Jon Snow: In the run to the Paralympic Games, Channel 4 News shone a spotlight on the difficulties disabled people face simply trying to get from A to B. One of the areas we focussed on was air travel. Since then we've had an overwhelming response from viewers sharing their stories of nightmare plane journeys.
So tonight we return to our No Fly Britain series. Katie Razzall is here.... >> Katie Razzall: In our first report on No Fly Britain we heard from disabled travellers whose experiences left them afraid to fly. We spoke to passengers whose expensive wheelchairs had been damaged, and who'd then been left thousands of pounds out of pocket because of laws limiting the amount of compensation airlines have to pay out. Not exactly holiday memories to cherish. We asked for your help to find out just how bad the problem was and we've been inundated with tweets and facebook messages. And it's not just damaged wheelchairs. Bryn Roberts contacted us via Facebook.He said "My wife and I are both wheelchair users and airlines have refused to let us fly because we were travelling without a 'carer'. As a result we haven't flown abroad for about 5 years for fear of having our holidays cancelled." Catherine Alexander tweeted us to say: "On flight to Florida, had to lie across 3 seats - very painful & undignified! haven't flown since :(" And Nicola Carlin told us: "Airline not letting us take our special needs seat on, which we have done before, meaning our son will be slumped all flight." Were these isolated incidents or are they symptomatic of much deeper problems? It's six weeks since the Paralympics with all those promises of a lasting legacy for disabled people. We were promised a sea change - and not just in attitudes to disability. But - is anything actually changing? Can disabled travellers expect better from airports and airlines in the future? We asked one of the faces of the Games, the television presenter Sophie Morgan, to find out.. >> Sophie Morgan: I know from personal experience how difficult air travel can be when you're disabled. I've had my wheelchair broken - and even been told I can't travel without somone with me. It makes checking in a nerve wracking experience.... For most people coming to an airport to go on holiday should be a real treat. But for disabled people it can be an absolute nightmare. I worry about access to facilities, the care of my equipment and whether I'm even going to arrive safely. To be honest every time I fly it feels like a bit of a gamble. And new research shows I'm far from alone. We've been given statistics which I find quite shocking as they reveal just how many people are having bad experiences. The survey by the charity Trailblazers found that sixty percent of disabled passengers have had their wheelchairs damaged when flying. Almost half have felt unsatisfied with the service from airline staff who've helped them to their seat and perhaps worst of all ninety percent of passengers have been unable to use the toilets onboard an aircraft. Others have had problems trying to take vital medicines on to flights - this is something that's also happened to me. As a paraplegic I rely on various medications and when my bag was lost on a flight to America I had no choice but to return to the UK immediately, and lost out on my holiday. I've come to speak to the charity that's done the research to find out what other problems disabled people have come up against. Trailblazers spoke to more than two hundred people about their experiences of flying. [To charity] Your findings have brought to light a lot of very disturbing and shocking statistics. But what's the most surprising thing that you've found? >> Charity: We've actually had a couple of Trailblazers who had to urinate into a bottle because they weren't able to get into the toilet and that's something which really shouldn't he happening. >> Morgan: They had to go to the loo in their chairs? That's unbelievable. >> Charity: Yes, just putting up a screen. And the thing is it's not acceptable and something does need to change in the design of aircrafts. >> Sophie: So it's a much bigger problem than you originally anticipated? >> Charity: That was actually the most shocking thing that these issues they weren't the exception we thought they may be individual incidents but it turns out the problems are much more prominent than we anticipated. >> Sophie: Armed with their findings the charity are off to parliament tomorrow to demand change. I want to hear some of the personal stories behind the statistics so I'm off to meet one of the people they spoke to as part of the research. Sulaiman Khan used to fly a lot. He travelled all over Europe on family holidays and even lived abroad. But as his condition has deteriorated he's found it more and more difficult. Leaving his electric wheelchair at the gate means he loses all independence. >> Sulaiman Khan: If I'm taken out my wheelchair I can't sit at all, I can't hold my head up and because of my severe scoliosis, my spine just collapses and so my diaphragm is being compromised, my lungs, I have difficulty breathing,I fall over. I can't support myself. >>Morgan: So what's happened to you when you've tried to use the facilities? >> Khan: I just don't eat or drink anything at all during or before, until I arrive at the destination. >> Morgan: Anything at all? You must be starving! >> Khan: But I'd rather do that than have to..and I know a lot of disabled people that do that. >> Morgan: How does that make you feel? It makes me very angry. >> Khan: Very degrading, you know, not having independence or being able to travel. But it's just a fact of life. It's very challenging. >> Morgan: It's hard to believe that things like this are still happening to disabled people in 2012 and it's so sad that young people like Sulaiman aren't able to live life to the full. I'm going to one of Britain's biggest airports to find out what's going on. Gatwick airport is one of the busiest in the country. And at peak times nearly 2000 passengers a day need special assistance. Management say they've invested more than two million pounds in improving facilities for disabled people.... >> Airport: I think it's certainly at the forefront You know the Games throughout the summer has brought it to the forefront of people's minds. We've invested some extra money but we've also invested in our staff so overall it's not just about buying stuff but about equipping our staff with the right skills and attitudes towards disabled people. >> Morgan: Do you think the industry is doing enough to help passengers with reduced mobility? >> Airport: I think we can always do better. The European Union standards for handling passengers with reduced mobility or disabled people are quite low and subsequently expectations are quite low. I think we've got a long way to go and continous improvement is all about what we do here at Gatwick. >> Morgan: You think there's a long way to go? >> Airport: I think there's a reasonable way to go, yes. >> Morgan: It is encouraging that some airports are making changes. But a lot of the time our most basic needs aren't being met and I think it's going to be a long time before disabled people can feel really confident flying. >> Sarah Smith: There's lots more, including Sophie Morgan's blog about making that film, on the special report on our website, channel4.com/news.
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AuthorClaudia Marone is a producer, screenwriter, novelist and founder of this blog. She was born on March 23, 1981, in Washington, D.C. Archives
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