



Over the years, wheelchair-related technology has come a long way. The “bells and whistles” available for wheelchair users now spans the spectrum from solid insert tires (no more flats!) to advanced seating recliners (perfect for napping during boring meetings) and even add-on cell phone chargers (can you hear me now?). And now, thanks to Southwest Airlines, my wheelchair features something never offered before; cruise control.





When Casey and I landed at BWI last week, we looked out the window to see something very disturbing – the airline baggage handlers were breaking my wheelchair. Despite having taped a sign around my wheelchair controller/joystick that read: “DO NOT TOUCH” four times in large bold letters, the baggage handlers from Southwest Airlines went on to “touch” and “break” my chair.





Talk about going above and beyond!





So, now that the controller/joystick is broken, my wheelchair keeps driving – even when I take my hand off it. Hence, I have cruise control (great party trick, but bad for safety).





As disappointed (major understatement) as it is to have a broken wheelchair, we were equally disappointed by how rudely we were treated by the Southwest Airlines customer service representative. After waiting nearly 30 minutes for her to meet us at the gate, she arrived only to tell us that this was basically our fault for not drawing up an operator manual for the handlers. She then gave me a blank stare and said everything was “all good” because Southwest would cover the repair costs.





What the what?





I tried to assure her that it wouldn’t be “all good” if I “cruise controlled” my way off a Metro platform, in front of a bus or over a small child, but she didn’t seem to appreciate my point.





While my wheelchair will get fixed, this has been a truly unfortunate situation for everyone involved. I’ve been terribly inconvenienced and the airline is losing money (and face).





Oh how different this could have been had the airline invested in better training programs to teach baggage handlers how to operate/transport wheelchairs and to sensitize customer service representatives regarding how critical mobility devices are to members of the disabled community.





Who knows, maybe my wheelchair wouldn’t have been broken or maybe we would have been treated with compassion and respect.





Breaking wheelchairs is bad for business. The repair costs far exceed whatever is paid for airfare and the poor customer service leads to terrible word-of-mouth and doesn’t generate customer loyalty.





If Southwest Airlines is as forward-thinking and committed to customer service as it would have us believe, they will take steps to improve. In order to help raise the bar regarding disability awareness and customer service, I would like to officially offer to address Southwest’s management and employees. By doing so in a positive and uplifting way, we could work together to improve the customer experience of disabled passengers while improving the company’s overall business.





According to its website, the mission of Southwest Airlines is “dedication to the highest quality of Customer Service delivered with a sense of warmth, friendliness, individual pride and Company Spirit.”





Guess that means I’ll be hearing from them soon...







