For Wheelchair Users, Air Travel Can Be a Nightmare—But It Doesn’t Have to Be
Illustration by Terri Po
I tend to steel myself for the experience of getting from a curb to my airline seat, regardless of how crowded the airport may be or how long the flight is. My parents met in the travel industry and I have a multicultural family based throughout the world, so it isn’t the overall environment that gives me pause—in fact, ever since I was a kid I knew how to pack and progress through a security line efficiently.
Bracing myself has to do with the fact that I have cerebral palsy, which mostly affects my legs. Because I can’t walk for long distances without pain, I use wheelchairs to make airports more manageable. In these instances, my disability is a thing to be managed by a string of strangers, and I’m tasked with confronting hurdles that are never easy to predict.
