Disabled Boy Not Allowed To Board
09-04-2012, 10:33 PM
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Disabled Boy Not Allowed To Board
From Associated Press:
A California family not allowed to board a cross-country flight said Tuesday that they believe they were discriminated against because their son has Down syndrome.
Robert Vanderhorst, his wife Joan and 16-year-old son Bede, who is disabled, were booked to fly on an American Airlines flight from Newark to Los Angeles on Sunday when the boy and his parents were not allowed on the plane.
The family from Porterville had upgraded to first class tickets at an airport kiosk, and asked the airline to seat the boy and one of his parents together, Vanderhorst said - a request the airline granted.
When the family was ready to board, they were stopped by airline personnel, told their son was a "security risk" and would not be allowed on the flight. The parents protested, and later were rebooked to fly coach with another airline.
American Airlines spokesman Matt Miller said the disabled boy was agitated and running around the gate area prior to boarding, which his parents dispute. The airplane's pilot observed the boy, Miller said, and made the call based on his behavior.
"He was not ready to fly, that was our perspective," Miller said. "We rebooked the family out of concern for the young man's safety and that of other passengers as well."
But Vanderhorst said his son did not run at any time, did not make any loud noises and didn't display any other offensive behaviors. The boy walked around with him or sat quietly in the gate area, Vanderhorst said.
A cell phone video captured by the boy's mother shows Bede sitting and quietly playing with a baseball cap.
Vanderhorst said Bede, a freshman at Granite Hills High School in Porterville, about 70 miles from Fresno, is very charming in contact with other people. The family has flown more than two dozen times with him, without any difficulties.
"Usually my son gets his snack and falls asleep, just like most people," Vanderhorst said. "The problem is this pilot thought my son might not be like most people. He didn't want a disabled person disturbing other passengers in first class."
The family says the pilot might have also been affected by the disabled boy's size - Bede is 5'1 and weighs 160 lbs.
On the second airplane, the family was placed in the last row and no passengers were allowed to sit within two rows of them, Vanderhorst said.
He hoped that airlines would change their mentality when dealing with the disabled.
"It's ridiculous and groundless to claim that this kid created a security risk," he said. "It was the pilot's insecurity. I paid for those seats and there was nothing that should have prevented us from taking that flight."
American Airlines' Miller said the company will reimburse the family for the upgrade fees.
A California family not allowed to board a cross-country flight said Tuesday that they believe they were discriminated against because their son has Down syndrome.
Robert Vanderhorst, his wife Joan and 16-year-old son Bede, who is disabled, were booked to fly on an American Airlines flight from Newark to Los Angeles on Sunday when the boy and his parents were not allowed on the plane.
The family from Porterville had upgraded to first class tickets at an airport kiosk, and asked the airline to seat the boy and one of his parents together, Vanderhorst said - a request the airline granted.
When the family was ready to board, they were stopped by airline personnel, told their son was a "security risk" and would not be allowed on the flight. The parents protested, and later were rebooked to fly coach with another airline.
American Airlines spokesman Matt Miller said the disabled boy was agitated and running around the gate area prior to boarding, which his parents dispute. The airplane's pilot observed the boy, Miller said, and made the call based on his behavior.
"He was not ready to fly, that was our perspective," Miller said. "We rebooked the family out of concern for the young man's safety and that of other passengers as well."
But Vanderhorst said his son did not run at any time, did not make any loud noises and didn't display any other offensive behaviors. The boy walked around with him or sat quietly in the gate area, Vanderhorst said.
A cell phone video captured by the boy's mother shows Bede sitting and quietly playing with a baseball cap.
Vanderhorst said Bede, a freshman at Granite Hills High School in Porterville, about 70 miles from Fresno, is very charming in contact with other people. The family has flown more than two dozen times with him, without any difficulties.
"Usually my son gets his snack and falls asleep, just like most people," Vanderhorst said. "The problem is this pilot thought my son might not be like most people. He didn't want a disabled person disturbing other passengers in first class."
The family says the pilot might have also been affected by the disabled boy's size - Bede is 5'1 and weighs 160 lbs.
On the second airplane, the family was placed in the last row and no passengers were allowed to sit within two rows of them, Vanderhorst said.
He hoped that airlines would change their mentality when dealing with the disabled.
"It's ridiculous and groundless to claim that this kid created a security risk," he said. "It was the pilot's insecurity. I paid for those seats and there was nothing that should have prevented us from taking that flight."
American Airlines' Miller said the company will reimburse the family for the upgrade fees.
09-05-2012, 07:28 AM
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Whether a child has Down’s syndrome or not, allowing your child to run wild in a public place is just plain arrogance and lacks common courtesy. I do not accept what the parents said about the boy being TOTALLY calm. The father also made a telling little statement when he said "Usually my son gets his snack and falls asleep, just like most people.” Really…why was this little statement even made? Maybe the father should have fed his son his snack then.
That would have been just a wonderful cross-country with a 5’1 160lb boy all hyped out to the max. The cappy made a judgment call when he denied boarding. That is what he gets paid to do. Of course the press just loves to twist these kinds of stories into something they are not.
That would have been just a wonderful cross-country with a 5’1 160lb boy all hyped out to the max. The cappy made a judgment call when he denied boarding. That is what he gets paid to do. Of course the press just loves to twist these kinds of stories into something they are not.
09-07-2012, 08:39 AM
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Originally Posted by Ottopilot
NO one has a right to fly on anyone. If they can't handle it, they are off. No exceptions.
I know Captain's authority is a big issue with some, but losing your job and/or opening your company up to litigation they cannot win is not worth asserting your authority. The bottom line is if you know your FOM you can usually avoid headline grabbing incidents.
I'm not making a judgement about the Captain in the OP's article. There is no way to tell what happened by the article.
09-07-2012, 09:35 AM
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Originally Posted by samballs
Good for the pilot. I enjoy reading stories like this. I can't stand when crews ignore pax like this, only to make all the other pax suffer for a 4hr flight.
Just where is the line drawn for the comfort of the other passengers?
USMCFLYR
09-08-2012, 10:24 AM
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As an airline pilot and a parent to a child with down syndrome, I can see both sides of the issue. I've worked with hundreds of these kids and can tell you these kids are some of the most well-behaved and loving kids you'll ever meet. I have also been shocked at the amount of discrimination these kids deal with on a daily basis from school officials to ignorant adults, because their disability is obvious. As a commuting airline pilot, I've been forced to listen to loud-mouth drunks to screaming kids, so I can relate. I also believe in captain's discretion, but that doesn't mean they have a right to be insensitive. I don't believe in a parents right to bring an uncontrollable child on an airplane, but I don't believe deny a child who might be a distraction based off a disability. I wasn't there and perhaps his choice was justified, but I'll put it this way I've seen more uncontrollable captains than uncontrollable kids with down syndrome. I guess if we are out to eliminate distractions from the cabin, than we should outlaw all children under age 3, because they all could be a potential distractions. As for some of the comments about the parents, obviously none of you have children with a disability and how much you'd defend them if you thought they were being discriminated.
09-08-2012, 11:09 AM
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Da Hudge
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Originally Posted by Sparky
As an airline pilot and a parent to a child with down syndrome, I can see both sides of the issue. I've worked with hundreds of these kids and can tell you these kids are some of the most well-behaved and loving kids you'll ever meet. I have also been shocked at the amount of discrimination these kids deal with on a daily basis from school officials to ignorant adults, because their disability is obvious. As a commuting airline pilot, I've been forced to listen to loud-mouth drunks to screaming kids, so I can relate. I also believe in captain's discretion, but that doesn't mean they have a right to be insensitive. I don't believe in a parents right to bring an uncontrollable child on an airplane, but I don't believe deny a child who might be a distraction based off a disability. I wasn't there and perhaps his choice was justified, but I'll put it this way I've seen more uncontrollable captains than uncontrollable kids with down syndrome. I guess if we are out to eliminate distractions from the cabin, than we should outlaw all children under age 3, because they all could be a potential distractions. As for some of the comments about the parents, obviously none of you have children with a disability and how much you'd defend them if you thought they were being discriminated.
Now think about how bad it had to be for it to be brought to his attention.
09-08-2012, 02:02 PM
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It was not brought to his attention, he observed it. These kids are easily identified and thus grouped with other kids assosiated with behavior issues (which they do not) so they are much more scrutinized. They are usually more obedient than normal kids. Trust me these kids are victims of false assumptions all the time, and as a parent its very upsetting. As for the captain he could have been right and had to make a difficult choice, I just hope he didn't make a decision based off false assumptions.
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