Gig103

AA flights out of Miami and Orlando are nicknamed the "Miracle flights" because when those passengers land, many of the wheelchairs that are waiting are left unused.

chrismk

As the husband of a full time wheelchair user I can confirm that we are always the last off.
On one occasion some 70 minutes after everyone else when our AA flight landed at LHR early and the gate wasn't available and buses were used.
Of course, we have to wait for her wheelchair to be (hopefully) brought to the cabin so there is no chance of any early disembarkment - even in CW.
We don't usually mind. We get the chance to talk to all the Crew and flying BA has always meant that has been a pleasant experience.

Flexible preferences

Yes I have wondered the same! This analogy has always confused me. Unless it is dry cake which is the biggest cake crime.

OP has had quite a bashing. Time for compassion all round now...

edited to add: mapleg has helpfully answered my cake conundrum

simons1

Well you were travelling BA so not sure what relevance Qatar and Finnair are.

And as you said at the outset they didn't need assistance disembarking from the aircraft, just a few minutes longer.

Still, keep digging eh.

Jagboi

So you can eat it! If you don't have any cake, you can't eat it. If you've already eaten the cake, then you don't have any cake left to eat in the future. The saying means wanting to have things both ways, i.e. being able to eat the cake, but still have it available to eat in the future; which is a physically impossibility.

I believe the reference in this case is akin to a "miracle passenger" as so often seen on flights to Florida, where the passenger is so crippled they cannot walk and need wheelchair assistance to board, but are "cured" in flight and then can be the first off; elbow everyone else out of the way and briskly make their way unaided to arrive at baggage claim first.

I believe the OP's point, even if not phrased the way many would like, is that if you need special assistance to board, you should logically also need special assistance to disembark. Being first on through special assistance, and then not needing special assistance in order to be the nearly the first off feels like gaming the system.

londonfog

I am another one. I have a prosthetic legs and I do not feel stable going up and down stairs in a crowd, so I book WCHS (Stairs) in case the plane is at a remote stand. I cannot have any knowledge of the gate when I book assistance. When we arrive at a gate rather than at a remote stand, I inform the CC that I do not need assistance. Also, sometimes the stump starts hurting for whatever reason and in those situations I need the wheelchair!

If you need assistance (not necessarily for reduced mobility) you are the first in and the last out. However, that also depends from the people that have to provide the specific assistance. Unfortunately the operation is run by the airport not by the airline so it can be quite dire and inconvenience everybody. I have been responsible for delayed boarding because the plane was at a remote stand and the ambulift was not coming. I had to ask a member of the cabin crew to help me down the stairs because it was the only way to leave an aircraft, etc. etc. etc.

As they say... "sorry the OP were inconvenienced" but excuse me if I have to add "tough".

I am aware the system is abused by many but trust me there is a large number of people with variable needs that have to book for the worst case scenario because the system gives you (quite rightly) very little flexibility.

Jagboi

Why "quite rightly"? Why shouldn't you be able to book the level of assistance you actually need, rather than a one size fits all solution?

cargueiro

There are varying degrees of impaired mobility.

There are no hard and fast rules regarding passengers requesting wheelchairs, in fact airport staff are instructed to enquire what a wheelchair users exact needs are.

Some wheelchair users only need a wheelchair as they can't stand up for extended periods but can move about. Some wheelchair users can't move at all. Some can't climb stairs but can go downstairs. Etc etc.

This wheelchair user obviously had some mobility as he could get down the aisle and hobble up the airbridge.

Not all persons with reduced mobility need to be treated as completely immobile and treated like those that have no mobility.

It actually upsets some wheelchair users when airport staff assume they are completely immobile and put them in ambulift etc as not all wheelchair users need all the assistance available.

Knickam

The couple may have had A good reason to leave the aircraft before everyone else, They May have had a short connection and wanted a little more time to make it.

simons1

Not at all. Some of the walks to the gates in airports are long and therefore a wheelchair may be justified. However the traveller may be able to exit the aircraft to the jetty unaided in arrival.

Sounds perfectly plausible to me, even if it took 3 mins out of the OP's busy life.

windowontheAside

Having travelled a bit with someone needing wheelchair assistance, I cannot imagine why anyone would choose that option at either end of the journey if they didn't really need it.

It really isn't as simple as just jumping into a wheelchair at the last minute to be able to board first; there's a lot of waiting and faffing prior to that, usually at a considerable cost of lounge time and general relaxation.

So, I'd say cut folk a bit of slack. There are several examples here of why seemingly underserving cases are anything but. Not everything is as straightforward as it might seem to an able bodied observer.

Italian_Kayaker

This.

I recently had a herniated lumbar disc while traveling overseas. I could quite easily stand up and get (very light) luggage from the overhead compartment. But walking more than 100 yards, or standing for extended periods, would have been out of the question. Even now, the pain comes and goes--so I might book a wheelchair, but then decide that I will try going without one. I do enjoy that the wheelchair can get me past immigration and border control without standing in line. But I will enjoy even more being well enough that I can actually stand in line again...

I would draw the line at a passenger who requests a wheelchair sitting in an emergency exit row, though.

mikem004

> I do enjoy that the wheelchair can get me past immigration and border control without standing in line. <
I expect some people might abuse the system for this "perk".

WorldLux

Not sure why you quoted me ...

Skimo

I don't mean to sound like i'm sticking the boot in, but I'd strongly encourage you to use the term 'wheelchair user'. Most disabled people don't like to be defined by their wheelchair. Crew can be terrible for this, often referring to a passenger as 'the wheelchair'