Flying From England To Australia Options

[Bill Fox]

Does anyone know if there are any Airlines which allow paraplegics to fly from England to Australia alone? Also if there are any problems likely to be accounted along the way? Thanks in advance.

[wbalenov]

Hi Bill,

I have travelled all over the world, alone on planes and have never encountered a problem.

BA, Qantas, KLM, Air NZ have never provided obstacles.

Only going to the washroom can be a bother. Some will help you, some will not. Best to ask in advance, or hold it in, and make a stopover somewhere interesting.

Hope this helps!

Cheers...Walt!

[Bill Fox]

Hi Bill,

I have travelled all over the world, alone on planes and have never encountered a problem.

BA, Qantas, KLM, Air NZ have never provided obstacles.

Only going to the washroom can be a bother. Some will help you, some will not. Best to ask in advance, or hold it in, and make a stopover somewhere interesting.

Hope this helps!

Cheers...Walt!

Thanks Walt. Sounds encouraging. From enquiries so far, Singapore Airlines sounds the most likely/helpful. Also trying Cathay Pacific. It sounds from a travel agent I spoke to that Singapore will transfer you from your seat to the toilet in an aisle chair to empty your bag, but my friend doesn't think these aisle chairs would be suitable. Also he has doubts about getting lifted from the chair to his seat and back by cabin staff (says you need the strong ground crew) so he's thinking he'll have to stay in his airline seat the whole trip and just not drink as much. But you are supposed to keep your fluids up when flying so I'm not sure on the wisdom of his idea there.
What happens with the stopovers? Not the overnight type. Just when the plane lands, for example in Singapore, for a few hours. I got the impression from the travel agent you are supposed to have someone you know there to meet you and get you back to the flight but that doesn't make sense to me (or my mate). We reckon he could fend for himself easy enough.

[DaveP]

We flew to Aus with Emirates via Dubai - the best airline I've ever flown with. I don't know if they'll let you fly alone though, but certainly worth enquiring.

[McTavish]

Hi Bill, was speaking to Singapore Airlines here in Ireland, they like you to have a companion with you but seemed to have no problem about the transferring from seat to ailse chair etc. Good luck in whatever you decide.

[A22]

Does anyone know if there are any Airlines which allow paraplegics to fly from England to Australia alone? Also if there are any problems likely to be accounted along the way? Thanks in advance.

Hey there,

I have recently made the reverse trip, flying from Australia to London. I flew with Etihad Airways, and they were great. Although I had someone with, they will no doubt allow you to travel on your own. In fact, I know from Australia, they can't refuse you, however I don't know if it works the same the other way.
I did run into a couple of issues along the way. Firstly, I suggest taking a medical certificate with you. I had one of my refuel stops in Abu Dhabi, so had about an hour in the air port. When reboarding the plane, I was asked for a medical certificate before they would allow me on, and give any assistance up the stairs. I didn't have one but was finally able to convince them.

Secondly, as usual, the bathroom issue. I overcame this by simply peeing in a bottle under a blanket in the seat. The toilets are not very easyily accessed, and have next to no room inside. However, make sure you empty the bottle before trying to reboard - other wise you will be faced with our dilemma of being told to drink it! (We got to empty it after all, don't worry!)

It is a long flight, about 24 hours, so make sure you take your cushion, and do all the pressure reflief you need. If you need any advice on Australia let me know. Have a fantastic time! You'll love it!!

Cheers
Amber

[codakitty]

Hey there,

I have recently made the reverse trip, flying from Australia to London. I flew with Etihad Airways, and they were great. Although I had someone with, they will no doubt allow you to travel on your own. In fact, I know from Australia, they can't refuse you, however I don't know if it works the same the other way.
I did run into a couple of issues along the way. Firstly, I suggest taking a medical certificate with you. I had one of my refuel stops in Abu Dhabi, so had about an hour in the air port. When reboarding the plane, I was asked for a medical certificate before they would allow me on, and give any assistance up the stairs. I didn't have one but was finally able to convince them.

Secondly, as usual, the bathroom issue. I overcame this by simply peeing in a bottle under a blanket in the seat. The toilets are not very easyily accessed, and have next to no room inside. However, make sure you empty the bottle before trying to reboard - other wise you will be faced with our dilemma of being told to drink it! (We got to empty it after all, don't worry!)

It is a long flight, about 24 hours, so make sure you take your cushion, and do all the pressure reflief you need. If you need any advice on Australia let me know. Have a fantastic time! You'll love it!!

Cheers
Amber

hi amber,

i can't tell where you're from but i'm looking for information about flying to sydney from denver, colorado. a medical certificate stating that i am indeed, a t-6 paraplegic since 1980 and see no walking about in my immediate future? that kind of medical certificate? is there a special form or can it just be a letter from my doctor saying the same thing? i have no intention of stopping in abu dhabi but you never know. i believe i can leave from denver, go to LAX and then to sydney, similar return route.

the peeing thing is a big question in my mind--i will be flying alone, and i was under the impression that a flight attendant would empty the urinal for me. is this not so? do i have to take a glass/plastic bottle with a screw-on lid with me? i know it's a 22-24 hour flight, and i would probably be more likely to fill a 2 liter milk jug in that amount of time. i currently use IC but i would have to put in an indwelling foley for this flight because i have had horrible sacral skin issues and i never use public restrooms any more. since i can't take a padded toilet seat with me, it's the next best solution. plus, i hate to p my pants in public. people sort of frown on that. but, if i have to do my business under a blanket and then surreptitiously smuggle urine off the plane to empty it, i can do that.

also, what would you say is the most accessible hotel in sydney, or what is the best way for me to go about finding out which one is? i will be staying in sydney maybe a week, and 7 hours away for the duration. i expect to have to do a lot of improvisation in the second place because it's small, but i would like to drag along as little equipment with me as possible. i am already planning on taking at least 2 rohos with me (my quatro and a pac-it i use in the shower) but might i need more? i'm thinking that in regular seating i won't be able to recline at all, so i've resigned myself to being fairly uncomfortable during the flight.