NEWS YOU NEED TO KNOW 4


Jet2 staff praised for care shown to autistic customer


Harry Kemble harry.kemble@travelweekly.co.uk


A mum has praised Jet2 staff for the care they gave her autistic son after he had “a meltdown” when prevented from boarding a Ryanair flight.


Helen Wakefield claims


Ryanair demanded hand luggage payment when her 15-year-old son Leo, who has a mental age of three, tried to board a flight from Alicante, Spain, with a toy doll. She said Ryanair staff showed no understanding of her son’s


disorder by touching him during the dispute, causing him distress. Carer Laura Wilburn, who was


travelling with Leo, said he was sedated by Spanish authorities and placed in a wheelchair. “Leo has travelled on planes


since he was three and there has not been a significant incident,” said Wakefield. “This situation has been horrendous.”


She added that Jet2 staff showed “compassion, knowledge and care” by reassuring Leo as Wilburn bought the pair new air tickets, and staying with him until boarding. Wakefield added: “As he was so


frightened, they spent time trying to calm and reassure him.” A picture of Leo chatting with Jet2 cabin crew has been shared on Facebook 80,000 times since Wakefield posted it on Saturday. Jet2 cabin crew receive training


in dealing with passengers with hidden disabilities. Wakefield said she would never


fly with Ryanair again, claiming staff “showed ignorance and a lack of awareness”.


A photo of Leo with Jet2 cabin crew has


been shared 80,000 times A Ryanair spokeswoman denied


Leo and his carer were prevented from boarding and claimed Wilburn made the decision not to fly at passport control, where Leo became “agitated” before being taken to the airport medical assistance team. “These two passengers did not


arrive at the boarding gate, and therefore, they were not ‘denied boarding’,” she said. “Neither were they charged for any hand luggage.”


5 STORIES HOT


5 Sri Lanka: trade acts on FCO advice Benjamin Coren


benjamin.coren@ travelweekly.co.uk


Operators and agents have been cancelling trips and rebooking customers travelling to Sri Lanka since the Foreign Office warned against travel to the country – but have been urged to do so only “if they have to”.


The FCO advised against all but essential travel to Sri Lanka four days after the Easter Sunday blasts that killed more than 250 people.


Following the advice, Jean-Marc Flambert, former director of tourism for the Sri Lankan tourist board, urged the trade to cancel or change bookings only for the next two weeks. “Try to hold on before you cancel,” he said. Tui sent an aircraft to fly all its


customers in Sri Lanka back to the UK on Saturday, and is refunding those due to travel before May 12. Travel 2 and Gold Medal,


which had 200 forward bookings between them, moved customers on to their next destination or back to the UK “where possible”.


6travelweekly.co.uk2 May 2019


“If they had felt threatened or scared, they would’ve wanted to have come back”


Kuoni said customers can amend bookings for travel up to May 21, while If Only is refunding customers travelling up to July 31. G Adventures has no Sri


Lanka departures until June 23. Travellers who have forward bookings can defer their tour or switch to an alternative


destination with no change fee. Five UK operators were due to go on a Sri Lanka Collection fam trip this Friday, but it was cancelled following the FCO update. John Warr, deputy managing


director at Wendy Wu Tours, was in Bentota, south Sri Lanka, with his family during the attacks. He said no Wendy Wu passengers in Sri Lanka took up the option to return to the UK, adding: “If they had felt threatened or scared, they would’ve


wanted to have come back.” › Read John Warr’s full account at travelweekly.co.uk


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