A growing number of travelers are exploiting airline wheelchair assistance not because they need help, but because it offers an easy way to board early and skip long lines. It’s time for a fundamental policy change that discourages this behavior while protecting passengers who actually need a wheelchair.
How Airlines Can Stop Wheelchair Abuse Without Hurting Passengers Who Really Need It
As View From The Wing recently highlighted, wheelchair requests on some flights have surged dramatically, in some cases reportedly reaching nearly 30% of passengers. Yet many of those same travelers appear fully mobile upon arrival, walking briskly off the aircraft without assistance. The phenomenon has even earned the nickname “Jetway Jesus.”
This is not a harmless travel hack. Wheelchair abuse strains limited airport staffing resources, delays assistance for passengers who genuinely require mobility support, and slows boarding and deplaning for everyone. When assistance teams are overwhelmed, the people who suffer most are those with legitimate disabilities.
The problem is structural. Under the Air Carrier Access Act, airlines cannot demand medical proof at the gate. Passengers self-declare a need for assistance, and airlines must accommodate them. That framework exists for good reason: to protect passengers with disabilities from humiliation and discrimination. But it also makes the system vulnerable to abuse.
A Better Solution: Wheelchairs Board Last
Rather than imposing fees or requiring documentation, which would risk penalizing travelers who truly need assistance, airlines should eliminate the primary incentive driving abuse: early boarding.
Passengers who request wheelchair assistance should board after general boarding is complete.
This approach does not deny service. It does not charge anyone. It does not question the legitimacy of a disability. It simply removes the competitive advantage that has turned wheelchair assistance into a boarding shortcut.
What does this accomplish?
- It removes the incentive. The main reason some passengers request wheelchairs is to board first and secure overhead bin space. If wheelchair assistance means boarding last, the benefit disappears.
- It protects those who genuinely need help. Travelers with real mobility challenges will still receive full assistance from curb to cabin. In fact, with fewer unnecessary requests clogging the system, assistance may become more efficient.
- It aligns fairness with accessibility. The law requires assistance, not priority. Boarding order is an operational decision airlines can adjust without violating disability protections.
- It improves operations. Excessive wheelchair pre-boarding can delay departure. Reducing abuse could streamline operational efficiency.
Addressing The Objections
Some will argue that boarding last could make the experience harder for passengers who truly need extra time. That is a legitimate concern. Airlines would need to ensure that assistance teams remain available to help passengers settle quickly and safely. Boarding last does not mean rushing or reducing dignity. It simply removes a perk that was never meant to be a perk.
It’s also reasonable to wonder whether this will delay flights since putting wheelchairs on full planes seems less efficient than putting wheelchairs on empty planes. Is it possible this will be an operational nightmare? Yes, of course. But if other folks are already boarded, the aisles will be clear. The problem is not who boards first: the problem is keeping the aisles clear.
If folks in wheelchairs have to gate check their bags because there is no overhead bin space left, that does not strike me as huge problem because they will be last off anyway and that means their bags should be delivered or shortly delivered once they make their way to baggage claim. Airlines could also designate an overhead bin or two exclusively for the use of wheelchair-bound passengers.
These are not ideal solutions, but aren’t they worth a try?
CONCLUSION
The current system unintentionally rewards those who exploit it while burdening those who genuinely rely on it. Charging passengers for wheelchair assistance would be discriminatory and unworkable. Requiring medical proof at the gate would be invasive and legally fraught.
But adjusting boarding order is different. It removes the incentive to game the system without unfairly punishing anyone who needs help. If airlines are serious about protecting accessibility while maintaining fairness, this is the most straightforward place to start.
Have you witnessed wheelchair abuse while flying? What would you do to fix it?
image: @SteveStauning / X
Yes, last-on, last-off, aisle-seat only.
Why aisle seat for last in last off? Not sure what you’re getting at here. The only convenience would be boarding them at the end without disruption. That has to be weighed against the difficulty of a less mobile passenger blocking the window/middle passenger’s egress during disembarkation, whether regular or in an emergency evacuation.
Window seat, first in last off, would be the ideal loading order balancing all these operational constraints.
I agree. Under no circumstances must wheelchair/assistance pax be seated where they block emergency egress of able-bodied pax. That’s how it is – those who can walk/run away leave first, those who require assistance to walk leave next, those who need to be carried wait until last. In their window seat.
Yes because 90% abuse the privilege…like Indian in recent post
90% abuse the right? Did you pull that out of your ass?
Try spending 2 minutes talking to a disabled person. No, sending their bags away doesn’t help when the bags hold medications and other medical equipment. Try to avoid using a place of privilege to deny those in need.
I select a window seat when I purchase my ticket because I am not able to stand up. That way the person sitting next to me does not have to climb over me when they want to get up to use the restroom and when they leave the plane. My wheelchair does not fit down the aisle of the plane so I board with an aisle chair. That does require some time and space. I am first on but last off and that’s how it works best.
This is exactly accurate. It is the same for me as a paraplegic person.
Quite frankly, anyone who disagrees does not know what the experience is like because they are not bothering to think of anyone before themselves.
I am a wheelchair user full time and I would love to board last it’s so awful to board first I have to wait and wait and wait and wait for everybody else to board
Amen to this proposal!
My last straw with Southwest was purchasing a Business Select ticket only to find that most preferred seating was claimed by the long line of wheelchaired pre-boarders. Still seems to be the case at a smaller scale on Delta and United where overhead storage is cherished.
Upon arrival, it might be better to not bring wheel chairs down the jetway until able bodied passengers deplane first. The narrow jetway near the aircraft can be quite crowded which impedes traffic flow. That also provides the opportunity to get a count of how many wheelchairs need to be brought down to the aircraft. Other wheel chair attendants can be released from the gate which improves efficiency.
It may also be time to review giving active service members the opportunity to board early. That policy was enacted after 9/11 when the country was in Iraq and Afghanistan. Americans and corporations were incredibly patriotic during that era. Sadly that appears to have faded way. It appears that our military is transitioning to protecting the needs of our VIP’s.
Wheelchairs are sent for a passenger who asks days before. You want my wife to wait an hour for someone to come with a chair. Holding the plane in place. So you can move quickly to wait for your luggage.
Good ideas all, Matthew. We’ve all seen (and you can see in the picture) that able-bodied travel companions board with the wheelchair passengers. It could be grandpa is in the chair only because grandson Skippy, who is in boarding group 6, told him to do it so the whole family could pre-board. So maybe a tweak would be no travel companions are allowed to pre-board. But your suggestion is a winner. Too bad it’s necessary because so many take advantage of a program that was meant to help the disabled.
So you want my disabled wife to go down by herself and handle her medical supplies.
Close but not quite. As has already been said, many legitimate wheelchair users need personal assistance that an airline employee may not be able or trained to provide. Maybe a better policy would be that only one person may go with the chair user to board and assist as needed. I agree that allowing a whole family to preboard just because Grandpa did is unnecessary and part of the abuse we see regularly.
And there in lies the next issue. As a disabled parent whose wife is his primary carer under your rule it would see her accompany me to the gate whilst we leave our daughter who is a minor on her own in an airport with goodness know who and what around them! Or mean we can’t go on holiday as a family and all because able-bodied people are abusing the system! Punish those who need it by prioritising those who are the ones abusing the system
Agree totally. And have them get off last, too. I’ve been stuck on Southwest more than once as the preboarders who took all the front row seats take so much time just getting off. If they would sit tight for a few minutes, the rest of us could get off and then bring those wheelchairs down and get them off easily.
The abuse is rampant. As my wife and I waited in a TSA line recently, I observed a wheelchair attendant pushing a chair loaded with carryon luggage as the passenger walked beside her. They went straight to the head of the security line and processed before everyone else. I then observed her walking beside the attendant and her luggage all the way to the gate. How does that qualify? Get roller bags like everyone else.
Fake wheelchair passengers and fake service dogs. Both need to be addressed.
Did you know that anyone who requires assistance at the airport is assigned a wheelchair? This can include deaf/blind people, people with medical conditions that need additional or modified checks at security but can otherwise walk normally, and people with neurodivergence and can’t navigate an airport independently. So yes, it’s not uncommon to see someone walking next to their assigned wheelchair if they don’t need to be in it.
Hopefully Southwest going to assigned seating will help with the issue, as their customers seem to be the biggest abusers. Though it’s a problem on every airline. I like your thoughts but I doubt it will happen because someone will sue over discrimination making them go last. Even if it’s not a valid case the public relations nightmare from the uneducated on the subject public would scare airlines.
Face it, like many things in life, things aren’t always fair.
I get the frustration with people abusing wheelchair services to board early, but to have all wheelchair passengers board last overlooks a critical real world issue: for passengers with actual disabilities, being forced to board last and essentially put their disability on display in front of hundreds of strangers can be deeply humiliating and demeaning. The passengers with actual disabilities deserve dignity and respect, not a policy that could stigmatize them further. Wheelchair assistance is not just about boarding order; it’s about enabling safe and accessible travel without adding emotional burden to people who already face barriers. We should be careful not to solve one problem by creating another
I think this is a fair point, but how is it different from them being on display queueing at the gate area? They’re conspicuous already, and again, the abuse outweighs this concern in my opinion because they’re already being sat in a place where all can see. I can’t think of anything I care less about than watching closely as other people board the plane after me, able bodied or otherwise.
I get where you’re coming from, but I think there’s a big difference between being visible at the gate and being visible while actually boarding.
At the gate, they’re just waiting like everyone else. Yes they do get lined up but they are already in their wheelchairs. If disabled passengers had to board last, the hardest part the physical aspects of their disability would happen when the plane is already full. Transferring out of a wheelchair, getting down a narrow aisle, and getting into their seat can be really difficult for a lot of people. Doing that in a packed space with everyone watching would add stress and extra obstacles they wouldn’t deal with if they boarded first.
I completely agree that pre-boarding abuse needs to be addressed, but making the people who truly need it board last isn’t the answer. Punish the people abusing the system, not the passengers who rely on it.
I very much agree. My son is a paraplegic, and needs to have a special seat installed in the seat, then I have to lift and transfer him to his seat then stuff pillows around him just to keep his head and body supported because airplanes STILL don’t have a way to secure a person’s wheelchair to ride in. After this, I have to transfer his bipap, cough assist, and suction machines to the under seat area, then all of his carry-on bags get loaded overhead (we had 6 last time). When your life depends on special blended formulas, medications that cost hundreds of thousands of dollars, and life saving respiratory equipment, you can’t risk checking those bags at the gate to potentially get lost. They then take his $60k wheelchair (which are essentially his legs) and toss it into the cargo area like a piece of luggage, often breaking pieces and rendering it useless upon arrival. While I definitely understand that people abuse the wheelchair system to pre-board, those with legitimate disabilities should not be punished. Trust us—we often pay the price for people who want to take advantage of “perks” meant for the disabled…just try finding a freaking wheelchair accessible parking spot most days! But just like those people can stand to walk a few extra steps from a regular parking spot, you all can stand to wait just a few extra minutes to give people the dignity and respect they deserve in an environment that is already SO incredibly stressful for families and adults with disabilities.
Accessibility is not a convenience; it is access. The article suggest that passengers who use wheelchair assistance should board last as a way to deter system abuse. That proposal misunderstands what accessibility is and why it exists.
Priority boarding for people with disabilities is not about advantage. It exists because many individuals require additional time, space, and reduced physical or sensory pressure to safely reach and settle into their seats. That time is not optional, it is an access requirement. Removing it does not improve fairness; it creates barriers.
We already understand this distinction elsewhere. Accessible parking is not “priority parking.” It is proximity required for health, stamina, safety, and the ability to participate. The fact that some people abuse that system has never justified pushing disabled people farther away. Abuse is a failure of systems and enforcement, not proof that the accommodation itself is illegitimate.
The same principle applies in air travel.
One critical point often missing from this discussion is how disability actually works. Disability is not static, visible, or binary. Many people who need additional boarding time do not use wheelchairs, do not qualify for permanent placards, or experience fluctuating conditions that documentation systems routinely fail to capture. Access needs can change from day to day, flight to flight.
Proposals that rely on documentation or altered boarding order misunderstand this reality. They do not eliminate misuse, they shift the burden onto disabled people and increase exclusion. When access is conditioned on proof or delayed as a deterrent, those with the least margin are the first to be left behind.
Yes, misuse exists. It exists in every accommodation system we create. The question is not whether abuse can occur. The question is what we value as a society.
If wheelchair users must board last to deter misuse, what comes next? Should military pre-boarding be eliminated because some people falsely claim service? Should family boarding be removed because some parents manage without it? This is how access erodes, not through overt exclusion, but through “reasonable” adjustments that quietly make participation harder.
Boarding disabled passengers last is not a neutral operational redesign. It transforms an access accommodation into a visibility and participation penalty, shifting the cost of system strain onto people with disabilities.
Accessibility accommodations are civil rights protections. They exist to offset structural inequities, not to be withdrawn when systems are under pressure. When challenges arise, the answer is investment, staffing, training, and thoughtful operational design, not policies that make disabled people less visible, less mobile, or less welcome.
We should fix systems without hardening hearts. We should address misuse without redefining access as optional. And we should never allow frustration with exploitation to justify rolling back civil rights.
That is the line we cannot cross.
Yes and end military boarding first unless there is a large shooting war, like Vietnam. A compromise might be those on official travel and wearing their uniform.
I am handicapped and use crutches. I have no issue with proposal to board last. BUT have a huge issue with the fact that you believe it is OK for Handicapped travelers have no overhead space. Unless you have traveled as a real handicapped person, you may not be aware that when deplaning, at least 50% of the time, if not more, there is no wheelchair waiting even when the traveler and the airline have indicated there is a need. I travel only with a carry on because I cannot make it to baggage claim on my own in time to get my luggage. It will have been put away. Then I have the hassle of locating it, all the while maneuvering around an airport with limited mobility and in pain – and no wheelchair assist in sight unless I am willing to wait 30-45 minutes for the gate to try to get one. For your proposal to be fair and not prejudicial, airlines will have to be very strict and vigilante on size of carry on and personal item so ALL passengers not only have the space for their personal item, but each person gets their fair share of overhead space.
You make a fair point and my solution might certainly require reserving at least some overhead space for these passengers who board last.
Hello, Fran. I have a medical condition which has made me partially disabled – while I can walk, I can’t walk far or long, and absolutely cannot stand in one place for more than 2 or 3 minutes. I avoided travel for decades because it was just too painful and difficult. I finally bought myself a mobility scooter, and it was the greatest gift I could have bought myself. I take my scooter with me and drive it all the way through the airport, to the gate, and down the jetway. I can walk enough to get to my seat on the plane, and the loading crew picks up the scooter and places it with the baggage, then I pick it up at the jetway at my destination. My scooter is registered and permanently tagged for Delta; I just have to update the paperwork each trip, so I allow extra time checking in. I also sometimes have to wait at TSA because they have to check the scooter and I have to walk through the screener, but it’s really no big deal. I highly recvommend getting a mobility scooter!
As someone who needs this service, I get disgusted with the people that abuse it. However, I don’t think this is a good solution. That extra time is usually needed. If you have a disability like myself, most likely you have a state issued parking placard which also comes with an ID card. I’d have no problem presenting it as you have to do when you park your vehicle. I don’t feel that it would be intrusive to request that info.
I am 83 years old abroad travel internationally business class 4 trips a year by myself I keep my meds in my carry on with some medical equipment -if required to check at gate and they do not show up , I AM IN BIG,BIG TROUBLE, I PAY BIZ CLASS AND WANT TO GET WHAT I PAID
I am 82. I have two knee replacements, a cochlear implant, a destroyed right rotator cuff, and serious debilitating arthritis. (That’s in addition to serious anemia and mid-stage kidney failure.) Boarding early allows me to handle my own luggage (something airline waitresses will NOT do) without blocking the aisle for an extended period. It also gives me access to luggage space so my medications, etc are nearby whereas late boarding would certainly mean having to gate check my luggage because the “able-bodied” people have filled up the overhead bins with multiple items that are supposed to only go under the seat.
Sure, there is abuse. There will always be abuse. But some of us need and appreciate getting this small break.
I think your Point 3 may not be accurate and wheelchair users may be afforded priority boarding for ease of compliance with the ADA.
While they do not require priority boarding, it would be against the ADA to give them less preferential treatment as a result of their disability. Forcing them to board last would do this. In theory there could be a middle ground that would be compliant, but that’s operationally too hard for airlines.
They’ll say its disability discrimination if you make them board last. Lawsuits will entail. It’s just like with the service animal crap. When you have narcissistic self-centered people exploiting protections for the disabled for their convenience, we’re up against a cultural problem that can’t be fixed by laws. If only people who fake a disability for their own benefit (including service animals fakers) were ridiculed by the media the same way fat shamers, cultural appropriators, or people who politely disagree with some of the excesses of LGBTQ policy are.
I agree. It is narcissistic self-centered people who think that delaying them 15 second is a catastrophe that is the problem. They demand that they wait at the luggage rather than in their seat.
My son has disabilities his balance isn’t good and he has a cognitive disability. He is autistic to. We need preboarding because he needs extra time, he can not sit separate from us and I don’t want a plane full of people staring at him and judging us when we walk on the plane. He also loses his protected privacy of his disabilities. This isn’t okay. He does have a state ID which has a symbol on it to show he is disable. This will go to courts if the airlines chose to proceed with the plan
Not sure what the solution is but there are more and more wheelchairs boarding first but then they really do jump up and some cannot walk and hold up everyone else and the others jump over people to get to their wheelchairs!! ALso so many wheelchairers have pets with them causing additional hardship on the poor people pushing then and al of their belongings.. Maybe need to restrict pets with wheelchair peeps???
I think there is a much simpler solution to disincentivize abuse, require that if you use assistance onto the plane, just must also wait to deplane and use assistance off the plane. And intact a warning, monetary penalty for any abusers.
I guarantee you’ll have a lot less handicap passengers if they board last.
I strongly disagree. As a flight paramedic, I regularly travel with disabled passengers. Boarding a severely disabled passenger on an already full flight is a logistical nightmare. The inability to access the row in front and behind makes moving the passenger significantly more dangerous and difficult.
If you want to limit abuse (and I certainly do), then find a way to require pre-boards to actually get off last like they are supposed to. Nobody who is simply doing it for convenience will be willing to sit for 15 minutes.
My wife is disabled. We wait simply because we know we are going to take so much time. We rather let people go ahead.
It is really quite a bit better knowing that it will take an extra 15 minutes or so to get out of the airplane. I see a plane full of anxious people who think taking an extra moment will destroy their trip.
I am a disabled Vietnam Veteran. I have had three major operations due to injuries from my service. By the time I have walked from the vehicle that delivered me to my flight gate and have stood in line for twenty minutes I am feeling severe pain along my legs and back. If I can sit instead of stand the pain is less and can be tolerated. Sometimes I can medicate myself to manage the pain. So I usually arrive with a rollator chair device that I use to sit in while waiting to board. Sometimes after the meds have been taken I can walk to the bathroom in the terminal. And I can also walk down the aisle on the aircraft unassisted. So it might appear that I am faking it. I also wear my veterans hat that has my service ribbons attached to it when I’m in the airport. So I am apologizing to you all who I am making stand and wait for me to board the aircraft while I am finding my seat.
My wife use oxygen, we need to carry POC machine and batrries. We show the doctor letter at checkin. The current system works for her. She need her battry hand case in the cabin. I agree peoples are abusing it. I believe the best solution is to show documents. We show identity while going throughty then why not for medical reasons.
Change the system not the sequence.
From experience as a wheelchair agent in Atlanta, this does not remove the challenges. Why do you ask? Primarily, because the passengers that abuse the system do so more so for the benefit of clearing TSA checkpoints faster. Not many of them participate in early boarding. Too many times to count, I have witnessed passengers in wheelchairs, get up as soon as the agent leaves the gate, and they roam the concourse until boarding.
Now, in my experience as a airline reservations agent, I see the other side, before the arrival. There are multiple other issues to consider. Fully able-bodied passenger with language barriers, cognitive disabilities; such as dementia and memory loss. The flight booking for this group of passengers, are likely booked by relatives, under the guise that agents act similar caregivers; constantly/continously attending to the passenger. They reference wandering off, giving permission to restrain during flight and others of sort.
These are not reasons for wheelchair assistance, this is a deeper issue. It’s free for the airline to provide a wheelchair vs the family traveling with passenger or paying for an air travel escort.
As a former wheelchair agent in Atlanta and current airline reservations agent; I see it all. Able bodied passenger who not only want to board first, also use wheelchair service to forgo long TSA lines.
Too often the passenger abuses the benefit, because they are aware that the service is protetected by ADA. Passengers request wheelchairs for reasons such as language barriers and neuro/cognitive disabilities. Majority of the times, these passengers are traveling alone, and the relative booking will request that they are not left alone, and mention they will wander off, they are forgetful.
I once had a caller who was attempting to locate a relative who was travelling alone from the United States without a cell phone. A delayed cause an overnight stay and the next day, the passenger missed the flight. A wheelchair had been requested, and the caller was upset that we were not able to tell them where the passenger was. Reminder her that the Wheelchair agents are not caregivers.
Airlines provide wheelchairs for passengers without requiring documentation, watering down the number of agents available to assist paseenger with real disabilities. I guess the cost of an air travel escort is too expensive.
Gee, no one ever thought of that before. Before the cheating was allowed to start it was wheelchairs on first, wheelchairs off last. Why reinvent the wheel?
Gee, because the cheaters don’t use a wheelchair when they land. They just get off quickly, aka Jetway Jesus. And I want to punish them…
I just came here to say that this is NOT “A Modest Proposal.” Swift’s original piece was a satire to make a point, and lent its name to an entire genre. This is not that.
I grasp that critiquing your literary prowess is not the point here, but really, swiping more VFTW fodder to make your own point (which I feel I’ve read here before?) and using a literary allusion is not making the grade.
English Teacher sends this one back for revisions, Mr. Klint.
One add for me, is limit additional passengers that board with pre-boarders. It’s rediculus when a a pre-baorder is followed by members of their family. In one case, SEVEN additional people boarded with a wheelchair passenger!!! Another is pre-boarding of children under two….STOP it already! My wife and I always traveled with our kids and never pre-boarded.
I once saw this at MSY. There was elderly woman in a wheel chair at the TSA staging area. As the remaining family members attempted to tag along, the attendant pointed to the entrance of the regular TSA line.
Talk about some serious disappoint faces in the conga line behind grandma.
Unless the wheelchair passenger arrives at the gate at the last minute, no airline is going to risk having a delayed flight by boarding wheelchair passengers last. End of story.
Although I have complained to the FAA for many years about this, just 2 weeks ago on a flight from Denver to Phoenix there were 27 wheelchairs, it was on Southwest and I was A1 (as I almost always am) so I had a first hand view, it took 24 minutes just to load them and all of the first 4 rows were nearly full. I owned an aircraft charter service in Los Angeles for 54 years (sold in 2021) and wrote FAA Legal several times about the ongoing abuse over many years, mostly about Southwest, mentioning it was an emergency exit issue among other negative factors, they said due to their (the FAA’s) pressure about it that it is one of the several reasons Southwest is going to assigned seating, Of course that becomes moot with Southwest next week, hurray. Now maybe the FAA will insist on another test of the emergency exit time to completely evacuate the aircraft as it is mandated at 90 seconds, the last test over 30 years ago was unrealistic and a total joke.
In principle, this seems like a good solution for dealing with those who are simply “gaming” the system, accommodations need to be made for pax that are hand carrying (because the airlines rightly advise them not to use checked bags) their medical equipment and medications. In some cases, they may also be bringing their own walker and/ or other assistance devices like a cane that they can use on board if they need to use the lavatories. If the airlines can guarantee that these devices will still be on board and in a reliably convenient overhead location, then this approach makes good sense. And at the risk of sounding like a cliche, not all disabilities are visible and as airports continue to grow in size (meaning from curbside to airplane seat), many seniors with otherwise good mobility in say their homes, find the need to use wheelchair assistance. Let’s face it, we didn’t have gate scrums 30 years ago when airlines didnt charge for bag check in and baggage delivery was more reliable. Of course, travel levels are exponentially greater than in the past.
This would not work for my daughter. She is blind and brings her own wheelchair for mobility support. She can walk short distances only. I take her down the jetway, check her wheelchair, and she boards the plane with her cane. She uses the seatbacks for support to help her get to her seat, It is better if she is close to the bathroom which are usually in the back of the airplane. You can’t book a seat at the front of the airplane without paying extra money. If the plane was already boarded, this wouldn’t work as she would be hitting all the passengers already seated. I do agree that the system is abused by dishonest people including those who claim to have “service animals.” In order to get a handicap placard, you are required to have your doctor fill out a form that states you have a medical need for it. It doesn’t state what that particular need is. I wish they would require this for all accommodations in order to protect the needs of those who truly require it.
I was going to respond to Matthew only but after reading through the comments and finding so many of you in agreement with his idea I guess I must expand to address all of you.
I can assume that Matthew et al are not wheelchair users or are acquainted with any wheelchair users who fly commercially because you would not have advanced or agreed with such a proposal to begin with.
I am a full time wheelchair user whose legs are fully and totally paralyzed who also happens to fly thousands of miles per year. In order for me to get to my seat on the airplane I require the assistance of two people and a wondrous device known as an aisle chair.
An aisle chair is narrow enough to fit down the aisles of all major airliners but is also basically a glorified hand truck, think what Hannibal Lecter was strapped into in Silence of the Lambs but in a seated position (and without the mask).
Therese have been times that I was forced to board the plane last because the assistance staff was tied up helping the “disabled” people who are the subject of this particular article so the airline was forced to fully board the plane while they found people to help me on.
So imagine you have me strapped into the aisle chair, looking Hannibal Lecter, being dragged backwards down the aisle of a full airplane getting ogled and stared at as I proceeded. In addition every single person in an aisle seat on both sides on me had their elbows whacked either by the aisle chair or by the assistance staff or inadvertently by me because despite hugging myself to keep my elbows they still stick out…
That my friends is why wheelchair/aisle chair users need to pre-board.
I would like to invite anyone who disagree with or takes umbrage with my comment to try and navigate an airport and take a flight using a wheelchair and no cheating by using your legs… oh and by the way… no using the bathroom on the plane once you board because they are not wheelchair accessible.
Paul, thank you for taking the time to engage in this conversation in such a constructive manner. I appreciate your feedback.
I am as frustrated as you with people abusing the system that exist to help level the playing field somewhat for people with disabilities who are just trying to live their best life…
A full timevwheelchair usee here. Paralysed from chest down. I certainly cant walk off. I have to be lifted into an aisle chair & then after being wheeled backwards to my seat, bodily lifted into my seat, like a sack of potatoes. Its truly horrible when the plane is full, with zero dignity. Of course to lift me, someone has to go into the row behind me, so if thatvis already occupied they all have to get out theit seats & wait until I am in place. Then, frequently the pilot pipes up that the departure slot has been missed due to the delay, & a plane full of passengers stare at you with malice. Its exceedingly unpleasant. Loading last is a good way to make air travel a hostile environment for those with significant disabilities
Disabled person here: many of us use wheelchairs due to concerns walking distances. I can walk short distances on my own, when i’m not caring heavy items. Many people who use wheelchairs have similar conditions. Simply seeing someone walk down the gangway to the airplane or around the space near the term load does not mean they are not disabled. I don’t know that i’ve seen the abuse. It is a huge pain and time consuming to get wheelchair support at the airport. It is a huge pain to have my walker and other assisted devices, damaged which happens on most flights. We may get to board early with assistance, but we often sit a considerable amount of time after the flight lands waiting for wheelchairs and support.
Another big concern is that the airlines are required under law to accommodate our medical devices and assistive devices. If we board last, there is often not space, and it would take more time. And delay flights to then identify bag owners to remove bags to make space for things that are required to be in the cabin, such as oxygen tanks and batteries.
How will about refocus on ensuring that the airlines at the airports adequately staff accommodation support which is federally required?
Frankly, the bigger concern I see on every flight is people putting items in the overhead bins that really should go at their feet. By the time the last group boards, there is no stowage space whatsoever. That seems significantly more impactful to more people and unfair than those of us with disabilities.Boarding first.
I’m curious if you even spoke to any *actual* wheelchair users to get our perspective before writing this monstrosity of an article.
First, I’d like to let you know the current statistic for wheelchair users is that 80% of us are ambulatory. That means MOST people who need wheelchairs are capable of standing and walking, sometimes unassisted. The whole “jetway jesus” phenomenon, is iincredibly ignorant not to mention ableist. Ableism is prejudice that disabled folks face every day by societal ignorance, lack of education and resources, or simple hatred of our existence by bigots.
I have a genetic disorder that causes extreme fatigue and potential injury to my joints. I can stand and walk just fine… for a short distance, but longer distances like an airport put me at higher risk, so I opt for wheelchair service (though in recent years I bring my own.)
Second, “it aligns fairness with accessibility.” It actually does *not* align with accessibility nor fairness, at least not fairness for the disabled person. It would make it far less accessible for someone like me. It also would take far longer for flights to take off if we boarded last. The reason we board first is because we need the extra time. When I travel with my own fold up chair, I have to roll onto the jetway, stand, collapse my chair, disconnect batteries, use my cane to hobble with my bags, and put my chair into the closet in the cabin. THEN I make my way to my seat, put down my seat cushioning, and get settled. Think of how long that would take once the plane was fully boarded? Do you all really want to be waiting on us for this?
It also gives me DIGNITY to settle myself without struggling in front of a plane full of people. Because my daily existence is a struggle. It can be EMBARASSING to have a dysfunctional body and it isn’t always pretty trying to adjust oneself in a small space like an aircraft.
The fact that people are so up in arms and dare I say, jealous even, over something that gives me basic dignity and the same rights as everyone else, is absurd. My daily life is 10 times harder than an able-bodied person. I have to think about things and plan in ways a normal person would never have to. I have serious limitations! God forbid they make a HANDFUL of things simpler for us, and of course, then the ableds whine, bitch, and moan about “fAirNeSs.” Please. You wanna know what’s not fair? Being disabled!!! I WISH I could wait in line like everyone else and not have to board first, I WISH I didn’t need priority parking, I WISH I could go for a hike, or blend into a crowd without people staring at me, or hell, grocery shop, not have to be led in a back entrance to a restaurant, not have to worry about stairs, or bumps in the road, or curbs, or lack of elevators at a friend’s apartment building.
**Having something that makes life easier for a disabled person is not a privilege for us**
PS: There is a special place in hell for people who fake disabilities to take advantage of the system. That being said, you’d NEVER be able to tell who was “faking it” by looking at them and trying to do so and make rules around it to try and circumvent that, only leads to further discrimination of actual disabled folks.
This is a case of just because a thought enters your mind doesn’t mean that you should say it out loud, or in this case, photos it on the web for all to see. This sentiment will not age well when you invariably experience either a temporary or permanent disability, as most who are lucky enough to make it to old age do at one point or another, and reap the results of your ableism. As lifespans increase, and as disease runs rampant in no short thanks to the anti vaccine/anti mask crowds, you will see the results vis a vis more people needing accessibility accommodations. Though I’m sure WebMD has made you more than qualified to judge a stranger’s health history on sight.
Wheelchair users board first for everyone’s convenience for a myriad of reasons, including access to seats and overhead space without disturbing other passengers, safety for transfers that often involve the crew and companions accessing other seats to complete the transfer. We already are forced to wait till everyone else deplanes while wondering if our chairs made it in one piece or if the attendant we requested will actually arrive to help us on the other side.
Sorry not sorry that you are inconvenienced by the existence of imperfect bodies.