A mother said she and her family were removed from a Delta Air Lines flight because airline staff “got concerned” about the mobility device used by her son, who has dwarfism.
The family was traveling from Florida to Atlanta when the incident allegedly occurred. The mother said that this was their third Delta flight of the week and they had already made two trips with the same mobility device without any problems.
But their latest flight ended differently when airline employees allegedly told the family to get off the plane.
“This mobility device got us. My son, the dwarfism and the rest of us, kicked off a Delta flight from Florida to Atlanta,” the mother said while describing what happened in a TikTok video.
She was frustrated that the equipment had been allowed on their previous flights but suddenly became an issue during their third flight.
“This is the second time, third flight this week that we have flown Delta. Twice this week we flew with no problems with this mobility device and today they kicked us off the plane,” she said.
Mom Said Airline Staff Would Not Let Her Speak To Them Before Removing Family
The mother also questioned how airline employees handled the situation.
She said staff members first spoke to her husband about the mobility device and told him he could communicate with her but then stopped them from speaking before telling the family to leave the plane.
“They were talking to my husband first and told him he could talk to me and they wouldn’t let them talk to me. Then they said we had to get off the plane,” she said.
The mother noted it was frustrating because the family had already flown on two Delta flights that week without any problems. “It is ridiculous,” she added.
What Are Delta’s Rules For Passengers Traveling With Mobility Devices?
Delta Air Lines’ accessibility policy allowed passengers to travel with personal mobility devices, including manual and battery-powered wheelchairs and scooters, but airline rules required them to meet aircraft storage and safety requirements.
On Delta’s website, passengers were asked to let the airline know about their mobility equipment at least 48 hours before they left. Travelers were also asked for the device’s measurements and battery information, if available, to determine how it could be transported.
Not every mobility device could be carried in the cabin. Some battery-powered scooters and wheelchairs had to be transported in the cargo hold, depending on size, battery type and aircraft capacity. Delta also said checking a device’s measurements “does not mean that it will fit on a particular aircraft.”
The airline’s passenger disability rights policy also stated that assistive devices could be carried free of charge, provided safety requirements were met and approved storage locations were available.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Air Carrier Access Act prohibited airlines from refusing to transport a passenger solely because of a disability. Airlines could exclude a passenger only if their transportation would create a flight safety problem. If an airline excluded a passenger with a disability on safety grounds, it had to provide a written explanation for its decision.
It wasn’t clear from the family’s story whether Delta had raised concerns about scooter dimensions, battery requirements or another safety issue. The available footage didn’t show the airline’s reasoning for removing the family.
