Southwest And A Dying Boy

From the Union Leader:

"Flight home a nightmare for parents of dying boy"

Nicholas Dainiak of Bedford was just trying to come home from what his parents said may have been the last trip the dying 8-year-old would ever take to Disney World in Orlando. The trip down to Florida on a Southwest Airlines flight last week, in which Nicholas, who is suffering from Batten disease, sat in a protective travel chair, had been no problem. But coming back on Thursday, the Dainiak family was told by Southwest staff that the boy would either have to forgo the protective seat or get off the plane because the chair was not compliant with Federal Aviation Administration rules. “It was a little shocking,” said the boy's father, Chris. “We flew down with this exact chair six days before.” They were trying to fly two days before Christmas, which is one of the busiest travel days of the year. Chris and his wife, Heather, had to make a quick decision — do they get off the plane and risk not being able to find a flight home or do they spend the three-hour flight with the two of them propping Nicholas in place in a standard seat? Given that this might be Nicholas's last Christmas alive, Chris said, they stayed on the plane to get him home in time for the holiday. “There was a high likelihood we'd be stuck in an airport with a very sick child for a very long time,” he said. “We knew that the chances of us getting off that plane and getting home in time for Christmas were pretty poor.” Nicholas got home safe, but in photos the family shared with the New Hampshire Union Leader, Heather is seen crying because she was so upset. “We felt frustrated,” Chris said. “You feel helpless because you can't protect your child the way he needs to be protected.” “We are working directly with the family after sincerely apologizing and issuing a full refund for their less-than-positive travel experience,” Southwest spokesman Brad Hawkins said Sunday night. “We certainly will take away any potential learnings from this experience in our constant evaluation of how to provide the best possible customer service, which is second only to the safety of every passenger.” Chris said he was particularly frustrated on the flight from Orlando because he was told that the decision to provide the family with the ultimatum about the chair was made not by the pilot or an employee on the plane, but by a customer service manager directing staff over the phone. “I know they were trying to follow the rules, but there was such confusion on their part,” he said. “It was somebody on the phone. I'm confused as to how the decision was made. “They put Nicholas in more danger than he had to be,” he said. “I really didn't want to cause any issues. We just wanted to come home.”

^ Southwest and everyone involved with this disgusting case (except for the family of course) should be severely reprimanded and forced to undergo extensive training on how to treat passengers as people - especially those with disabilities. There was no reason for the airline or its employees to treat the family in such a disrespectful and discriminating way. Right now I would be ashamed if I worked for Southwest - even if I wasn't involved in this directly. Southwest likes to portray themselves as a great airline that has the most volume of passengers and the lowest prices. I guess sometimes the cheaper tickets and quick turn-around is no substitute to poor customer service. Several years ago I had a complaint with Southwest and tried to complain at the airport only to be told there was no one available and so I complained to them by letter only to get condescending responses back. They are a pretty arrogant airline and I don't see why. They have had numerous incidents in the past few years that show their airline in a very bad light. Just by saying you are sorry doesn't fix everything. We give too much power to many people in the airlines and at the airports that do not deserve the authority and most abuse what little power they have. That seems to be the case here. Some stupid Southwest employee made the decision to discriminate against a dying boy and make his flight home with his family a terrible experience - BY PHONE! I really hope that this story stains Southwest's reputation for a while and that people start demanding that Southwest and other airlines treat passengers as people and not as cattle and learn how to deal with the disabled. ^

http://www.unionleader.com/article/20111226/NEWS07/712269963