How to get assistance for disabled friend at Stanstead airport

pigeonpie

My friend is coming over from France with Ryanair for the Easter weekend. (Arr and depart Stansted). She is disabled and will not be able to walk from the aircraft all the way through immigration and to the terminal exit. She will also obviously need assistance for the return journey.

She may travel with her own wheelchair, in which case she will need help from somebody to push it. However because we have a very small car, she may not travel with her own wheelchair, but use one belonging to the airport on arrival and on departure.

She has spoken to Ryanair but not had much help. I may be wrong, but I believe that all disabled assistance once you have left the aircraft is the responsibility of Stansted airport's own disabled assistance team?

I know that the airport has recently come under new management. I'm not sure who to contact and reserve reliable help?

She will be able to leave the aircraft and get on to the return journey plane without too much help, but there is no way that she can walk from the aircraft to the terminal exit or vice versa. She can only walk about 100 m. She is unwell and tires very easily.
Hopefully it being the Easter weekend does not complicate things.

Does anyone know the simplest and most efficient way to organise this help for her please?

Doshwaster

pigeonpie wrote: »

Does anyone know the simplest and most efficient way to organise this help for her please?

You are supposed to arrange this though the airline but I can imagine Ryanair to be terrible to deal with. You could contact Stansted's "special assistance" people. http://www.stanstedairport.com/stansted-airport-guide/special-assistance.

fifeken

You need to make sure Ryanair are aware of her requirements as there is a limit to how many passengers they will let on a flight who need assistance.

This should have been done during the booking process and be detailed on subsequent paperwork. If it's not, it needs sorted a minimum of 12 hours before she is due to depart.

More info here:

http://www.ryanair.com/en/terms-and-conditions#regulations-reducedmobility

AlexMac

Don't know about Stansted, but Gatwick's Special assistance serviices are fab- a temporary injury got my wife buggied to and from the aircraft- not just the gate. It was however a bit tricky to pre-book this as although it should be done via the airline, ours was not familiar with the procedure so we had to be persistent to book it prior- but no charge . You should book this at the time of making your booking, but you can, later (as we did) - lots of rerences on Ryanair's own site and FAQs to 'assistance' but some lead to a dead end link instead of the promnised phone support! (They deserve to be be busted under the DDA for failure to make 'reasonable adjustment')! So be persistent and once arranged it will be fine. My wife's thinking of breaking her leg more often!

pigeonpie

She ticked the disabled travel assistance box on ryanair s website when making her booking, and is coming with her own wheelchair.
I told her to ring ryanair as well as she has no other email from them, other than the usual confirmation of booking one. She was going to do this 48 hours before flying but I will tell her to do it sooner (?) - does she have to do this again from the UK for her return flight? (She's here only 4 days).

Still not heard back from Stansted. I emailed assistance info email. There doesn't seem to be a phone no? The no listed is for Ryanair....going round in circles. As mostly the problem is at Stansted (her home airport is small) and her English is basic, I will try to call Ryanair UK for her.