I’m part of a disability campaign group called Trailblazers, a sub group of the Muscular Dystrophy Campaign. Two years ago the group carried out an investigation into the accessibility issues faced by disabled passengers when travelling. One of the main issues resonated deeply with my own situation: the inability to access planes.
My own wheelchair has been specifically designed to suit my posture to create as much comfort as possible. This means that it is impossible for me to sit in a standard airline seat, so travelling by plane is out of the question. Reading the information gathered by Trailblazers, I discovered that I was not alone in this dilemma. So I decided to form a campaign to encourage the aviation industry to research methods that would allow wheelchairs to be taken on board planes and fitted with restraints to secure the chair in place.
The main focus of the campaign so far has been contacting airlines, airline safety regulators, MPs, and engineers to discover why nothing has been or is being done. After being given a lot of valuable information, I have learnt that part of the problem has been that there is confusion as to whose responsibility it is to fund and implement the research required to reach a solution.