clanmcculloch
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Feb 20, 2009
- Messages
- 5,652
We tend to read a lot of problems with TSA so I just wanted to share the other side of the coin.
For our most recent trip, DD12 had to wear ankle braces. They have no metal in them but they're very visible. By our return trip she was in a lot of pain so we opted for an airline wheelchair through the airport (we had rented on part way through our trip but didn't have anything to bring to the airport).
Our trip begin at Logan (BOS). Our only other experience at Logan we had purchased the JetBlue more room seats meaning we went through the fast lane through TSA. This time we got regular seats so we were in the regular line. DH was commenting while waiting that we should have upgraded just to safe the time in line and I asked why it was better to wait in a chair by the gate vs in line at TSA since we'd be waiting either way. He thought a moment and agreed that it didn't matter. Anyway, not all that relevant but I thought I'd share.
The line moved pretty quickly as the agents checked ID. When we were sent forward to the scanners, I saw that almost everybody was being sent through I think it's the backscatter machine. DD15 is autistic (high functioning but still autistic) so I explained in detail to her what to expect and it went perfectly smoothly. The agent saw DD12's ankle braces and wasn't sure what to do. She confirmed with me that there was no metal in them and went to get her manager and had me stay with her while DH went through with DD15 (obviously one at a time). The agents were very professional with them and made DD15 comfortable with their instructions. The manager came over to ask me about the braces and then just had us each go through the metal detector. He said that they had to swab her braces and asked me to come with them. We only had to step to the end of where the bags come off the belt. He made sure every step of the way to explain to both of us what was being done and he made sure that I knew I was able to stay with her every second. Everybody was very professional and friendly and other than having to wait an extra maybe 2 minutes max while a manager was called (oh the horror) everything was also very efficient.
For our return flight our of Long Beach (LGB), we decided to do curbside check-in since I didn't think we could wheel all the bags and DD12 at the same time and as I said, she really couldn't handle the walk through the airport because she was in a LOT of pain. The agent called somebody for us to help with the wheelchair. I guess maybe it's airline policy that only employees push the chairs because they insisted that somebody push her all the way to the gate. Once at the gate she made sure that DD12 was settled, didn't need to brought to the bathroom or need anything else. Very friendly. She wheeled us over to TSA and said that she would just take us through the express line. YAY! The regular line was really short anyway but it was still nice. The TSA agent checking ID was friendly and joked around with us as he checked our boarding passes and ID. There was also no line at all for the scanners. The agent came over and asked if DD12 could walk through the metal detector or needed to stay in the chair (I loved having the option. She did say that if she stayed in the chair that she would have to be pat down so I asked DD12 if she could hobble through on her own or not and she chose hobbling. The agent offered her a cane when she saw her limping but she didn't want it. Before going through I was asked about metal in the braces and since there wasn't any it was simple to just walk through. They had her sit down on a bench so they could swab the braces. I went through before her and got chosen for a random check. An agent escorted me over to our stuff and asked which was mine and I pointed out my stuff among all of our things. He grabbed my shoes and brought them to a scanner and that was the extent of the random check. OK. I was able to see DD12 the whole time because she was right out in the open on a bench. DD15 again was very calm and the agents gave her very clear instructions making the whole process seamless.
The JetBlue agent was still with us and escorted us over to our gate. I asked her if I needed to check in with the gate agent because of the chair and she said that based on where she put us (it seems they always put people in wheelchairs at the end of rows as close to the gate as possible) that the gate agent would see us and come over shortly before boarding. I did go over when they announced that our plane was being cleaned just to confirm that there would be a chair at the gate when we landed and I'm glad I did because the note wasn't on her file (I figured it likely wouldn't be regardless of what the girl said because I think typically people put a note on their reservation and in this case it was a last minute decision so we hadn't notified anybody). When they gave the notice that they would begin the extra legroom seating shortly, a JetBlue employee came over to tell us he was going to bring us on board. He offered to also help us with our carryons but I figured he was already pushing the chair so we could easily manage the carryons. It was a good thing we had the extra time to board because she walked really slowly down the isle. When we landed, I let most of the passengers leave before we started down the isle because I knew she'd still need extra time. She walked behind me using me kind of like a walker. The flight attendants could see her behind me and I think they thought she was a cute kid who was only half awake (it was an overnight flight so most people did sleep through the flight and after 6 hours it's easy to forget somebody boarding with a wheelchair) and they were smiling and almost chuckling when looking at us (I bet it did look cute). As we got towards the front I asked if there was a wheelchair outside and you could see the change on their faces as they jumped up to help (I suspect they felt bad for their initial impressions even though it certainly didn't upset me). One went out quickly to look for the chair and another immediately came over to offer to grab our bags. I totally understand the initial impression and appreciated their immediate offer to help. Like in Long Beach, somebody escorted us through the airport. I was actually really surprised that he stayed with us while waiting at baggage claim and then escorted us upstairs to where the limo company was waiting for us. I guess it must be airline policy to make sure somebody from the airline stays with you the whole time you're moving around in one of their chairs.
That's all. I just wanted to share positive experiences.
For our most recent trip, DD12 had to wear ankle braces. They have no metal in them but they're very visible. By our return trip she was in a lot of pain so we opted for an airline wheelchair through the airport (we had rented on part way through our trip but didn't have anything to bring to the airport).
Our trip begin at Logan (BOS). Our only other experience at Logan we had purchased the JetBlue more room seats meaning we went through the fast lane through TSA. This time we got regular seats so we were in the regular line. DH was commenting while waiting that we should have upgraded just to safe the time in line and I asked why it was better to wait in a chair by the gate vs in line at TSA since we'd be waiting either way. He thought a moment and agreed that it didn't matter. Anyway, not all that relevant but I thought I'd share.
The line moved pretty quickly as the agents checked ID. When we were sent forward to the scanners, I saw that almost everybody was being sent through I think it's the backscatter machine. DD15 is autistic (high functioning but still autistic) so I explained in detail to her what to expect and it went perfectly smoothly. The agent saw DD12's ankle braces and wasn't sure what to do. She confirmed with me that there was no metal in them and went to get her manager and had me stay with her while DH went through with DD15 (obviously one at a time). The agents were very professional with them and made DD15 comfortable with their instructions. The manager came over to ask me about the braces and then just had us each go through the metal detector. He said that they had to swab her braces and asked me to come with them. We only had to step to the end of where the bags come off the belt. He made sure every step of the way to explain to both of us what was being done and he made sure that I knew I was able to stay with her every second. Everybody was very professional and friendly and other than having to wait an extra maybe 2 minutes max while a manager was called (oh the horror) everything was also very efficient.
For our return flight our of Long Beach (LGB), we decided to do curbside check-in since I didn't think we could wheel all the bags and DD12 at the same time and as I said, she really couldn't handle the walk through the airport because she was in a LOT of pain. The agent called somebody for us to help with the wheelchair. I guess maybe it's airline policy that only employees push the chairs because they insisted that somebody push her all the way to the gate. Once at the gate she made sure that DD12 was settled, didn't need to brought to the bathroom or need anything else. Very friendly. She wheeled us over to TSA and said that she would just take us through the express line. YAY! The regular line was really short anyway but it was still nice. The TSA agent checking ID was friendly and joked around with us as he checked our boarding passes and ID. There was also no line at all for the scanners. The agent came over and asked if DD12 could walk through the metal detector or needed to stay in the chair (I loved having the option. She did say that if she stayed in the chair that she would have to be pat down so I asked DD12 if she could hobble through on her own or not and she chose hobbling. The agent offered her a cane when she saw her limping but she didn't want it. Before going through I was asked about metal in the braces and since there wasn't any it was simple to just walk through. They had her sit down on a bench so they could swab the braces. I went through before her and got chosen for a random check. An agent escorted me over to our stuff and asked which was mine and I pointed out my stuff among all of our things. He grabbed my shoes and brought them to a scanner and that was the extent of the random check. OK. I was able to see DD12 the whole time because she was right out in the open on a bench. DD15 again was very calm and the agents gave her very clear instructions making the whole process seamless.
The JetBlue agent was still with us and escorted us over to our gate. I asked her if I needed to check in with the gate agent because of the chair and she said that based on where she put us (it seems they always put people in wheelchairs at the end of rows as close to the gate as possible) that the gate agent would see us and come over shortly before boarding. I did go over when they announced that our plane was being cleaned just to confirm that there would be a chair at the gate when we landed and I'm glad I did because the note wasn't on her file (I figured it likely wouldn't be regardless of what the girl said because I think typically people put a note on their reservation and in this case it was a last minute decision so we hadn't notified anybody). When they gave the notice that they would begin the extra legroom seating shortly, a JetBlue employee came over to tell us he was going to bring us on board. He offered to also help us with our carryons but I figured he was already pushing the chair so we could easily manage the carryons. It was a good thing we had the extra time to board because she walked really slowly down the isle. When we landed, I let most of the passengers leave before we started down the isle because I knew she'd still need extra time. She walked behind me using me kind of like a walker. The flight attendants could see her behind me and I think they thought she was a cute kid who was only half awake (it was an overnight flight so most people did sleep through the flight and after 6 hours it's easy to forget somebody boarding with a wheelchair) and they were smiling and almost chuckling when looking at us (I bet it did look cute). As we got towards the front I asked if there was a wheelchair outside and you could see the change on their faces as they jumped up to help (I suspect they felt bad for their initial impressions even though it certainly didn't upset me). One went out quickly to look for the chair and another immediately came over to offer to grab our bags. I totally understand the initial impression and appreciated their immediate offer to help. Like in Long Beach, somebody escorted us through the airport. I was actually really surprised that he stayed with us while waiting at baggage claim and then escorted us upstairs to where the limo company was waiting for us. I guess it must be airline policy to make sure somebody from the airline stays with you the whole time you're moving around in one of their chairs.
That's all. I just wanted to share positive experiences.
