A shocking video shows an American Airlines baggage handler at Miami International Airport recklessly throwing a passenger’s wheelchair down a long metal ramp — sparking a fierce backlash against America’s largest airline.
In the now-viral video, which was originally posted on TikTok Nov. 19, an American Airlines employee is seen releasing a wheelchair at the top of an uncovered baggage chute as other employees wait at the bottom.
As the mobility device picked up speed, the worker on the runway made no effort to slow its momentum before it smashed into a metal railing and went airborne, flipping its top end several times and repeatedly bouncing on the pavement before landing out of sight.
The worker then casually walked over to the wheelchair and placed it on a large rolling mannequin containing several other mobility devices, the video shows.
The clip, which has been viewed nearly 3 million times on TikTok alone, includes a caption by the original poster who claims the worker laughed as they did the same to two other wheelchairs before he started filming.
A viral video showing an American Airlines baggage handler abusing a passenger’s wheelchair has garnered nearly 3 million views so far.TikTok/ @haez93 The video sparked outrage online, including from people who claimed their own mobility devices were damaged in transit by the airline.TikTok / @haez93
The footage sparked widespread criticism online when it spread, including from others who claimed their own mobility devices had been damaged in transit by American Airlines.
The incident even caught the attention of Department of Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who taken to X to express his disgust.
“This is totally unacceptable. We will investigate. This is why we are taking action to protect passengers who use wheelchairs. Everyone has the right to travel safely and with dignity,” he wrote.
Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), herself a wheelchair user who often calls on airlines to treat passenger mobility devices more carefully, called the incident “annoying” in a post on X.
“For Americans who depend on wheelchairs to live our lives to the fullest, breaking our wheelchairs is like breaking our legs. In 2023, we shouldn’t still be seeing our mobility devices treated like this by airlines. @AmericanAir must do better,” he wrote.
Earlier this year, Duckworth introduced the Prioritizing Accountability and Accessibility for Aviation Users Act which aims to require the Department of Transportation to publish a detailed annual report on air travel complaints made by travelers with disabilities.
Reached by email Thursday, American Airlines said in a statement that its team is reviewing the video and will take “next steps as necessary.”
In a statement, American Airlines called the video “deeply troubling” and said it was investigating the incident. In August, the airline ranked 13th out of 15 airlines for the number of incidents in which mobility devices malfunctioned, according to US DOT figures.REUTERS
“We recognize how important it is to support the independence of disabled customers by ensuring proper mobility device care throughout their journey with us. This visual is very disturbing and we are gathering more details so that we can address it with our team. We will continue to work hard to improve the handling of our assistive devices across our network,” said an airline spokesperson.
The airline went on to say that they “routinely provide training for our Customer Operations team focused on the appropriate handling of wheelchairs and other mobility devices, and we have engaged this team to identify areas where we can continue to improve.”
According to US Department of Transportation Data from August, American Airlines ranked 13th out of 15 airlines for incidents of unattended mobility devices, with 226 incidents reported that month alone, or 2.24% of all wheelchairs and scooters carried on board .
Airlines and their code partners are required to report all incidents of unattended mobility devices pursuant to the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
