A British man with multiple sclerosis has claimed he almost lost his foot when he was stranded on a plane and paramedics had to use food trolleys to help him exit.
Geoffrey Schneiderman, 63, landed at Vancouver International Airport in July 2022 aboard a British Airways flight for a family vacation.
After landing at the airport, staff aboard the plane informed Schneiderman they did not have the necessary lift to help him safely exit the aircraft on his wheelchair.
After two hours of confusion and failed attempts to have him helped off the plane, paramedics had to use food trolleys to help him disembark.
‘I suppose they were doing their best to keep me level and on the food carts, but food carts are just not designed to transport people,’ he said.
After touching down in the Canadian city, airplane staff informed Geoffrey Schneiderman they did not have the necessary equipment to help him disembark
‘I was beginning to feel very alarmed and panicked. They didn’t have any way of keeping [the food trolleys] together other than manually,’ he told CBC News.
Schneiderman said he developed a pressure sore due to the prolonged time sitting.
He was bedridden for the vacation and the pressure sore on his foot grew septic and was close to needing amputation. He also said he was left with anxiety as a result of the incident.
Schneiderman continued: ‘It was as though it was happening to somebody else. I was having panic attacks about it and panic episodes about being trapped in places.
‘There were parts of it, I remember, I was just closing my eyes knowing I am completely trapped. It was terror. It was just terror.’
Paramedics had to resolve to using a rigid stretcher to lift Schneiderman onto the top of two trolleys, with his head and legs left hanging over either end.
To his horror, the carts started to separate as paramedics wheeled him down the aisle.
‘The carts started separating — that was the point when my partner said he nearly had a heart attack, because he could see what was happening and heard them call that the trolleys are coming apart’, Schneiderman added.
After eventually making it from the aircraft, he claims the paramedics who aided him in his rescue then dragged him to his waiting wheelchair.
A pressure sore on his foot went septic due to the incident, with Schneiderman saying his foot was close to being amputated after the flesh died
Staff aboard the plane informed Schneiderman that they did not have the necessary lift, seen here, to help him safely exit the aircraft on his wheelchair
‘They pulled from under my arms and just dragged me. My shoes came off my trousers actually started coming off,’ he said.
Once the pressure sore grew septic, there was talk of having his foot amputated after the flesh died and became necrotic.
He added: ‘Before, I was pretty much in the best health that I’ve been in for a long time and it just put the spokes in the wheel for absolutely everything.
‘I was going to the hospital three times a week to have the dressings changed and it just took over my life completely.’
British Airways offered him a £500 ($630) settlement, which he eventually negotiated higher to £1,500, around $1900.
Schneiderman right and his longtime partner Francisco (left) were travelling from London to Vancouver to visit family when the incident occurred
In a statement to CBC, Vancouver International Airport said: ‘Airlines have a duty to safely onboard, carry and deplane all passengers.
‘It is also each airlines’ responsibility to work with their contracted ground handling crews who support airlines by providing the specialized equipment required for travelers with mobility issues.’
Last month, Air Canada came under fire after the airline was accused of disconnecting a disabled woman’s ventilator.
Alessia Di Virgilio, a disabled woman who uses a wheelchair to move and a ventilator to breathe, was filmed having her breathing device disconnected on an Air Canada trip in an undercover CBC report.
Hidden cameras caught poorly trained staff struggling to move Di Virgilio leading to her ventilator coming detached multiple times.
Di Virgilio said she can only manage a few breaths without her ventilator before her breathing becomes shallow.
A lift was also dropped on her head by staff at the firm, whose CEO was paid $9 million USD in 2022.
Air Canada said in a statement to CBC: ‘The vast, vast majority of customers with mobility needs travelled without issue and in those relatively rare instances where barriers were encountered, we moved quickly to address concerns.’