BBC's Frank Gardner 'forced to crawl on floor of plane to use toilet' as airline 'has no wheelchairs'

BBC journalist Frank Gardner was seen crawling along the floor of a LOT airline flight from Warsaw as cabin crew told him it was company policy not to have wheelchairs onboard

A Polish airline has extended its sincerest apologies to BBC journalist Frank Gardner following an incident which led to him having to crawl on the cabin floor to reach the toilet, attributing the issue to a company policy precluding wheelchairs on board. Renowned reporter Frank Gardner captured and posted a picture of himself crawling near two passengers aboard a LOT flight from Warsaw on Monday, September 30, expressing his frustration on social media and labelling the ordeal as discriminatory toward individuals who rely on wheelchairs.

Mr Gardner, who has been a wheelchair user since being shot multiple times in Saudi Arabia in June 2004, has also previously delved into the topic of living with disability in his 2020 BBC Two documentary 'Being Frank'.

"Wow. it's 2024 and I've just had to crawl along the floor of this LOT Polish airline to get to the toilet during a flight back from Warsaw as 'we don't have onboard wheelchairs," read Mr Gardner's tweet. "It's airline policy.

"If you're disabled and can't walk this is just discriminatory. In fairness to the cabin crew, they were as helpful and apologetic as they could be. Not their fault, it's the airline. Won't be flying LOT again until they join the 21st century."

His Twitter missive quickly gained traction; having been shared over social media, it has garnered more than 253,000 views and has resonated widely with more than 4,700 likes. An array of social media users expressed their solidarity with Mr Gardner’s predicament, voicing their disapproval extensively online, reports the Mirror.

Hazel McIntyre voiced her shock on social media, saying: "Shocking. So sorry to hear this, isn't it time airlines are obliged to provide onboard wheelchairs to be able to hold licences to fly into international airports."

Tim Hill expressed a need for action: "[I] think this airline needs to be challenged on its disability rights accessibility programme. Extraordinary that this should be happening in 2024."

Accesible Stratford shared frustration online by commenting: "This was one of the reasons I stopped flying many years ago. Another was my powered wheelchair being used as a luggage trolley. All these years later very little has changed, it's shameful."

A LOT airlines spokesperson addressed the recent incident stating to The Mirror: "We are deeply sorry for the distressing experience Mr. Frank Gardner encountered on his recent flight with us. We sincerely apologise for the inconvenience and discomfort caused by the lack of an onboard wheelchair."

Also explaining current arrangements, they added, "Currently, onboard wheelchairs are available on our Dreamliner aircraft. However, due to limited space, our short-haul fleet does not yet have this facility. We understand the importance of accessibility and are actively testing solutions to equip our short-haul aircraft with onboard wheelchairs in the near future."

Further noting the measures in place for longer flights, the spokesperson said, "As mentioned on our website, for long-haul flights, we provide onboard wheelchairs to assist passengers in moving around the cabin. Additionally, our ground staff is always ready to assist passengers from check-in to boarding and from the aircraft to the baggage claim area."

"We deeply regret the inconvenience Mr. Gardner experienced and sincerely apologise for the distress caused. We are committed to improving our services to ensure all passengers have a comfortable and dignified travel experience."

Mr Gardner had previously highlighted issues faced while travelling by air. In March 2018, he shared a distressing tweet asserting "time and again" Heathrow Airport had misplaced his wheelchair upon arrival.

The journalist recounted having to endure a wait of one and a half hours post-landing before the situation was rectified. Under the rules of the UK Civil Aviation Authority, any passenger with a disability or reduced mobility is entitled to support during air travel.