Southwest Airlines Leaves Two Blind Passengers Behind At Gate

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While airlines tin perpetually mishandle luggage, they usually person nan decency not to hide nan passengers who get connected clip astatine nan gate. However, not astatine Southwest Airlines. The Dallas-based bearer near 2 unsighted passengers down astatine New Orleans International Airport past month. To respond to a five-hour delay, Southwest rebooked each different rider onto an earlier service. The hose ne'er made a verbal announcement of nan change.

The 2 unsighted women, Camille Tate and Sherri Brun, waited retired nan full five-hour hold astatine Gate B6 while checking nan Southwest Mobile App for updates. Their chap passengers boarded nan earlier formation astatine Gate B4, not excessively acold away. According to WSVN, nan 2 friends didn't recognize thing was incorrect until they were nan only 2 passengers connected their flight. They still made nan find faster than nan airline. Southwest didn't observe nan correction until nan formation landed. Southwest reasons that because they didn't rebook, nan app ne'er made them alert of nan different flight.

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Southwest apologized for their blunder, offering $100 vouchers for early recreation on pinch explaining that they weren't eligible for afloat refunds because they completed nan flight. Tate and Brun want Southwest to re-evaluate really it accommodates passengers pinch disabilities. The airline's connection to WOFL reads:

"We apologize for nan inconvenience. Southwest is ever looking for ways to amended our Customers' recreation experiences, and we're progressive successful nan hose manufacture successful sharing champion practices astir really to champion accommodate Passengers pinch disabilities."

Airlines don't person an fantabulous way grounds for treating passengers pinch disabilities well. In 2023, Frontier Airlines damaged nan wheelchair of a master tennis subordinate connected his measurement to a tournament. In 2022, American Airlines damaged a azygous passenger's electrical wheelchair doubly successful 1 month. The Biden management yet enacted caller USDOT regulations to require airlines to reimburse passengers for wheelchair repair aliases replacement. However, the airlines sued earlier this twelvemonth to amend nan rule. With a different management successful nan White House, 1 tin presume their sentiment connected nan user protection norm is apt to beryllium overmuch different.