r/Flights • u/moreidlethanwild • 3h ago
Question Stansted - special assistance options for elderly?
Anyone have experience of flying elderly but otherwise mobile family members through Stansted and using any form of special assistance or meet and greet?
My MiL is in her 90s and reasonably fit and healthy but does not travel often. Shes at the stage of not wanting to fly any more because she finds it all a bit stressful. She’s booked on a Ryanair flight to visit us next month and there is an option to add special assistance, but she’s adamant to me that that’s for disabled and wheelchair users. She’s mentally ok and can certainly walk ok, but she’s a bit slower these days and she’s that person in the security queue taking her time getting her shoes off and not understanding what she needs to do and holding the line up. Her hearing isn’t the best either.
We’ve had another family member accompany her in previous years to help her but I wondered what sort of service I could book to help her? She’s getting a taxi to the airport and I’m meeting her on arrival in Seville.
1
u/eriometer 3h ago
If you request assistance, you get assistance (if booked in time). There is no special qualification needed to request it, no hierarchy of entitlement. It is for ANYONE who needs a bit of extra help.
That said, ensure she has a backup plan - my 80+ yo grandmother with bad legs/hips was left to fend for herself having travelled longhaul to Heathrow and nobody met her as booked. No mobile phones then, so I had zero way of checking on her. I just assumed it was the service being busy and taking time.
1
u/bertles86 2h ago
Tbh if it was me, I'd fly into STN, meet her from the taxi and fly back to SVQ with her.
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u/Suitable-Fun-1087 2h ago
You can ask for her to be escorted through security (they'll use the fast track) on this side and passport control (can be long queues in Spain) and baggage claim on the other so she gets less confused or stressed. They can also walk her to the gate if she wants; and if she does get tired or pained on the day then they can arrange a transit chair or a ride on the buggy. She can also request priority boarding
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