[nabs-l] Flying with a Cane

[Arielle Silverman]

Hi all,
Since I travel to visit family a lot, and attend NFB and psychology
meetings on a regular basis, I have become a very frequent flyer. Over
the past two years I flew, on average, once a month and almost all
those flights were solo. I have been flying alone for several years
and have never had any serious problems with airline officials beyond
the nuisance of being asked repeatedly if I need assistance. Although
independent air travel used to be rough, I do believe that things have
gotten much better with the passage of the 1986 Air Carrier Access
Act.
In security I do place my cane on the X-ray belt along with my
luggage, shoes and laptop. A security official guides me by voice,
hand or both so I can get through the detector without bumping into
it. I then retrieve my cane on the other side with my belongings and
don't think much of it. The distance I have to walk without my cane is
very minimal.
Like others have said I will insist on keeping my cane during the
flight, however, for the simple reason that should I need to evacuate
the plane, I need to have my cane with me and I will not have time to
try to find it in the overhead bin. If I am traveling with a folding
cane I will fold it up and stash it under the seat in front of me. If
I am using a straight cane I lay it on the floor between the window
seat and the window, running parallel to the window. If I don't have a
window seat and someone is already seated there when I board, I simply
ask this passenger to do this for me. This has never caused any
problems. It's important to remember that no matter what a flight
attendant might tell you, you have a legal right to place your cane
next to the window. You also have a legal right to refuse any
assistance offered to you at the airport, including escorts,
wheelchairs, and pre-boarding. I think there was only one time when I
actually had to remind an airport official about this
I have navigated airports throughout the country without an official
escort and have done so for the past five years with only one
exception (when I was flying back from Australia and had limited time
to make a connection). Bear in mind, I am not a stellar traveler, and
I started navigating airports on my own before I had good travel
training. The interior of an airport is a safe place to travel
independently even if you have little travel experience because there
are so many people from whom to gather information. I have posted
before on this list about techniques I use in the airport and I'd be
happy to correspond with anyone privately if you want to know more
detail about how I do it or have specific questions.
Best,
Arielle