Man, 68, Left Stranded After Airline Allegedly Refused to Let Him on Flight Due to Parkinson’s: ‘I Feel So Humiliated’

YOU NEED TO KNOW

• British journalist Mark Mardell was allegedly rejected from a Turkish Airlines flight due to Parkinson’s disease

• “It’s such a scary feeling when you’re so vulnerable, I almost burst into tears about five times,” the former BBC presenter said.

• The 68-year-old man also claimed he was stranded at the airport for seven hours before booking a flight home the next day via a different airline.

The British journalist, who was allegedly turned away from the Turkish Airlines flight due to Parkinson’s disease, was stuck at the airport for 7 hours.

68-year-old Mark Mardell, who returned to London from Istanbul after a week-long journey with his son, said that he was banned from boarding the plane without a letter from his GP stating that he was fit to travel.

“I feel so humiliated,” the former BBC presenter and chief political correspondent said recently Sunday Times. “It’s such a scary feeling to be so vulnerable. I almost burst into tears about five times.”

PEOPLE reached out to Turkish Airlines for comment on Sunday, Nov. 30, but did not immediately receive a response.

Parkinson’s disease is a movement disorder of the nervous system that worsens over time. Mayo Clinic. Symptoms include tremors, slow movements, poor posture and balance, loss of automatic movement, speech changes, and non-motor symptoms such as depression and anxiety.

While Mardell traveled to Istanbul on October 20 without any problems and without requesting a doctor’s note, he encountered an unexpected obstacle when requesting boarding assistance during his journey home.

“It’s a very difficult thing to admit, even to yourself, that you are disabled,” he explained to a publication. “Saying ‘I need assisted boarding, I’m disabled’ is a big thing for me… You know, it belittles you in the eyes of some people, it demeans you in their eyes.”

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“We thought you actually meant a letter from your doctor proving that you have Parkinson’s disease,” he continued. “No, apparently you can’t fly without a letter from your doctor saying there is no harm in flying.”

After a while, Mardell insisted that his 32-year-old son, Jake, board his plane while he waited for more help. During the seven hours he waited alone in one of the world’s largest airports, Mardell recalled one woman who made the experience particularly humiliating.

“There was a truly terrible woman,” he claimed. “He said, ‘No, he has Parkinson’s, you can’t take him on board.’ He started acting terribly towards another passenger in a wheelchair and yelled at them.”

“He said, ‘Look, your hands are shaking,’” he continued. “My hands are not shaking. That’s not one of my symptoms. But maybe it was because I was nervous and upset. It was very cruel. He said: ‘This is for your own good.’ So my bags were removed from the flight.

Eventually, another passenger helped Mardell get his bags, and his son booked him a hotel to spend the night. He booked a flight home with Wizz Air the following day and returned to the UK on 26 October.

It was claimed that an employee who contacted Turkish Airlines regarding the incident wished him a “speedy recovery” even though Parkinson’s disease is an incurable disease, and refunded him the entire cost of the flight he missed.

“You already feel vulnerable and you’re stumbling along… and I can’t walk anymore. I just wanted to sit down,” Mardell said of the hours she waited at the airport. “The weird thing was they said it was for your own good and then let you stagger around the airport.”

Although Mardell’s flight was operated by a “non-UK/EU carrier”, the UK Civil Aviation Authority said in a statement: “We strongly believe that everyone should have access to air travel and recognize how important it is for people to feel supported and included when they fly.”

Read the original article People