Couple’s fury after airport ordeal turns holiday sour
A DERBYSHIRE couple have expressed their fury after a Birmingham Airport travel ordeal put a “sour note” on their romantic getaway.
Swadlincote couple Nick Owen and his disabled wife Lindsay say they encountered issues at the Midlands airport both on the way to the Spanish island of Gran Canaria on June 2 and on their return on June 11.
Lindsay lives with secondary progressive multiple sclerosis and has mobility issues. But despite booking a special assistance service available through the airport’s assisted travel website, the pair were left struggling to get on and off the plane. Airport bosses said they felt “dreadful” about what happened and apologised.
Like airports and airlines across the country, bosses at the Solihull travel hub have been grappling with huge queues as a result of staff cuts. In March, the Government dropped all travel restrictions without notice and left the industry scrambling to plug gaps when passenger numbers returned.
Lindsay, who uses a wheelchair, claims she was asked by the flight captain on the way out if she could manage the stairs.
While Lindsay chose to use the stairs – and thankfully managed to board without injury – her husband said his disabled spouse should never have been put in this position, adding that the airport’s assisted travel arrangements were “virtually non-existent”.
“We must have been waiting a good 20 minutes when the captain from the plane came down to us and asked whether my wife would be able to manage the stairs,” Nick said.
“She did manage the stairs, just about, with the help of me and two other people from the ground crew. But that should never have [happened].”
And after a lovely holiday things went from bad to worse. When the duo arrived back at BHX on the return leg of their journey, they were left stranded on the plane.
Nick went on: “There was a complete muck-up. We were waiting for an ambulift to take us off the plane, which was a good hour after everybody else had disembarked. It put a sour note on the holiday.
“It’s just a shame. You book it to make it stress-free but unfortunately it wasn’t stress-free.”
A Birmingham Airport spokesperson said: “We feel dreadful about the experience Mrs Owen had. Our service fell well below par. We’re really sorry.”