Question about flying for someone who needs to be accompanied to the gate

[Coll0610]

A friend at work is wondering about whether or not her mother will be able to fly now with the new restrictions about no one getting to the security gate without a ticket. Her mother is in good health and appears to be of sound mind, but she really isn't. She could carry on a conversation with you and you would think she understood you, but at the end of the conversation she would have no idea what you had just told her. In the past, she has been able to fly by having someone take her to the gate and someone else meet her when she landed. Now that you must have a ticket to get past the gate, they are afraid they can't do that anymore. I've heard that exceptions are made for children flying alone and people needing special assistance because of a disability. Does anyone have experience with this? do you know what kind of documentation would my friend have to have to be able to accompany her mother to the gate?

 

[Puffy2]

This can be a problem . I say this because I witnessed two elderly women in Orlando Airport, both had just been escorted off a plane, placed in wheelchairs and left, unattended, right by the gate. Well, no one came for them for as long as I was there. I assume that the "plan" was a security officer or airport employee to come and get them and take them to another location, but after 15 min. or so - no one.
These ladies were able to get up and go to the desk (where airline attendents were) and tell them or ask them something so I presume they were helped, but it did occur to me that the airline attendents were not paying a bit of attention to them before this. This could be a real problem.

I'm not sure if I would trust the airport to handle it correctly. You could inquire with the airport and see how this is handled. Send her with a note attached to clothing as well??? Seems really risky doesn't it. Sorry I'm not much help.

 

[SueM in MN]

I can't remember where i read it, but I recently read that about someone who wanted to have the airline provide something like the "unaccompanied minor service the airline provides for children, but have it for a disabled person who with a mental age similar to a child. WHat I read, said that the airline in question would not do it.
Unless someone else knows, I suggest calling the airline and asking to speak to someone who deals with special needs.

 

[Alaska]

We just returned from a two week vacation at WDW and had quite an exhausting experience with air travel related to the heightened security measures. We saw quite a bit of confusion at both the O'Hare and Orlando International Airports and I would strongly recommend against sending someone with diminished mental faculties on a flight alone. I believe that some of the airlines will (for a fee) provide nursing services.

I had intended to let the dust settle a bit before posting our recent travel experiences as I thought I might be able to be a little more objective. However, it might help folks to know about our recent experiences so that they can consider whether they really want to travel at this time. On our two day journey from Anchorage to Orlando we were "profiled." All of our checked bags were x-rayed and my husband was called back to the security area to explain the needles we had in our checked bags to flush our son's central line. Our carry on luggage was searched by hand and we were patted down and "wanded." I can kind of understand the carry on luggage concern as we carry two ventilators, two suction machines, two feeding pumps, batteries for the ventilators, chargers for the machines, etc. The checked luggage is a different story. We had 7 bags for 5 seats (we purchase 3 seats for our young son due to his orthopedic and medical issues). On the way back, our checked bags were "dump searched." That means that the security folks went through everything. All of our son's medical and feeding supplies, our toiletry items, our souvieniers (sp?), our dirty laundry, EVERYTHING. It took us almost 3 hours to get to the gate in Orlando and our son has difficulty sitting up in his wheelchair for long periods of time. The security and airline folks who were involved in the searches were all very apologetic and nice about the whole thing. However, it was in a word and ORDEAL. In Chicago, the CTX machine they use to x-ray luggage broke down earlier in the day and the wait was supposedly 3 hours. The security people failed to inform the airlines about the wait. When the ticket agent at the Alaska Airlines counter found out, she personally took our bags to security. She and her supervisor argued with security that our flight was leaving in less than three hours and our bags needed to be checked. Security refused, so that ticket agent, her supervisor and another ticket agent grabbed our bags and "dump searched" them themselves. That means that everything was opened right there on the floor of the terminal. We were, however, thankful for their efforts. Otherwise we would have missed the flight even though we arrived about 2 1/2 hours before the flight was scheduled to leave. At the security gate we had to remove all of our machines and they were "swept" for explosives. We boarded the plane approximately 5 minutes after it was supposed to have left.

While I understand security concerns, I am having some trouble being understanding about the pure he*# we were put through. When I last checked, the World Trade Center was not demolished by a seven year old with a tracheostomy who cannot walk, talk or sit up without assistance. It would seem that some level of common sense should be applied. The efforts that we and the airlines had to go through to get us to our flights were HORRENDOUS. We have traveled quite a bit with our son, but we have never experienced anything like this. It seems as though our country has been reduced to a "police state."

Air travel safety is important. Don't get me wrong. But profiling of disabled folks and their families I think is at least a bit discriminatory. At the very least, it makes air travel impractical. My poor son was exhausted by the return trip. And I think there are serious health concerns about the way the searches are conducted. The folks who are digging through your luggage are wearing gloves for their protection. However, unless you think to ask them, they do not change the gloves between searches. That means that they are touching all of your belongings, medical supplies or whatever, with their gloved hands which have been in God knows who elses dirty laundry, toiletry articles, etc. What a great way to spread germs around. The terrorists don't have to conduct biological warfare. We are probably doing it to ourselves with this search business. I also feel sorry for the security people who have to dig through traveler's dirty laundry.

We had our trip planned for several months before September 11 and thought that we should keep our plans just as our President and other government leaders are encouraging folks to do. However, after our recent experiences we have decided that it is no "vacation" to be put through that ordeal and we do not plan to travel by air in the future. Keep in mind that our son's medical and orthopedic situation is different than most folks who use a wheelchair. So others may not experience the same problems. However, the family of a little boy in a wheelchair who were behind us in line was also "profiled."


By the way, for those of you who are wondering whether to rely on the Disney transportation or to rent a lift equipped vehicle, we recommend renting the vehicle. We did it both ways. We stayed at the Grand Floridian and as long as we were going to a park on the Monorail line, it was fine. However, our odds of having an accessible bus show up for the other parks were about 50-50. The CMs acknowledged that not all of the buses are accessible at this time. In fact, one CM told me that he thought he had heard that one out of three buses are accessible at this time. Apparently Disney is in the process of converting all of its bus fleet to the new buses that folks have described (lower to the ground with a ramp instead of stairs that turn into a lift). The new buses are being used to and from the TTC. The problem is if you or someone in your party has stamina issues, you will be waiting twice as long as abled-bodied folks for an accessible bus to come along.

We rented from Rainbow Wheels. They were very accomodating and we would highly recommend them. We also rented medical equipment from CARE Medical. Pam at CARE Medical was wonderful.

On another note, beware of the Guidebooks for the various parks. The Guidebook for MGM indicated that a person could ride Star Tours without transferring from a manual wheelchair (the symbols showed that a person in an ECV would have to transfer to a manual chair. But there was no symbol showing that a person in a manual chair would have to transfer to a regular seat). However, when we showed up we were told our son would have to be able to transfer. Although our son cannot speak, he is very bright and adept at nonverbal communication. When we tried to wheel him away, he burst into tears and pointed at himself and mouthed Star Tours. The CM must have felt bad and offered a "test flight" (i.e. the ride with no movement). That was perfect for us. It would be nice if Disney would rethink its policy not to tell unless you ask about accomodations on rides. If you cannot transfer from your chair, there are very few rides that you can ride. In fact, Disney just added a new Dinosaur ride in the Animal Kingdom that is accessible only if you can transfer to a Disney manual wheelchair. When we went to WDW a couple of years ago, our son was smaller and it was easier to transfer him or to hold him on our laps or in a car seat. Luckily they have some great shows in all of the parks. My son loves the singing and dancing and has been lucky enough to have performers invite him for pictures and provide autographs after the shows.

This post probably sounds like I am just a disgruntled complainer. I really am not. Unfortunately, our recent travel experiences were less than optimal and I would feel remiss if I did not warn folks about the security issues. I do want to say, however, that our trip was saved by the kindness and sensitivity shown to my family by the airline employees, most of the security employees and the great folks who work for Disney. In fact, I cannot say enough nice things about the Disney CMs, from the housekeeping folks to the entertainers to the vendors selling Disney memorabilia at the parades, to the Disney security officers. They were all in a word GREAT.

My advice to anyone deciding to travel by air, take as little as possible with you. Even if it means doing laundry more often or buying some clothes when you get to your destination and then shipping items back. Avoid bringing back extra items in your luggage, such as souveniers. I would ship clothing and souveniers back home. If you are like us, and have to take extra medical supplies just in case of airline delays or flight cancellations, etc., only bring those items with you. Ship everything else. Your vacation costs will be increased, but your stress and fatigue levels should be reduced.

 

[SueM in MN]

Thanks for sharing. I agree that it seems they might be pinpointing people with disabilities for too much scrutiny. I wonder if there is any reason to it; like, these people are so grateful to be even able to travel or so used to being hassled, that they won't put up a fuss. In some cases, it can be dangerous, not just tiring. We haven't traveled yet since Sept. but my biggest advie to people traveling is still the same. If at all possible (and I know it's not from some places), take a non-stop direct flight. A lot of the people I have heard from have been most severly hassled at their transfer city.
I'm sorry about your son's experience with the Stat Tours ride. The icon for that one looks like a person transferring from an ecv into a wheelchair at first glance, but when you look closer, it's actually a person transferring from the ecv into a wheelchair and then standing up from the wheelchair. WDW added this icon to differentiate from the rides where you can stay in the ecv or wheelchair for the whole ride. I think it is easy to confuse the icon when it's so small on the map. It is listed correctly in the text of the Guidebook for Guest with Disabilities that I have.
Body Wars and Dinosaur are other rides I can think of offhand that use the same icon and require a transfer into the ride car. You can probably also get a non-moving show on Body Wars, but it means tying up a whole car for one party, so I can see why the CMs may not be forthcoming with the information. I heard about it on the DIS boards when someone else indicated they had done it.

 

[Alaska]

I agree with Sue's advice about nonstop flights. Unfortunately, there are no nonstop flights from Anchorage to Orlando. If that had been an option, we certainly would have taken it to avoid having to move our son and his equipment between flights. We flew nonstop to Chicago and then were scheduled to change to an American Airlines flight. Unfortunately again, Alaska Airlines moved the time of the nonstop to Chicago 12 hours earlier and our return flight time was changed as well. With the heightened security, we were required to claim our bags in Chicago because too much time would be elapsing between our flights. (we had to overnight in Chicago because we were concerned that we would not be able to make the last flight out of Chicago to Orlando on American Airlines because it always takes awhile for our son's wheelchair to show up at the gate and then for us to set up the wheelchair and transfer him from the airplane. Originally we were told that we had the option of having our bags checked all of the way through. That would have helped avoid the second round of dump searches. However, we learned only two days before our departure that we would have to claim our bags between flights because new security regulations were preventing airlines from holding bags for more than 12 hours. We scurried around and shipped some of our supplies ahead, but with the heightened security, our shipping through DHL which was supposed to be overnight shipping ended up being 5 day shipping, so we had to take supplies with us in order to be sure that we would have the supplies at the other end. The delay was due to the fact that we were considered an "unknown shippper" i.e. not someone who ships frequently. I was told that our boxes had to go on a "freight only" plane rather than a passenger plane.

The point of all of this is that changes in flights and security measures are happening rather frequently and quickly and it is all causing a lot of confusion. Therefore, I am cautioning folks to give a great deal of thought to traveling at this time. I certainly would not send someone who is mentally impaired to travel on his or her own right now.


A person whose only unique issues are that s/he uses a wheelchair perhaps will not encounter the same difficulties we encountered. Our son has a tracheostomy, has mobility issues, is tube-fed and uses nighttime ventilation and requires oxygen during flight. We have to hand carry redundant systems for his equipment. Therefore, our situation is somewhat different than most.

I must say, however, that we are "veteran" flyers with our son. We have been flying with him for several years and have a great deal of experience working with airline companies and their avionic engineering and special services departments to arrange for his travel. But we have never experienced anything like this. Besides our son's mobility and medical issues, there is nothing overly distinguishable about us. My husband is in his late thirties and I am forty. We do not have any criminal records and none of our immediate family members have any criminal records. We are citizens of the United States. We both have law degrees and my husband also has an MBA. We have been law abiding, tax paying citizens for all of our adult lives. I can't think of anything other than our son's medical equipment and/or supplies that would trigger special searches of our luggage.

Shortly after Sept. 11, when the FAA announced that changes in airport security would be made, I e-mailed the FAA and expressed concern about the effects of security measures on the ability of folks with disabilities to travel by air. I provided the FAA with the information necessary to contact me or my husband if they wanted input on the difficulties of air travel for disabled folks. I never heard back. Perhaps that is why we were profiled

By the way, I don't think we misunderstood the Guidebook. I think there was an error. The Guidebook we obtained when we were at WDW did not show someone transferring out of a wheelchair to standing. As you have described, WDW uses a symbol for a person standing up out of a wheelchair to indicate the need to transfer to a ride. The symbol is a person rising up out of a wheelchair and an arrow pointing forward. That symbol did not appear in the Guidebook for Star Tours. It just showed someone transferring from an ECV and then a person sitting in a wheelchair. It appeared to be indicating that a transfer from an ECV to a manual wheelchair was all that was required. We were careful to obtain a Guidebook that was current for the dates we were going to be in the park and apparently there was an error in the Guidebook. We always take a great deal of time the night before we go into a park to study the Guidebook, determine which rides are accessible without transfers versus rides requiring transfers to try to avoid any confusion and to try to plan out what route we will take through the park. We want things to go as smoothly as possible. The last thing we want is for our son to be disappointed by not being able to get onto a ride and we never show up at rides demanding that our son be accommodated. The CM offered the "test run." We did not request it. At Star Tours I showed the CM the brochure to explain our confusion and she agreed that there was an error. Another CM at Fantasmic told us that there were several typos in the current Guidebook. It might be a good idea for folks to compare both the Guidebooks for Guests With Disabilities with the general Guidebooks for the parks. With all the adjustments WDW is having to make after the Sept. 11 tragedies, there are bound to be some errors.

My comment about the Guidebooks was not intended to be a criticism of Disney. I suspect that WDW has been having to make many adjustments in response to the current events. We consulted the general MGM Guidebook rather than the Guidebook for Guests With Disabilities because we wanted the most up to date information about show and parade times. We were given a small sheet of paper at the Grand Floridian showing the dates and times for the parades, shows and park hours for the week. But even that paper had some errors. For example, it stated that the shops in Downtown Disney would be open until 1:00 a.m. In fact, the shops in the Marketplace closed at 11:00. There was even what appeared to be a last minute change in park hours for MGM on one of the last days we were at the park. When we boarded the bus to MGM, the bus driver announced to everyone that earlier in the day the drivers had all been informed that MGM would be "keeping the lights on" until 8:00 p.m. that evening. The park originally was scheduled to close at 7:00 p.m. There seemed to be some confusion about what "keeping the lights on" really meant. I heard lots of folks commenting to each other at around 7:00 p.m. that they thought the rides probably would close at 7:00, but in fact the rides were still operating after 7:00 p.m. I don't know why the hours were changed, except that it appeared that attendance was up and MGM was scheduled to close early later in the week for a "press event" related to Walt Disney's 100th birthday. So perhaps Disney was trying to give folks a little more time in the park to accomodate the increased attendance and to make up for closing the park early later in the week.

 

[SueM in MN]

The maps and Guidebook I had for the Studio showed the right info in the written part, but it's possible they may have printed a new Guidebook with an error since the one I have. The parks maps are reprinted each week, so if someone changed an icon that shouldn't have been changed, it could stay wrong for a long time without anyone noticing.
I also think it's nice that the CM offered a "test" run on Star Tours. (I did understand that it was offered, not requested by you). The unexpected surprises and ability to turn around disappointment sometimes is the kind of stuff that makes WDW magical.
Yours isn't the first horror story about travel with a person with a disability that I have read. And the other people I have heard from were also experienced travelers like you. One story from a few years ago involved a family with a DD who could not walk or stand. They were told by security that their DD had to be removed from her wheelchair and carried thru the metal detector so her wheelchair could be examined carefully. It was almost impossible for the family to do and soemhow the child ended up lying on the ground waiting for the wheelchair to be checked. We've never run into anything like that, but all it takes is an uninformed security person, an overzealous security one, a "bully" one, one who doesn't think people with disabilities should be traveling or one who just likes to throw power, around to cause a lot of trouble.

 

[seashoreCM]

Keeping the lights on at MGM means the Osborne Christmas lights display. THere has been a lot of requests to keep this open for folks exiting Fantasmic which occurs slightly after 7 PM.

If you are videotaping the lights or fireworks, adjust your camera for nighttime exposure, using manual settings if needed or available. Adjust for best appearance of the lights, not people.

((Of course all the streetlights leading from Fantasmic and the main entrance over to New York Street have to be kept on also, although no rides might be operating.))

If you feel unduly inconvenienced at the airport, even at security, write to the airline asking for reimbursement of expenses even a hotel room. I don't think it is necessary to plan on an overnight stay let alone the stopover fare fee at the connection city just because you think the delay will be very great.

If you are stranded at the airport overnight for any reason, feel free to call several if not all the hotels listed on the board near the baggage carousels listing hotels, asking first specifically for a "distressed travelers" rate and if none, their current rate. Continue rate shopping and then call back to make your choice.

Undue delay for handicapped folks may be considered discrimination. This is an incentive to put them at the front of the line if they are diverted to one of the special checkpoints, or to wheel them promptly out to the unsecured area where relatives are waiting..

More Disney hints:
http://members.aol.com/ajaynejr/disney.htm

 

[gottaluvdisney]

"""If you cannot transfer from your chair, there are very few rides that you can ride. In fact, Disney just added a new Dinosaur ride in the Animal Kingdom that is accessible only if you can transfer to a Disney manual wheelchair. When we went to WDW a couple of years ago, our son was smaller and it was easier to transfer him or to hold him on our laps or in a car seat."""

Dinosaur is a very jerky high speed ride. If you have never riden it before I would not recommend it for someone in a wheelchair. So when Disney posts that people may have to transfer to a manual chair it may not only be for the ride convenience, but for the safety of the riders.


And I am sorry that you had to go through all the security, but I think we have to look at it as a way of life now. I, too got patted down, luggage searched and swabbed for residue on a recent trip and I am a 30yr old white woman. I don't see anything wrong with it as I have nothing to hide. I even got luggage searched pre 9/11 when traveling with a friend on a portable dialysis machine.

 

[Alaska]

Thanks for the info about the Osborne Family light show. I plan to print out your post and use it when taping other light displays as well.

The ride I was referring to I think is called the Dino Spin ride. It is very similar to the Dumbo ride. It did not look particularly jerky, but I don't think it is the same ride you are talking about.

To the person who made the comment about security just being a way of life right now. You are right. Unfortunately, my son can't tolerate sitting up for 3 hours while security folks open all of the packages of his medical supplies, look in our shampoo bottles, etc. Therefore, we won't be traveling by air anytime soon. Given that air travel is the only practical means of travel from Alaska for most of the year, it is unfortunate for us. I do think targeting us for searching of our checked baggage on every leg of our trip was extreme. The poor folks who had to do the searching were very embarrassed and apologetic, so I don't think I am the only one who thought it was unreasonable. The apologies were unsolicited. We did not complain at the time the searching was occuring. I am complaining now on this site as I think it is important for someone who is thinking about sending a family member who is not of sound mind alone on a flight, to know that things may not be perfect with air travel at this time. I don't think it would be right to pretend that it was all dandy in the name of encouraging folks to fly to WDW. Flying is difficult right now, particularly if you are like our family and have to take a great deal of medical equipment and supplies and have a member in a wheelchair who has limited strength.

 

[SueM in MN]

Alaska is correct; the Dino spin and the Dinosaur ride are 2 very different rides.
Dino Spin wasn't open when we were at WDW the last time, but from what I have read, it is very similar to Dumbo. If they could make a wheelchair car for the Aladdin ride, I think they should have been able to make a wheelchair car for Dino Spin. It would obviously be easier for WDW to have a car that would fit their own manual wheelchair (no adjusting), but a lot of people can't (or in my DD's case, won't) ride in another manual wheelchair.
Dinosaur is a rough ride in a jeep-like vehicle. It is much rougher than, for example, the Safari ride, so it would be hard to adequately tie down a wheelchair in that ride, so I can see why it would not be accessible by someone who needs to stay in their wheelchair. My DD has ridden it and done fine. Someone who uses a wheelchair has to be aware that their body will be jerked around on that ride and they will be pulled off balance. If they can tolerate that, there is no reason not to ride it.
As for security at the airports, when I talked with some people at work about some of the stories like Alaska's that I have heard about, my co-workers felt that people with disabilities should be targeted for increased surveillance. Their reasoning is that no one would suspect a person with a disability to be a terrorist, so they should be suspected. All I can say is it's a pretty odd world we live in when a severly disabled little boy is screened several times, but a man with a brand new British passport traveling on a one way ticket from Europe to the US with no luggage doesn't get targeted.

 

[mamajoan]

Alaska, I am so sorry that the difficulties that you went thru at airline security exhausted your son. It sounds like you were VERY informed and prepared for your trip. JMHO but... what the hec are the security people thinking??? You are a better woman than I .. I am sure I would have lost my temper at some point. I imagine that they are COMPLETELY confused when they see a piece of medical equipment that is not run of the mill but gee whiz to put a severely disabled kid thru that much is undue torture. I understand and agree with the increased security measures taken by our Federal govt. but I don't think ANYONE believes that someone who is severly disabled needs to go thru this much... I hope your family can relive the great moments of your vacation with some nice memories.

 

[Alaska]

Thanks for the recent kind words. Unfortunately, I do not think the security folks or the airlines have any choice in the matter. I suspect that when the computer identifies a passenger for extra security checks they have to do it or face FAA fines. Given how apologetic and embarrassed both the airline and security folks were, I think that they would have made exceptions if they could have.

This is a difficult time for travelers and the travel industry. As a country we had become complacent before September 11 and after 9/11 the pendulum swung the other way. However, some of the reactionary changes in security measures are odd. For example, the security measures increased on our return trip from WDW because the Palestinians and the Israelis were bombing each other. However, my sister flew up to Alaska on the day the gentleman with the explosives in his shoe was apprehended and she did not see any change in security. As a matter of fact, she left a few days later, fully expecting to have to remove her shoes as she went through security, but they were not checking anyone's shoes.

Sue- as much as I hate to admit it, your friend's point is well-taken. Someone could fake a disability and hide explosives or firearms or knives in their equipment. However, the same thing could be said about many conditions, such as pregnancy or obesity. A person could store a bunch of things under her dress and just look like she is in her last trimester. In fact, I heard someone in airline security describe a situation in which a pregnant woman was stopped on a hunch and it turned out that she had explosives taped to her body.

By the way, given that this is a site about travel to WDW I feel compelled to make at least one comment about WDW. This is the second time we have traveled there over the Thanksgiving holiday. It is a beautiful time of year in Orlando and at WDW. The weather is very comfortable. Not extremely humid but mostly sunny and warm. The crowds are light, except on Thanksgiving Day and the day after and it is considered to be a "value" time, so the lodging is less expensive. The Christmas decorations at the parks and the hotels are not to be missed. The gingerbread cookies that are sold at the giant gingerbread house at the GF are out of this world. My personal favorite were the chocolate almond flavored gingerbread cookies.

 

[SueM in MN]

I do agree that faking a disability could be a good way for a terrorist to look innocent, and it might be fairly easy to pull off with some disabilities. There's a fine line though between checking out people who might be faking for evil purposes and harassment of someone who is actually disabled.
For a few years before 9/11, my oldest DD was singled out by the computer for extra checks. She's had her carry on searched and she's been swabbed for explosives. The security people were always very apologetic and understanding that a litle girl (she's 19 now, but was little the first time she was checked) might not understand or appreciate the checks. I also think it's important that the random checks take place, so no one knows if they might be checked.

 

[commecicommeca]

Thank you for this insightful post Alaska. It's unfortunate that some people just don't have common sense enough to recognize an obvious disablity when they see one. I know for a fact that disabled people are very much targeted because when I went to Disney in May, before September 11, it just so happened that the people going through the checkpoint in front of us were two old people, one in an airport wheelchair and another with a cane. Both of them were wanded. I have mild CP and always travel with a manual and crutches. I was wanded, my wheelchair cushions were taken apart and inspected, and my crutches were x-rayed. My mother walked right through scanner. Other than the wheelchair and crutches I don't have any other medical equipment or medicines so our carry on scanned up fine and wasn't checked. The whole process took 5 minutes, so I didn't mind and we had a good laugh about it, but what really got to me was that aside from me and the 2 senior citizens (all very high profile terrorist suspect) was wanded or scrutinized in any way. Coming back to LaGuardia from Orlando was a different story, the security there was so good that the gate people never brought my wheelchair on the plane and until the whole plane was unloaded and searched, it took a call from New York to get them to realize that the chair was still sitting right next to their desk.

I'm going to Paris this spring and I have a connection in O'Hare. I guess I'll just have to explain to them that I don't belong to the same terrorist ring as your 7 year old.