BBC correspondent Frank Gardner found himself stuck in an airplane in Gatwick for an hour after his wheelchair assistant failed to show up. Gardner was paralyzed after being shot six times by Al-Qaida sympathizers back in 2004, and is unable to walk without a frame or wheelchair.
The reporter expressed his frustration on Twitter and called the airport's and airline's inability to get disabled passengers off their airplanes "inexcusable". He later took a photo of the airbridge that could have been used to help get him off the plane, but it was apparently not in the "airline's policy", according to the reporter.
Gardner claims it took nearly an hour of constantly calling OCS Assist before he was finally helped off the plane. He later tweeted that he was still "fuming" even after he had gotten off the jet. He followed up with another tweet telling his followers that OCS Assist, Gatwick Airport, and EasyJet were all looking into his complaint, but also pointed out that based on EU regulations it would be the airport's responsibility to provide passengers with a safe way of exiting the aircraft.
EasyJet later apologized to the reporter through Twitter saying they were sorry about the delay of the airport special assistance provider. The airline also issued a statement sent to the Daily Mail apologizing for the inconvenience caused to Mr. Gardner and saying cabin crew were with him throughout the entire ordeal.
It has been more than 12 years since Gardner was shot multiple times by Al-Qaida sympathizers in Saudi Arabia. His colleague, cameraman Simon Cumbers, was killed in the attack. The bullets missed most of Frank's vital organs, but his spinal nerves were badly damaged, thus leaving his legs partially paralyzed.
He returned to work as a broadcaster after more than 14 operations and seven months of physical rehabilitation. He was later awarded an OBE for his services towards journalism in 2005 during the Queen's birthday.
This article is copyrighted by Travelers Today, the travel news leader
