Help!!!????

[Kimmie5870]

First let me start by saying that I love this board!!!I have been lurking around for about 3 weeks now,trying to plan our WDW vacation and I don't think I have ever seen so many friendly people on any of the other message boards I have come across in the last 4 years.
But my problem is:
I have never been on an airplane before and will be traveling {SWA) with my daughter who is in a manual wheelchair (does not fold up),and I am completely clueless about wheelchair travel .My biggest worry is what do I do once I get to the airport?Could someone please walk me through the process?

Heres a little information about my daughter in case it helps.She cannot stand at all and she has steel rods in her back (for xray).


thanks for any help you can give me.Kim

 

[mbb]

Just wanted to say hello!!

Can't help out with information...but I know there are others here who can - and will

You're going to have a wonderful trip!!

 

[Michigan]

First call the airlines and ask that your seat be bulk head seating for medical reasons. This is the first row of seats and will allow your DD more room to transfer.

When you get to the airport she will be hand checked and you need to tell them first that she has rods in her back. They may take you to a room so she can pull up the back of her shirt to show that she doesn't have anything under it causing the beeper to go off other then the rods. (This will be done by a female security guard).

Next go to the gate and ask that you be allowed to board before the announcement for handicap passengers and those traveling with small children this way you won't be rushed to get in the seat. They will have your DD slide onto an isle chair that is very narrow and will fit down the isle. Then she will transfer into the plane seat. If she has a removable seat cushion in her chair take it off and put it on the plane with you. They will take her chair and put it under the plane. When you arrive you will be the last ones off the same way she got on and her chair will be waiting at the planes door for her.

 

[SueM in MN]

Just seconding what Michigan wrote.
For the security check, we always tell them that our daughter can't stand or walk. The rest of the family goes thru security the usual way while one of the security people wheels her through without going thru the metal detector. After we are with her, they check her in her wheelchair, which involves a pat down by a female security person and sometimes an electronic wand. That part involves having her lean forward so that they can check the back of the chair and her back. They usually lift her legs and feel behind them. We have not been asked to remove her shoes, but I know some people who have. When we traveled in March, they also used a wipe on her shoes and some parts of her wheelchair that test for explosives. We've always had good experiences with the security people though.
It's called "gate checking" when you keep the wheelchair until you actually board the plane. If you tell them you have a wheelchair to gate check when you check in for your flight, they will tell you what the procedure is. They may give you a bright colored "gate check" tag to put on the wheelchair at the time you check in, or they may have you get one at the gate.
Besides the seat cushion, we usually remove anything that is removable and bring those things on board with us. That way, you don't have to worry about anything coming off and getting misplaced while the wheelchair is away from you. That also makes the wheelchair lighter, which the baggage people appreciate. If she has a seat belt, fasten that so it won't get caught anywhere.

 

[SueM in MN]

Another thing I forgot.
Since Southwest doesn't pre-assign any seats, I don't know what they do about people with special needs and the bulkhead seats. I'd still call and ask to speak to someone who deals with special needs or disabilities.
The advantage of the bulkhead seats is that you have more room for getting in and out. A disadvantage is that you don't have a seat in front of you to keep your things under. Your bags either have to be stowed in the overhead bins or under the seat in front of you. If you are in the bulkhead seats, once the "fasten seatbelt" light is switched off, you will be able to get what you need out of your bags form the overhead bins. Not that much of a disadvantage, but nice to know ahead so you can plan.

 

[Anne MN]

just a litle note for others traveling with "invisable"disabilities- a note from your doctor would also be wise-

I know the nest time we fly we will have to have a few- DD has a pacemaker and other assorted metal inside-

this would also help explain about the rods in her back- they may not ask, but it is better to be safe than sorry by having it on hand if they question you about implanted metal

you did not say if you and "see" the metal rods- my mental picture is those braces for the back with the large halo for scolosis(spelling) yes- this dates me!! I remember a couple people in highschool wearing them!

 

[Anne MN]

just a litle note for others traveling with "invisable"disabilities- a note from your doctor would also be wise-

I know the nest time we fly we will have to have a few- DD has a pacemaker and other assorted metal inside-

this would also help explain about the rods in her back- they may not ask, but it is better to be safe than sorry by having it on hand if they question you about implanted metal

you did not say if you and "see" the metal rods- my mental picture is those braces for the back with the large halo for scolosis(spelling) yes- this dates me!! I remember a couple people in highschool wearing them!

 

[Kimmie5870]

Thanks you all so much,I have been worrying myself sick since I first started planning this trip.

As for the rods in her back,They cannot be seen so I will take your advice about the dr. note.

Thanks again

 

[pumpkinboy]

It has been my experience that you will almost certainly pre-board with a wheelchair-bound passenger (and they darn well better let you pre-board!). So by the time the SWA "cattle call" goes out, you should be settled in seats of your choice already, and have the wheelchair safely gate-checked and underneath the plane. And calling ahead so they know you are coming and that you are going to need additional assistance is very good advice.

I really hope you managed to get direct flights, Kimmie, as any plane changing is an additional source of worry for me. Let's try to keep your worries to a minimum tho, shall we?

 

[cupcake]

When you check in at the gate, tell them your needs and they will give you a blue sleeve (signifying medical preboard). You go on separately before anyone else and can thus take your time and easily get a bulkhead seat. They are VERY nice in my experience. I need to preboard so I can slowly make my way on and sit right down, and both American and United have often tried to "preboard" me with the frequent flyers/families with small children, which totally defeats the purpose since I get stuck standing. Sowthwest has always had me go on with medical preboards and has been very professional. I truly do not think you will have a problem. The blue sleeve works like a charm.

Cupcake

 

[SueM in MN]

We have never flown Southwest (they don't fly out of Minneapolis), but cupcake's explanation of how they handle people with disabilities sounds great.
DO ask to preboard. We've been traveling for more than 15 years with a wheelchair. Way back, anyone who had a wheelchair was automatically preboarded. Now, we have sometimes found they don't call for preboarding unless you specifically tell them you want to preboard (even when it's the same gate agent that fastened the gate check tag on the wheelchair). The explanation we got was that many people with disabilities don't like to be "singled out" , so they assume if you want to preboard, you will ask.

 

[Kimmie5870]

WOW!You guys are great!

I definately got non-stop flights....I kept having nightmares that they would leave my daughters wheelchair or we would miss our connecting flight in georgia.


Now that you have all eased my mind about this I am really enjoying myself planning our schedule,And I cant thank you enough,until now it was just one big headache.