This day and age there are so many foods that only require a little heat/water to prepare, I'm surprised mom doesn't have a fly-away kit. The event was poorly handled from the get-go. What a complete waste of time and resources.

 

I'm sorry your child is autistic, but don't give me this crap about how the world must cater to you and your child's needs. The mother knew her daughter needed hot food and expected it to be provided (paid or otherwise) for her. She admits her daughter reacted in a violent manner and I fully side with the crew.

 

This isn't a black and white story. There's grey area on both sides. The mother should never have said anything about her child going scratch. That is the info that put her into a threat level. With limited info the Captain acted.

The air carrier access act specifically states:


"* Carriers must provide passage to an individual who has a disability that may affect his or her appearance or involuntary behavior, even if this disability may offend, annoy, or be an inconvenience to crew-members or other passengers. "

Getting the flight attendants to heat up a sandwich, which they bought, is an inconvenience but still required. The mother offered to pay for the first class meal. The daughter never had an outburst.
The Mother's mistake was using the word "scratch" instead of meltdown.
A few times, I've see on the line, crewmembers that don't understand what the Air Carrier Access act entails. A little time and understanding can prevent many of these incidents.

 

Yes. the customer is ALWAYS right. I am sure the little aerodrome in Houston has zero options for their special needs child regarding a hot meal. The parents boarded flight 7-11 with their internet fare and the entire crew should have all catered to the family.

I am with Captain Nader on this issue.

 

Sounds like a combination of "unprepared mom" and "contempt of Flight Attendant".

I'd love to know what the captain was told by the lead.

 

Omg, you mean that crazy concept that's called "personal responsibility"? Wow!

 

BINGO!

Bus cappy and parent of autistic person. We know exactly how to keep our daughter calm when she is in her own little world, but the big world has so many variables and limitations it would be a borderline meltdown at any moment. For this reason we travel by motor home. I'm not going to subject my daughter to some uppity lead FA's version normal, nor will I subject the traveling public and fellow airline employees to an out of control person when I can give my daughter a calm safe environment.

Mom should have had her needs met without relying on the crew and unfortunately used the "violence" word. To an autistic parent, violence means "self injurious behavior". To us airline types, well, we know what is means.

Both parties made errors here and a plane load of passengers with one special little girl got inconvenienced. Bad day all around, but no one got hurt.

 

Safety of flight issue. Please read the following section of the Air Carrier Access Act:
§ 382.31 Refusal of transportation.
(d) Carrier personnel, as authorized by 49 U.S.C. 44902, 14 CFR 91.8, or 14 CFR 121.533, may refuse to provide transportation to any passenger on the basis of safety, and may refuse to provide transportation to any passenger whose carriage would violate the Federal Aviation Regulations. In exercising this authority, carrier personnel shall not discriminate against any qualified individual with a disability on the basis of disability and their actions shall not be inconsistent with the provisions of this Part. In the event that such action is inconsistent with the provisions of this Part, the carrier shall be subject to remedies provided under § 382.65.


There's no grey here. The mother stated that her daughter would become violent, creating a safety of flight issue. The case will be dismissed.

The mother stated that she's a Platinum with United. That requires 75K miles + $9K annual spend. That's a lot of flying. For the mother to be so unprepared, in spite of her frequent flying, will not be viewed favorably in a court of law.

 

I don't know how the rest of you do it but if the flight attendants tell me they feel uncomfortable then that's all I need to hear.

We are locked in a tube flying through the sky. I'm not privy to exactly what's going on in the back but you have to respect the feelings of your coworkers who are.

 

Educate yourself on autism then go back and read the article. Then go fly your boxes. Boxes aren't born with incurable disabilities