Low-cost airline Frontier Airlines claims passengers are misusing its wheelchair service to skip lines and secure priority boarding.
“We’re seeing widespread abuse of special services. People who don’t need wheelchair assistance are getting it,” CEO Barry Biffle said Thursday at a luncheon at New York’s Wings Club. According to CNBC.
Frontier seats are first come, first served, and people requesting wheelchair assistance will board the plane before other passengers.
Biffle said he has seen 20 people in wheelchairs board a plane, but only three of them requested assistance when disembarking.
“We’re healing a lot of people,” he joked.
The Air Carrier Access Act of 1986 prohibits airlines from discriminating against people with disabilities and requires companies to provide “safe transportation,” including wheelchairs, for passengers to board aircraft.
While the company’s website says it is “happy to provide services to passengers who require wheelchair or mobility assistance,” Biffle is frustrated with people taking advantage of services meant to help those in need.
Biffle argues that it costs airlines $30 to $35 for a passenger to request wheelchair assistance, and that overuse can lead to delays for other passengers.
“Anyone who needs it should have the right to it, but if you park in a handicapped space, your car gets towed and you get fined,” Biffle told CNBC. “There should be similar penalties for those who misuse these services.”
The problem could extend beyond the boarding gate to security and other airport services.
“There has been widespread abuse by passengers using wheelchair services to move to the front of the security line and gain priority boarding,” the airline told FOX Business, adding that “TSA and airlines have been put in a difficult position to manage this issue.”
Shady passengers who fake injuries or disabilities to skip queues have also affected other airlines, including Southwest Airlines.
Last year, a Southwest Airlines passenger in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, complained on social media about a “pre-boarding scam” after seeing nearly 20 people in wheelchairs waiting in line to board a flight.
“20 passengers will board in wheelchairs and only three will likely need wheelchairs upon disembarking,” the flyer states. Someone named Paul wrote to X.
Like Frontier, Southwest doesn’t assign seats, allowing pre-boarders to move around the cabin freely.
Another Southwest Airlines passenger recently reported a similar scam on a flight from Philadelphia to Chicago, where he said he witnessed 30 people in the terminal “claiming to be” disabled in the front row to secure coveted seats.
“People are gaming the system,” Steve Magialka told The Wall Street Journal about the February flight. “It’s just getting out of control.”
In 2022, the head of a major airport accused a TikTok user of encouraging his followers to abuse wheelchairs.
“If you look on TikTok you’ll see that this is one of the travel hacks people are recommending – but please don’t do it – we need to protect our services for those who need it most,” said John Holland-Kaye, CEO of London Heathrow Airport. LBC Radio, based in the UK.
