BBC journalist Frank Gardner has criticised an airline after he was forced to “crawl on the floor” to reach a plane toilet because of a lack of onboard wheelchairs.
The security correspondent for BBC News, who was paralysed in 2004 after being shot by al Qaida gunmen, said his experience on the LOT Polish Airlines flight was “degrading” and “physically deeply uncomfortable”.
Mr Gardner added that it was “humiliating” to have to “shuffle along the floor” in his suit on the flight from Warsaw to London on Monday.
LOT, the flag carrier of Poland, said it was “deeply sorry” for Mr Gardner’s “distressing experience”.
It added that onboard wheelchairs were not yet available on its short-haul fleet “due to limited space”, but it was “testing solutions” to equip the aircraft “in the near future”.
Mr Gardner said the lack of such devices was “unacceptable for disabled passengers”, adding that they could “easily fold up to fit into a cupboard or an overhead locker”.
The journalist said it was “shameful” that disabled passengers “should still be so discriminated against in this way”.
In a BBC News article discussing his experience, Mr Gardner wrote: “On a flight from Warsaw back to London on Monday I had to crawl on the floor of the plane in order to reach the toilet.
“My experience onboard the flight was both physically deeply uncomfortable and also, of course, quite degrading.
“This is 2024, not 1970, and I find it extraordinary that an airline is allowed to fly in and out of British airports with a policy that effectively says ‘if you can’t walk, you can’t go to the toilet on our planes’.”
Mr Gardner said the cabin staff on the flight were “fantastic” and “as helpful as they could be”, adding that they encouraged him to complain “as they could see how wrong it was”.
In a statement, LOT Polish Airlines said: “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.
“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.”
The airline added: “We are committed to improving our services to ensure all passengers have a comfortable and dignified travel experience.”
