Airline leaves immobile passenger stranded for hours after they forget to load wheelchair on plane

A passenger on an American Airlines flight shared that they were stranded at the Orlando airport for almost five hours after employees forgot to load her power wheelchair on their one-way flight from Los Angeles.

Twenty-three-year-old Xavi Santiago told Insider, "The entire time, I had no idea if my chair was going to show up. If it was going to be damaged, what was going to happen? This is not a lost bag. This is my mobility. These are like my legs."

Santiago created a TikTok video detailing her harrowing travel experience and how the entire group, including their partner and friends, could not leave because of the airline's mistake. The video has since gone viral with over 260,000 views.

A report from the US Department of Transportation saw a 108% increase in complaints from flyers with disabilities. In May 2019, there were 76 complaints; in the same month, it had increased to 158.

Santiago shared that their disability had always made them wary of flying, "When I booked my flight, I booked a one-way potentially because I am very aware of airlines and how they treat disabled people. I know disabled people who have had their mobility aids broken, damaged, or lost by airlines."

Santiago also angrily recounted how the airline staff would only talk to their partner instead of facing them, "I was really freaking out because getting on the plane was such a mess. I was really worried that my chair still wasn't there. No one was explaining anything to me."

Since posting the video, Santiago said the positive feedback they received has made them feel seen and heard, "I constantly have feelings of really not being seen as a person. The only way that people will listen to us sometimes is if we are abrasive, if we are angry, if we are pushing and that's okay. "

They made the video to share that, "There is nothing wrong with taking up just as much space as able-bodied people and asking and not even asking, demanding for the support and access that we need in order to do the same things as able-bodied people, to travel, to live, to exist and to enjoy our lives. We are deserving of those things."