Originally Posted by
Piltdown Man
Handling PRM’s is a bloody complicated affair. I wish it was simpler and like the PRM’s, I wish the process were quicker. And in most cases, the solution will not be achieved with extra cash. The problem is the aircraft itself. With a single aisle aircraft and only one or two doors available it is very difficult to board/disembark more than one person at a time. [...]
With respect, this is not the issue. Having experienced the same problem the OP describes last year I suspect Heathrow has a serious problem handling disabled passengers (apologies, I don't know what a PRM is). The issue is having wheelchairs and staff available on the jetbridge. In our experience last year, there were six or seven passengers requiring wheelchairs from the aircraft to the buggy in terminal 5. We were kept on the plane for a good 45 minutes as they didn't turn up, requiring the flight attendants to stay on board with us as well. This was after a long flight from Seattle.
In the end, because the airport looked as though they would never send the wheelchairs, the cabin crew asked if we would wait onboard or walk a fair distance to where we could get on a buggy. We chose the latter as we were under time constraints, but it was unpleasantly painful. We weren't forced, the crew was marvelous, but they and we were getting pissed off and very impatient.
For some reason, I have never experienced this problem in the US, it seems specific to Heathrow. The only difference I'm aware of is that in the US it's the airline that is responsible for providing wheelchairs rather than the airport. And just to make it clear, I asked for disabled assistance when I booked the flights several months beforehand, it wasn't a last minute thing.