watching the muted TV in bed when someone's trying to sleep - or indeed watching TV with swearing on it when little kids are in the room. Some people need the wheelchair (including in the airport, but also commonly seen at theme parks) because of limited endurance for standing or walking, not the absolute inability to produce the biomechanical performance of walking or standing. The more we accept that using parallel methods of performance is normal, the sooner we stop stigmatizing people with disabilities in general.
To the extent that those people get precious preboarding, and that is perceived to somehow deprive others, that is clearly negotiable. Most theme parks do not let a party of 10 enter through the wheelchair gate. A small party enters, sufficient to support the person that is using the wheelchair, perhaps equal to the number that fit the ride vehicle. The rest, as they say, are encouraged to reunite at the exit. An airline could easily break up parties with wheelchairs and strollers, or even decree no priority boarding for wheelchairs (although the latter seems to be a case of "be careful what you wish for".)
Aug 15, 2014, 4:05 pm
#23
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 2009
Location: FRA / YEG
Programs: AC Super Elite, Radisson Platinum, Accor Platinum
Posts: 11,874
Wheelchairs and other accessible features are not a premium service that is being denied to everyone else. They are a parallel service that exists for whoever would be helped by it, for whatever reason the chair would help them. If you use a wide washroom stall when you have large bags with you, or toddlers, or that one shower at the gym that has the hand-shower when you are wiped out after a hard run, you aren't "abusing" them. You are using them because you need them, for a different reason than most people need them.
...
Some people need the wheelchair (including in the airport, but also commonly seen at theme parks) because of limited endurance for standing or walking, not the absolute inability to produce the biomechanical performance of walking or standing. The more we accept that using parallel methods of performance is normal, the sooner we stop stigmatizing people with disabilities in general.
...
Some people need the wheelchair (including in the airport, but also commonly seen at theme parks) because of limited endurance for standing or walking, not the absolute inability to produce the biomechanical performance of walking or standing. The more we accept that using parallel methods of performance is normal, the sooner we stop stigmatizing people with disabilities in general.
Most "parallel services" such as golf carts, wheel chairs, personal guides, larger toilets/showers
(1) increase operational costs, a burden that is ultimately paid for by everyone
(2) negatively impacts the experience of those pax not using the service (e.g. flights with 2-3 dozen wheel chair pax are frequently delayed and priority boarding is less efficient)
(3) are only efficient if they're used by a small percentage of pax. E.g. a pax with large carry-on using the disabled washroom results in a disabled pax having to wait longer since he/she cannot use another washroom whereas the former pax just uses the washroom for disabled pax out of convenience
There's obviously a cultural component to this discussion, but I firmly believe in a "do it yourself unless you absolutely need the assistance; in which case I fully support the implementation of parallel services" approach.
Can't see the screen with the gate information because you're short-sighted? Ask a fellow pax / use a mobile app / take a photo of the screen instead of asking for an escort through the airport.
Can't walk as fast as most pax? Arrive 30min earlier instead of asking for a golf cart.
Can't lift your rollaboard into the overhead bin? Leave it at home and take a small bag that fits under the seat in front of you instead of expecting the FA to lift your 15kg rollaboard.
I would never consider asking for assistance / use "parallel services" unless there were no alternatives and it were absolutely necessary.
Aug 15, 2014, 4:45 pm
#24
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: YLW
Programs: AC- SE100 1MM, Hilton Diamond, Marriott Platinum, National Executive, Nexus/GE
Posts: 4,309
I've seen the 40 or so wheelchairs lined up in Toronto to India.
I thought it was just some special event for special needs people. After I read here that it is pretty normal for flights to and from India.
There are certainly cultural differences when you travel. Just as there are some countries where you will have to be prepared to politely stand on the correct side of the escalator and not ever talk on your mobile phone in public, there are some countries where "queue" is not in the language and to the bold, brave, and strong who can push hard enough, you will get to the front of the line.
Russia, India, China, seem to be places where, let's call it "initiative"... is what gets you what you want and if you are polite about some things then you may end up waiting permanently. The same kinds of things in England and Japan just won't happen.
It's not about race but different cultures have different values and approaches to solving the problems of shared resources. In some, they go to the strong and those with the will to take them. In others, you sit quietly and wait your turn until it comes up.
After visiting Russia, I learned that one must never show any sign of weakness in any "queue" or else a babushka will cut your throat. They are masters. You can't beat the old school Soviet queue training.
I've also been in Thailand and watched a guy from India waltz in front of an Australian in line. There was a gap. Australian guy opened up both barrels screaming at the guy for jumping the line. Indian guy looked back like, "Are you mad? There was a gap there. Gaps are to be filled!"
Show. No. Weakness.
My biggest nightmare scenario was standing in line trying to get out of Moscow with a couple of flights leaving for Turkmenistan. I got there 4 hours early but of course they don't let you check in until 2 hours in advance. I swear I looked down and looked up at 1:59 and the queue had manifested itself out of thin air from nothing to 40 people deep. I knew I was out of my league at this point.
30 minutes to clear that queue and then to passport control with the Turkmen. This was 90 minutes of a funnel shaped "queue" pushing and shoving hard to get to the passport officer. Of course no cattle corral, that would make too much sense, just 8 funnels pointed at 8 customs booths.
I made the mistake of letting in a shoulder sized gap once and this got me wedged aside. I knew at this point that any guys walking up to talk to their buddy in front of me were competition, so I had to keep chest to back contact with the guy in front of me. This also helped maintain stability from the ongoing surge behind me.
90 minutes to almost clear this queue and I was still four behind. I managed to flag down a passing agent and said my flight was about to leave, and they pulled me to the front, cleared me through.
I was then yelled twice by agents for the airline as I passed security and ran to my gate and once again at the door of the aircraft because I was late.
This is just being caught up in cultures that have different values. If you want to get to the front of the line in this situation, if you wait politely and mind your own business you will be stuck in Russia and have a visa overstay and be dealing with people you don't want to be dealing with. So "you must to push".
I invite you to watch the people making their mad dash out of the plane in Moscow headed for the stainless steel cattle corals, dodging and diving underneath. I swear I have almost seen grannies do a Luke Duke and jump and slide over these things just to get one person ahead. To them it's normal.
You try to check in to a flight say in Dubai when a plane load of people are heading to Russia, woe to you if you are in business class. Because those people will see the empty line at security for business class and though they hold an economy ticket they will fill it up. Japanese won't do it but Russians will. Why not? They say... nobody is going to tell them not to and if they do it then they go first. To them, it's smart and you are stupid if you go to the short line. To us, it's rude.
People who are familiar with this way of doing things, import their behavior to other cultures where what they consider smart, clever and sometimes necessary, is considered rude and inappropriate. Eventually everything falls to the lowest common denominator as these people out-compete the polite.
I thought it was just some special event for special needs people. After I read here that it is pretty normal for flights to and from India.
There are certainly cultural differences when you travel. Just as there are some countries where you will have to be prepared to politely stand on the correct side of the escalator and not ever talk on your mobile phone in public, there are some countries where "queue" is not in the language and to the bold, brave, and strong who can push hard enough, you will get to the front of the line.
Russia, India, China, seem to be places where, let's call it "initiative"... is what gets you what you want and if you are polite about some things then you may end up waiting permanently. The same kinds of things in England and Japan just won't happen.
It's not about race but different cultures have different values and approaches to solving the problems of shared resources. In some, they go to the strong and those with the will to take them. In others, you sit quietly and wait your turn until it comes up.
After visiting Russia, I learned that one must never show any sign of weakness in any "queue" or else a babushka will cut your throat. They are masters. You can't beat the old school Soviet queue training.
I've also been in Thailand and watched a guy from India waltz in front of an Australian in line. There was a gap. Australian guy opened up both barrels screaming at the guy for jumping the line. Indian guy looked back like, "Are you mad? There was a gap there. Gaps are to be filled!"
Show. No. Weakness.
My biggest nightmare scenario was standing in line trying to get out of Moscow with a couple of flights leaving for Turkmenistan. I got there 4 hours early but of course they don't let you check in until 2 hours in advance. I swear I looked down and looked up at 1:59 and the queue had manifested itself out of thin air from nothing to 40 people deep. I knew I was out of my league at this point.
30 minutes to clear that queue and then to passport control with the Turkmen. This was 90 minutes of a funnel shaped "queue" pushing and shoving hard to get to the passport officer. Of course no cattle corral, that would make too much sense, just 8 funnels pointed at 8 customs booths.
I made the mistake of letting in a shoulder sized gap once and this got me wedged aside. I knew at this point that any guys walking up to talk to their buddy in front of me were competition, so I had to keep chest to back contact with the guy in front of me. This also helped maintain stability from the ongoing surge behind me.
90 minutes to almost clear this queue and I was still four behind. I managed to flag down a passing agent and said my flight was about to leave, and they pulled me to the front, cleared me through.
I was then yelled twice by agents for the airline as I passed security and ran to my gate and once again at the door of the aircraft because I was late.
This is just being caught up in cultures that have different values. If you want to get to the front of the line in this situation, if you wait politely and mind your own business you will be stuck in Russia and have a visa overstay and be dealing with people you don't want to be dealing with. So "you must to push".
I invite you to watch the people making their mad dash out of the plane in Moscow headed for the stainless steel cattle corals, dodging and diving underneath. I swear I have almost seen grannies do a Luke Duke and jump and slide over these things just to get one person ahead. To them it's normal.
You try to check in to a flight say in Dubai when a plane load of people are heading to Russia, woe to you if you are in business class. Because those people will see the empty line at security for business class and though they hold an economy ticket they will fill it up. Japanese won't do it but Russians will. Why not? They say... nobody is going to tell them not to and if they do it then they go first. To them, it's smart and you are stupid if you go to the short line. To us, it's rude.
People who are familiar with this way of doing things, import their behavior to other cultures where what they consider smart, clever and sometimes necessary, is considered rude and inappropriate. Eventually everything falls to the lowest common denominator as these people out-compete the polite.
Very nice indeed, When I read the OP comment I just moved on as we have seen so many comments such as that go oh so badly, but I knew what he meant, but you Sir did a very nice job explaining things.
Aug 15, 2014, 5:44 pm
#25
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: YVR
Programs: OZ Diamond, Jiffypark Manhattan Gold
Posts: 4,485
I can speak and read one or more languages, but not hear. What would you say about me? Should I not travel just because I can't ask directions and understand the answer? Should I not ask the airline to be prepared to give me written directions for my connection when we land? If a client says "I need you in Japan", I kinda think I should go. I swallow the lump in my throat being a little bit afraid of navigating without being able to ask directions or even read the writing, but I think it's good for me and, obviously, the client thinks it's good for them. I think we should be encouraging people to challenge themselves, whatever their limitations are. The alternative is that they live in a ghetto, never going anywhere.
To the extent that those people get precious preboarding, and that is perceived to somehow deprive others, that is clearly negotiable. Most theme parks do not let a party of 10 enter through the wheelchair gate. A small party enters, sufficient to support the person that is using the wheelchair, perhaps equal to the number that fit the ride vehicle. The rest, as they say, are encouraged to reunite at the exit. An airline could easily break up parties with wheelchairs and strollers, or even decree no priority boarding for wheelchairs (although the latter seems to be a case of "be careful what you wish for".)
To the extent that those people get precious preboarding, and that is perceived to somehow deprive others, that is clearly negotiable. Most theme parks do not let a party of 10 enter through the wheelchair gate. A small party enters, sufficient to support the person that is using the wheelchair, perhaps equal to the number that fit the ride vehicle. The rest, as they say, are encouraged to reunite at the exit. An airline could easily break up parties with wheelchairs and strollers, or even decree no priority boarding for wheelchairs (although the latter seems to be a case of "be careful what you wish for".)
While I appreciate the sentiment of your post, I very much disagree with the bolded statement.
Most "parallel services" such as golf carts, wheel chairs, personal guides, larger toilets/showers
(1) increase operational costs, a burden that is ultimately paid for by everyone
(2) negatively impacts the experience of those pax not using the service (e.g. flights with 2-3 dozen wheel chair pax are frequently delayed and priority boarding is less efficient)
(3) are only efficient if they're used by a small percentage of pax. E.g. a pax with large carry-on using the disabled washroom results in a disabled pax having to wait longer since he/she cannot use another washroom whereas the former pax just uses the washroom for disabled pax out of convenience
There's obviously a cultural component to this discussion, but I firmly believe in a "do it yourself unless you absolutely need the assistance; in which case I fully support the implementation of parallel services" approach.
Can't see the screen with the gate information because you're short-sighted? Ask a fellow pax / use a mobile app / take a photo of the screen instead of asking for an escort through the airport.
Can't walk as fast as most pax? Arrive 30min earlier instead of asking for a golf cart.
Can't lift your rollaboard into the overhead bin? Leave it at home and take a small bag that fits under the seat in front of you instead of expecting the FA to lift your 15kg rollaboard.
I would never consider asking for assistance / use "parallel services" unless there were no alternatives and it were absolutely necessary.
Most "parallel services" such as golf carts, wheel chairs, personal guides, larger toilets/showers
(1) increase operational costs, a burden that is ultimately paid for by everyone
(2) negatively impacts the experience of those pax not using the service (e.g. flights with 2-3 dozen wheel chair pax are frequently delayed and priority boarding is less efficient)
(3) are only efficient if they're used by a small percentage of pax. E.g. a pax with large carry-on using the disabled washroom results in a disabled pax having to wait longer since he/she cannot use another washroom whereas the former pax just uses the washroom for disabled pax out of convenience
There's obviously a cultural component to this discussion, but I firmly believe in a "do it yourself unless you absolutely need the assistance; in which case I fully support the implementation of parallel services" approach.
Can't see the screen with the gate information because you're short-sighted? Ask a fellow pax / use a mobile app / take a photo of the screen instead of asking for an escort through the airport.
Can't walk as fast as most pax? Arrive 30min earlier instead of asking for a golf cart.
Can't lift your rollaboard into the overhead bin? Leave it at home and take a small bag that fits under the seat in front of you instead of expecting the FA to lift your 15kg rollaboard.
I would never consider asking for assistance / use "parallel services" unless there were no alternatives and it were absolutely necessary.
I used to deal with lots of passengers at YVR who (as my father a 35 year YVR employee says) left their brains in the parking lot. The signs are in multiple languages and in pictures so you don't even have to read, yet people can't find their way to the US check-in. I really don't mind helping but often it was just enough to point up to the USA flag and then they realize it.
Back to the original point, if the people travelling don't speak ANY of the language maybe you should take a few minutes to learn at least 1-2 little things to help yourself out if you think it'll be an issue.
Last edited by tcook052; Aug 15, 2014 at 10:51 pm
Aug 15, 2014, 9:00 pm
#26
Join Date: Nov 2013
Posts: 492
To be honest I've seen the wheelchairs but the wheelchairs help the passengers who are old and cannot speak English and can't really navigate a North American airport. It's really the best choice for them until AC introduces some multilingual ground staff which I doubt they have/will.
Aug 15, 2014, 10:23 pm
#27
Join Date: Aug 2012
Programs: AC E35K, NEXUS
Posts: 4,368
I agree with you all that people should strive the utmost to be self-sufficient. Ultimately, that is what accessibility does. I wouldn't need to ask gate agents repeatedly to tell me what is going on if only the display screens or the apps would say.
Although a lot of parallel services are not consumable and can be used by anyone who would be helped by them without constraining resources (e.g., a ramp instead of steps), I also agree that using consumable parallel services may reduce their availability to others who need them as much or more. But I would never judge a mom with two toddlers using a wider washroom stall to manage the family "business", even if a person in a wheelchair had to wait. ("Accessible" does not mean you're guaranteed no wait. It means that when you get in there, there's enough space and the equipment works for you.)
I think the solution to resource limitations is to determine what the optimal resource availability is, not dole out the access to them according to controversial and even acrimonious traveller vs. traveller judgements.
I don't want to go too off-topic, but I'm always uncomfortable with the "it's a miracle!" comments that pop up here like clockwork. It makes people who do have legitimate transient needs feel awkward to be judged and ashamed that they do need it, while it does nothing to deter the abuse that does occur.
Just as a specific reply to this, that (bolded) is what I asked for on one trip when I had a connection in a large airport: please have someone as I get off the plane to tell me what gate I am going to, and which direction to turn. I know the alphabet and the numbers from 1 to 100, you know? I think I can find a gate. I'm a little sleepy after a long flight and in a different time zone, so although I know what my flight number is and what time it is scheduled, I don't know its gate number, whether I'm landing early or late, and how much actual time I have to get to the gate and whether I have to hustle.
What actually happened was that AC stationed a strict German lady to march me all the way to my gate, passing glaring herds at the passport and security checkpoints, as I gazed wistfully over my shoulder at the shops I wasn't allowed to stop at. It was not MY choice that I monopolized an airline employee (or ground contract staffer) nor that I cut in front of people at lines. As theseatbelt speculates above, I was being frogmarched for the convenience of the airline because they apparently don't know any other way to simply give me the information I needed.
Although a lot of parallel services are not consumable and can be used by anyone who would be helped by them without constraining resources (e.g., a ramp instead of steps), I also agree that using consumable parallel services may reduce their availability to others who need them as much or more. But I would never judge a mom with two toddlers using a wider washroom stall to manage the family "business", even if a person in a wheelchair had to wait. ("Accessible" does not mean you're guaranteed no wait. It means that when you get in there, there's enough space and the equipment works for you.)
I think the solution to resource limitations is to determine what the optimal resource availability is, not dole out the access to them according to controversial and even acrimonious traveller vs. traveller judgements.
I don't want to go too off-topic, but I'm always uncomfortable with the "it's a miracle!" comments that pop up here like clockwork. It makes people who do have legitimate transient needs feel awkward to be judged and ashamed that they do need it, while it does nothing to deter the abuse that does occur.
The problem lies when someone's parents, let's just assume they are physically able to walk, have requested wheelchairs because they can't understand how to get around. I would have the exact same problem if you did this. From everything you've said you're physically able to go from gate to gate, you just might need directions. That's fine, you're not asking for special permission to skip a line or anything.
What actually happened was that AC stationed a strict German lady to march me all the way to my gate, passing glaring herds at the passport and security checkpoints, as I gazed wistfully over my shoulder at the shops I wasn't allowed to stop at. It was not MY choice that I monopolized an airline employee (or ground contract staffer) nor that I cut in front of people at lines. As theseatbelt speculates above, I was being frogmarched for the convenience of the airline because they apparently don't know any other way to simply give me the information I needed.
Last edited by tcook052; Aug 15, 2014 at 10:50 pm
Aug 16, 2014, 8:46 am
#28
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: YYC
Posts: 23,804
To be honest I've seen the wheelchairs but the wheelchairs help the passengers who are old and cannot speak English and can't really navigate a North American airport. It's really the best choice for them until AC introduces some multilingual ground staff which I doubt they have/will.
If it's not gaming a system that's meant for people who don't abuse, what is it?
Aug 16, 2014, 9:46 am
#29
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: YVR
Programs: OZ Diamond, Jiffypark Manhattan Gold
Posts: 4,485
To be honest I've seen the wheelchairs but the wheelchairs help the passengers who are old and cannot speak English and can't really navigate a North American airport. It's really the best choice for them until AC introduces some multilingual ground staff which I doubt they have/will.
Aug 16, 2014, 11:10 am
#30
Join Date: Aug 2012
Programs: AC SEMM
Posts: 38
Wheelchair service is another most abused special service.
Last summer, I was at VCE flying LH J to FRA. The flight had a lot of passengers off a Princess cruise ship and there must be about 10 wheelchairs at the gate.
The flight was delayed for about half an hour due to late arrival and loading problems. When this was announced, one of the American ladies in a wheelchair remarked that she had better go to the toilet if it's delayed an hour. She got up and walked away (presumably to the toilet)! She was holding an American passport.
Last summer, I was at VCE flying LH J to FRA. The flight had a lot of passengers off a Princess cruise ship and there must be about 10 wheelchairs at the gate.
The flight was delayed for about half an hour due to late arrival and loading problems. When this was announced, one of the American ladies in a wheelchair remarked that she had better go to the toilet if it's delayed an hour. She got up and walked away (presumably to the toilet)! She was holding an American passport.