Wheelchair user left on plane calls for review

A wheelchair user stuck on a plane for two hours because there was no one to help him disembark has called for support services to be adequately funded and not be "an afterthought".

Daryl Tavernor called for a "valued special assistance service."

Daryl Tavernor said he was trapped after arriving at Manchester Airport from Rome at 02:30 BST on 26th May.

He said once-off; he had to call the police to get past immigration, as the border desks were unmanned for over an hour.

The 33-year-old from Stoke-on-Trent said it had been "really concerning".

Mr Tavernor, who has spinal muscular atrophy, said he had expected to wait about 15 minutes to disembark from the flight, which had been delayed by three hours.

However, he said he and his carer were stuck as the plane's "visibly annoyed" captain tried to find the exceptional help staff, and when someone finally arrived at about 04:30 BST, they gave no reason for the delay.

After leaving the plane, he had to wait an additional hour at the immigration desk, as there were no border agents on duty.

He said the passenger help worker's calls to Border Force officials were "not going through", so he told him: "I'm going to have to call the police because we are trapped".

"I felt exhausted, frustrated, and I had run out of ideas," he said.

"There was absolutely no other option but to call the police."

He said Greater Manchester Police called Border Force, and within 10 minutes, five agents arrived, who said they had been "contacted by Greater Manchester Police, not the airport".

He said it was "really concerning that the airport management has no communication with Border Force, especially in situations like this".

"God forbid there was an incident as the lack of communication between welfare and security is very concerning", he said.

He added that it was the second time he had faced such issues at Manchester Airport, but it was a national issue.

Similar issues have been reported at other airports, including security editor Frank Gardner, who was left on a plane at Heathrow Airport.

Mr Tavernor said help was being "done on a budget" and "often under-resourced and undertrained".

"What I want to see happen is a valued special assistance service and not just an afterthought," he said.

"I'd like to see a minimum standard such as a period of boarding, minimum training for operators, and better equipment."

A Manchester Airport spokesperson said he was "sorry to hear that Mr Tavernor had a disappointing experience" and was working with the help provider ABM to "understand how a repeat of this might be avoided".

He said the airport, along with "airlines, baggage handlers and assistance providers", were experiencing staff shortages "due to the rapid pace at which travel has recovered from the pandemic", adding: "We are working tirelessly to address this as quickly as possible."

An ABM spokesperson said the company was examining Mr Tavernor's experience and regretted any time when its service did not meet ABM's standards.

"We are experiencing higher volumes of passengers who require special assistance than our busiest pre-pandemic peak [and] understand the inconvenience and emotional impact this may have", she added.

A Ryanair spokesperson said the company's crew "remained with this passenger and his career at all times" while waiting for over two hours for help.

The Home Office has also been contacted for comment.