Child with allergies kicked off flight! What's next?
Whilst doing my usual trawl of the internet I came across the most absurd story ever! I thought I'd heard it all until reading the article today about an 11 year old boy being forced off an American Airlines flight because of his nut allergy. How ridiculous is that?
 |
| Daniel Levitan, third from left, and his family on vacation in Florida. Photo courtesy SWNS.com |
The family from the UK boarding the American Airlines flight, explained to staff that their son has a severe nut allergy and asked if an announcement could be made on board about his allergies. The airline refused and asked the family to leave the aircraft. How helpless must the family of felt and the most heartbreaking thing about this situation is, the embarrassment the young child must of felt. Airlines need to sort it out before they start to loose loyal customers!
3 things I've learnt about the way American Airlines handled the Levitan family:
Before the flight, the Levitan family followed the correct procedures and contacted the airlines and informed them of their sons allergy. They even spoke to the captain who was more than happy to make the announcement, which led me to think , do Airlines have allergy policies? After doing some further investigating I discovered they do. Although most airlines have introduced allergy policies do staff really understand the allergy policies employers are putting in place? In this case, no - There clearly is a knowledge gap amongst airline staff.
2. Airlines need to carry adult and child epipens?
This incident is nothing knew but its heart breaking to still see that these multi million pound airlines are doing the bare minimum to support people with allergies.The Levitan's said they were told that “Americans have the right to eat nuts.”
WestJet seem to be leading the way for supporting allergy sufferers when flying. They are the only airline I have discovered who carry epipens on their flights. As a parent with a young son suffering from multiple allergens, not only would an airline carrying an eippen provide me with peace of mind, but that would also be a key motivator when deciding which airline to fly with. If you're about to travel by air for the first time with an epipen, check out this useful guide.
3. Airline staff need to be educated about allergies and receive epipen training
Is it the fault of the aircraft staff for not understanding the seriousness of allergies? No - I believe the aviation industry and airline companies need to be held accountable for providing airline staff with regular training around allergies. The family explained the staff ‘didn’t understand anaphylactic shock or allergies at all despite the fact they had first aid training'. What I do blame the staff for is the complete lack of empathy they showed the family.
This statement above highlights the need for airlines to train their staff to enable them to understand symptoms of a severe allergic reactions. If staff have to complete first aid training, I think its about time they receive epipen training. So In the event of an emergency, aircraft staff would know how to use an epipen.
The video below was produced and Tuesday January 28th 2014, the video, “More Than an Inconvenience”, was presented to 30 airline representatives and provided them with insight about how families felt travelling by air. Let me know what you think.
Is it the fault of the aircraft staff for not understanding the seriousness of allergies? No - I believe the aviation industry and airline companies need to be held accountable for providing airline staff with regular training around allergies. The family explained the staff ‘didn’t understand anaphylactic shock or allergies at all despite the fact they had first aid training'. What I do blame the staff for is the complete lack of empathy they showed the family.
This statement above highlights the need for airlines to train their staff to enable them to understand symptoms of a severe allergic reactions. If staff have to complete first aid training, I think its about time they receive epipen training. So In the event of an emergency, aircraft staff would know how to use an epipen.
The video below was produced and Tuesday January 28th 2014, the video, “More Than an Inconvenience”, was presented to 30 airline representatives and provided them with insight about how families felt travelling by air. Let me know what you think.
If you have experienced any problems travelling before please let us know, or contact the Civil Aviation Authority we need to expose these airlines.
Comments
Post a Comment