Jetstar forced Kurt Fearnley off wheelchair, says Paralympian

[milehighclub]

I don't think Jetstar has done anything wrong at all. It clearly states here the conditions of traveling with a wheelchair
http://www.jetstar.com/au/en/popup/limited-assist-wheelchair-airport.aspx

Jetstar provides customers with a wheelchair in which to transfer at check-in. Jetstar customer service staff will assist in the transfer into the wheelchair, using Jetstar's approved transfer method of slide boards and slide cloths.

He certainly took the wrong approach in my opinion.

 

[medhead]

Yep - he cut off his own legs, spent years training as an athlete, performed a feat of endurance that most able-bodied people would baulk at, and then rudely went public when a multinational airline wanted to treat him like a useless cripple.

And why did he do all this???? Not to raise an issue of discrimination for all people who may find themselves in a similar position, but as part of a 10-year plan to shamelessly promote his new book.

Well stranger things have happened. I mean there is the case of Obama, who was planted from birth in the USA, as a dirty foreigner in order for him to then spend the next 40 years (?) planning to become president to overthrow the whole system of USA government as part of a communist plot against capitalism.

BTW I don't think anyone has dengrated his achievement. Personally, I have made some comments about his achievement, but I still believe that he is amazing.

 

[ejb]

.... Obama, who was planted from birth in the USA, as a dirty foreigner in order for him to then spend the next 40 years (?) planning to become president to overthrow the whole system of USA government as part of a communist plot against capitalism...

my a^& off.

ejb

 

[notmensa]

Airline wheelchairs are potentially very unsafe for passengers

This is not just about mobility (the wheelchairs are attendent propelled making people dependent) but also about safey. I work with wheelchairs every day, mainly for adults with spinal cord injury. Wheelchairs are not only a means of mobility, but are used together with cushions to prevent pressure ulcers. They are sized specifically to the person to ensure optimal balance, stability, safety, etc.

The airline wheelchairs are extremely narrow (15" wide I think) when most adults require at least 17", and obviously more if the person is obese. The centre of gravity on the chairs is high, making them very prone to tipping sideways or forward. It would not be possible for a person to use their own cushion on the seat, and given that a pressure ulcer (skin dying from lack of blood) can develop in 20 mins, a person could develop an injury that requires medical intervention, and days of bed rest, to fix.

 

[bambbbam2]

From a new article today
Hope for the disabled in airline fight

A touch of hyperbole in my opinion.. but anyway he said

"
At a National Disability Awards dinner in Canberra on Monday, Mr Fearnley said there was ''not a chance'' he would ''sit there and be pushed through an airport''.


''A normal person's equivalent would be having your legs tied together, your pants pulled down and be carried or pushed through an airport.''

 

[drron]

The last paragraph of this article gets to the nub of what many of us have been saying-
"But Mr Fearnley has seen an opportunity to use his profile in a lengthy fight being waged between those who fly and those who cannot walk. An apology was not going to cut it, he said."
Though I'm not quite sure if this is him or the journalist's highlighted words.If they are his I no longer have a major issue.Though it is a pity that a company has to go through the headlines of the beginning of the week even if it was JQ.Surely there must be a better way of dealing with these issues.More though a comment on our society and journalistic standards I guess that things have to be sensationalised.

 

[medhead]

From a new article today
Hope for the disabled in airline fight

A touch of hyperbole in my opinion.. but anyway he said

"
At a National Disability Awards dinner in Canberra on Monday, Mr Fearnley said there was ''not a chance'' he would ''sit there and be pushed through an airport''.


''A normal person's equivalent would be having your legs tied together, your pants pulled down and be carried or pushed through an airport.''

This quote seems to represent gross hyprocrisy. There is no way that he was going to sit there and be pushed through an airport - despite the space issues involved in getting onto and off an aircraft, which might make his chair unsuitable and the safety issues to do with the "special" airline wheelchair. This clearly shows that was his issue, being pushed through the airport. No mention of having to sit at the gate for 1.5 hours.

Yet the guy was on Radio National a only a day or 2 before proudly recount how he was carried into a camp on the Kokoda track. IMO that is like being pushed around an airport. Where was his pride then when being carried on the kokoda track?

Ohh and before we get on our high horses, I'm not denigrating his achievement. I know that I can't do what he did and that it is an amazing feat. But the fact is the guy realised that he needed help then (without denigrating his acheivement) and he has to realise that there other times when he needs to be pushed.

 

[straitman]

Must be a full moon tonight - AFF is crawling with euphemisms.

..... and cynics :!:

 

[Moody]

..... and cynics :!:

Yep - I'm very cynical about people's complete lack of empathy in cases like this. Fearnley chose to maintain his self-sufficiency rather than be wheeled around like a useless cripple, and then take Jetstar to task over a policy that has more to do with convenience to them than service to ALL their customers.

I remember wheeling my two-year-old around a plethora of domestic and international airports in a stroller and then leaving it at the gate for the ground-staff to load on the plane. If they can offer that service to tired toddlers then it is not unreasonable to ask for similar treatment for other customers with special needs.

And it's not as if they have to do this for every flight. I can't recall the last time I saw a passenger wheeled on or off a plane, and in most cases I would imagine they would not be independently mobile and might appreciate having a nice young man wheel them around the airport. Fearnley does not fit in that category.

And this tosh about "he got carried into camp on a stretcher so he's a fraud" is quite frankly sickening.

 

[ejb]

...And it's not as if they have to do this for every flight. I can't recall the last time I saw a passenger wheeled on or off a plane...

On the last 4-5 flights I have been on when the doors open and the CSM is asked about requirements they have asked for wheelchairs, and on the flight MEL-PER Monday the request was for two wheelchairs so I think it is more common than you think.

As they board early and deplane last you would not notice them unless you are standing beside the CSM when the doors open.

ejb

 

[medhead]

Yep - I'm very cynical about people's complete lack of empathy in cases like this. Fearnley chose to maintain his self-sufficiency rather than be wheeled around like a useless cripple, and then take Jetstar to task over a policy that has more to do with convenience to them than service to ALL their customers.

It is not just for conveniece. As has already been explained in this thread the aircraft wheelchairs are narrow and top heavy and hence can topple over and injury people. That is about safety. I also believe that they quoted a lack of staff available to do the gate baggage thing. I don't think I made any comments on whether that is acceptable or not.

And this tosh about "he got carried into camp on a stretcher so he's a fraud" is quite frankly sickening.

What is sickening is being misquoted and misrepresented! If you bothered to actually read what I wrote, you will see that I called him a hyprocrite not a fraud. In fact, I wrote a full explaination that I didn't think he was a fraud.

You've put quotation marks around something that I never said. :evil: Don't verbal me. [redacted]

Quite frankly, putting words into other peoples mouths and throwing around accusations is far more sickening.

 

[straitman]

Yep - I'm very cynical about people's complete lack of empathy in cases like this. Fearnley chose to maintain his self-sufficiency rather than be wheeled around like a useless cripple, and then take Jetstar to task over a policy that has more to do with convenience to them than service to ALL their customers.

Just as I am cynical about peoples agendas when this sort of thing occurs. We do no know both sides of the story here just the part that has been made public by the individual concerned.

And it's not as if they have to do this for every flight. I can't recall the last time I saw a passenger wheeled on or off a plane, and in most cases I would imagine they would not be independently mobile and might appreciate having a nice young man wheel them around the airport. Fearnley does not fit in that category.

I think you need to look a lot harder with this one. I would have to say I see this at least every second trip and probably more often.

 

[NM]

[mod hat]
As much as we try not to intervene in discussion or debate, and honour everyone's right to an opinion, I am closing this thread at this point. There are obviously multiple view points and as none of us were present most of our views are based on media reports, speculation or personal bias.

If anyone has further input they believe is relevant and beneficial to the discussion, please send a PM to any or all of the moderators and we will be happy to review the situation.
[/mod hat]