The other passengers should be able to lawfully punch these people in the face....
- Thread starter The Tradition
- Start date
I view this as another shinning example of how shitty Americans are becoming these days. A huge swath of our countrymen and women are self absorbed, hate thy neighbor, cheat to win, me me me me types of people. It is sad.
I will also say this scam is also being pulled at theme parks too. I have seen a lot of groups pushing around a fairly healthy looking person to get access to the disability path to front of line. Obviously nobody can call BS.
I will also say this scam is also being pulled at theme parks too. I have seen a lot of groups pushing around a fairly healthy looking person to get access to the disability path to front of line. Obviously nobody can call BS.
20 Passengers Use Wheelchairs To Board Early On Southwest, Then Walk Off The Aircraft Fine On Arrival
by Gary Leff on June 26, 2023
If you need assistance contact your airline in advance and they’ll arrange for a wheelchair. There’s officially no cost for the service although in most U.S. airports the people pushing make much of their money on tips. It’s never clear the right amount to tip. Some feel $5 is appropriate, others tip $20. There’s no medical verification needed to request this. And some people ask for the service who don’t, strictly speak, ‘need it’.
When a flight has numerous passengers with wheelchair assistance on boarding, and then most of those passengers get off themselves and walk out of the terminal – walking right past the waiting wheelchairs on the jet bridge – it’s known as a “miracle flight.” Here’s one recent Southwest Airlines flight where 20 passengers used wheelchairs to board, and only 3 used them to get off. 17 passengers experienced an inflight miracle.
Let’s be clear: there are certainly cases where someone might need assistance on boarding and not deplaning. But that’s also highly unlikely to be the case for 17 passengers (85% of those needing wheelchair assistance) here.
In addition to the medicinal benefits of flying that cures these passengers, explanations may include a desire for:
Since the biggest benefit – seat selection, in addition to airport priority – comes when flying Southwest, it’s little surprise this is noted most in social media with Southwest flights.
- Better seating which is unique to Southwest. You’re going to get a better deal tipping a wheelchair attendant than buying Early Bird Check-in in order to get a better seat.
- Access to overhead bin space. If you’ve got a late boarding group there may not be overhead bin space. But board with a wheelchair and you go on early, bin space is yours.
- Free carry on with a basic economy fareon United. If you need priority boarding assistance you aren’t in the last boarding group, and the full-sized carry on ban on the cheapest tickets is enforced by boarding group.
- Priority check-in and security. But if you’re savvy enough to ask for a wheelchair you are savvy enough to get PreCheck and check-in online and do bag drop.
The reason this concerns me is that people asking for wheelchair assistance who do not need it prevents or delays people who do need assistance from getting it. If everyone at the gate showed up needing early boarding it would defeat the purpose of early boarding (‘if everyone gets early boarding then no one does’).
20 Passengers Use Wheelchairs To Board Early On Southwest, Then Walk Off The Aircraft Fine On Arrival - View from the Wing
When a flight has numerous passengers with wheelchair assistance on boarding, and then most of those passengers get off themselves and walk out of the terminal - walking right past the waiting wheelchairs on the jet bridge - it's known as a "miracle flight." Here's one recent Southwest Airlines...viewfromthewing.com
Agree...
Check out the folks getting out of the car in handicapped parking spots nowadays.
Have a handicapped family member (apparently) but still use the spot when no handicapped person is in the car. At least from my totally scientific observations.
It doesn't matter how it is written, people will find a way to abuse it. Then again, the airlines could simply require confirmation that you do in fact need a wheelchair in order to be able to get the benefits of using a wheelchair.
Or, airlines could quit charging to take luggage so people don't feel like they need to pack all of their stuff into a carry-on. Yeah, that's not happening either.
This really infuriates me, and down here in SW Fla, there's a lot of that going on. Mrs. Ed (no pics) refuses to go shopping at Publix with me 'cos when I see it happen, I call the person out in the parking lot very loudly. Usually it's an elderly woman who's getting around just fine, and invariably will drive out the wrong way in the one-way parking aisles.
Then again, they may all be Gator graduates, which I'm sure would qualify you to be handicapped.
This is where the big fat people can be useful in society. Find one of those people when you get on the plane and sit in the middle seat next to them.
Had to fly Southwest this week and sitting at boarding watching people abuse the shit out of the boarding process. So much worse than it used to be. SW needs to get a handle on this nonsense.
Prohibit pre-boarders from sitting in bulkhead and exit rows. Require them to check bags at the gate. Problem solved.
Whole family boarded with one elderly parent
One family in “Family boarding” and youngest kid is probably 13.
I hate hate hate this airline. Always have.
I, for one, am SHOCKED that this occurred on a Southwest flight. That airline typically only services the best of the very best air travelers.
I had a good laugh last week when somebody tried to plead ignorance to boarding with an earlier group on my United flight and the system wouldn't recognize his boarding pass since that group hadn't been called yet. The gate attendant wouldn't hear any of it and just moved on to the next person and we all walked by him as he threw a tantrum.
Derp. You have to be a special level of stupid for this to be your take.
I rarely have sympathy for gate agents, but sometimes I wonder what it must be like dealing with people who think rules don’t apply to them day after day after day.
He’s not wrong kinda sorta but it would have made the point better if he’d said we can thank jerks who twist the ADA around to be something it’s not.
75% of their day is being the punching bag for scheduling errors, weather, whining passengers, etc. It has to be a horrible job.
All of these jobs could be decent jobs if passengers would just relax
I've actually gotten to the point where I hope that I get one of those United flight attendant crews that looks like an 80s hair metal band
I think the preferred term is "cripples," not disables
This was my thought as well. If you needed extra time getting on, you need extra time getting off. You get to sit there while everyone else goes. Only then will an attendant come on the plane and wheel you off.
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