[nfbwatlk] another airline case

[Frederick Driver]

Don't know if this one has already made the rounds or not.  I don't
remember seeing it.

Yet another case of unjustified airline discrimination.  An article from
last month.

What the airline's chief executive said in reply to the charge sounds
appropriate at least.  But of course the proof is in the pudding.  Whether
they actually DO anything about it or not.

But verbally at least, his response seems a cut above the defensive,
prevaricating, reactionary and intransigent North American and British
airlines.

Rick

 [article]

Blind man barred from Dubai flight over disability

   Blind American man Zuhair Mahmoud who was rejected from his flight, in
   Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Tuesday, Oct. 5, 2010. (AP / Farhad
   Berahman) Blind American man Zuhair Mahmoud who was rejected from his
   flight, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Tuesday, Oct. 5, 2010. (AP /
   Farhad Berahman)

The Associated Press

   Date: Tuesday Oct. 5, 2010 3:26 PM ET

   DUBAI, United Arab Emirates -- A blind American traveller says he
   was stopped from getting on a flight in Dubai on Tuesday because of
   his disability -- a decision the government-run airline insists was a
mistake it regrets.

   Zuhair Mahmoud, of Arlington, Virginia, told The Associated Press he
   ran into problems when he went to check in for a 10:10 a.m. flight on
   FlyDubai to Amman, Jordan. He was planning a brief stay in the
   Jordanian capital before heading back to the United States.

   "They looked at me and said: 'Well, we can't take you. ... You're
   travelling alone,'" he recalled.

   Mahmoud protested and asked employees to check with their superiors.
   He said he was told that there was nothing they could do because it
   was airline policy not to allow a blind traveller onboard
   unaccompanied.

   "I was mad. ... I couldn't believe it," the 37-year-old information
   technology specialist said. "I tried to reason with them, but I just
   got a single cold answer."

   He left the airport and went to stay at a brother's house in Dubai
until he could catch another flight out.

   The airline doesn't dispute Mahmoud's account.

   Its chief executive apologized for the incident and said the carrier
   does not discriminate against blind passengers or others with special
   needs. FlyDubai also promised to rebook Mahmoud on another flight
   that's convenient for him and offered him a voucher for a free flight
   to make up for the mishap.

   "This morning's events were extremely unfortunate and should not have
   happened. We will conduct a full investigation to find out what went
   wrong in this situation and take all means necessary to ensure it does
   not happen again," FlyDubai CEO Ghaith al-Ghaith said in an e-mail to
   the AP.

   The discount carrier has grown quickly since it was launched by the
   Gulf city-state's government in June last year. It focuses on low-cost
   short-haul flights throughout the Middle East.

Al-Ghaith is a former executive at Dubai's flagship airline, Emirates.
   The two carriers operate as separate airlines, though both are owned
   by the emirate of Dubai and are chaired by an uncle of the sheikdom's
   ruler.

   Mahmoud said he is keeping his options open, including possible legal
   action.

   He wants the airline and UAE government regulators to take steps to
   ensure the same thing doesn't happen to others.

   "I'm probably not going to come back to Dubai ever unless I'm assured
   these sorts of things aren't going to happen anymore," he said. "The
   real test is how it's handled and how it's reacted to. Mistakes happen
   all the time. It's how you deal with them that defines who you are."


SOURCE:
http://www.ctv.ca/CTVNews/TopStories/20101005/dubai-barrs-blind-traveller-101005/