People with nut allergies, beware of American Airlines policy
 

<BR> <BR>I am an individual who has a severe allergy to all nuts and nut products. Not only cannot I not ingest them, but I am not able to be around them. Any airborne nut or nut product sends me immediately into anaphylactic shock. Anaphylactic shock as described in a medical dictionary is "a severe and sometimes fatal systemic reaction in a susceptible individual upon second exposure to a specific antigen after previous sensitization that is characterized especially by respiratory symptoms, fainting, itching and urticaria." This allergy is very serious and can lead to death. An Epi-pen is an auto-injector of epinephrine, which I carry with me at all time in case I experience an allergic reaction; however, this is a temporary treatment until I can get emergency medical care. <BR> <BR>Traveling for me can be hazardous due to many airlines serving nuts on flights. Prior to traveling, I always personally call the airline to make arrangements for the aircraft to remove all nuts and nut products. In the past, this has never been a problem. I flew to Beijing China on Northwest Airlines and they were more than understanding about my nut allergy. Originally, the menu for first class included a salad that with a dressing that contained walnuts. Upon my request, they changed the salad dressing. The flight crew was attentive, and made sure I had my Epi-pen in the seat pocket in front of me. I instructed a flight attendant how to use the Epi-pen should an emergency occur. Fortunately, there were no problems. <BR> <BR>I recently planned a trip from Chicago, O'Hare to London, Heathrow on American Airlines. I telephoned American Airlines to explain my allergy situation and make arrangements for there not to be any nuts served on my flight. Naturally I was concerned, because this was an international flight with nowhere to land to seek emergency medical attention in case I experienced an allergic reaction. The American Airlines service representative informed me that they serve mixed nuts in the first and business classes. I went on further to explain that I cannot not eat nor be around any nut product. The representative told me that they to do not make any exceptions for people with nut allergies because they "advertise" to their passengers that they will receive mixed nuts. In order for me to travel on American, I had to have a written authorization from my doctor. Of course my doctor did not sign authorization because traveling with nuts on my flight was out of the question. <BR> <BR>I was shocked by American Airlines lack of customer service and care for human beings. I contacted several other airlines, and they all indicated to me that they would accommodate me as much as they possibly could. I was very much looking forward to my vacation, but since the risk was so high, I had to cancel my trip. My ticket will be refunded, however I have to go through a process, which I think, is ridiculous considering what I have already gone through. <BR> <BR>It seems to me that the airlines have enough competition through airfare wars, and after a disastrous last year for American, you would think that they would do anything within reason to please a passenger. I believe that my request was within reason and not a difficult one to accomplish. Peanut allergies and nut allergies in general are not that uncommon. Many people suffer from this allergy and most don't know the severity of it. <BR> <BR>I do know one thing, neither I nor any of my family members will ever fly American Airlines. I hope others with this allergy are now aware of American's inflexible and absurd policy. <BR>

Sarah- <BR>Sounds like someone at American needs to learn the meaning of "customer service". Your request seems like a simple one to me; besides, I can't imagine that people choose to fly AA because they saw an ad touting service of mixed nuts. <BR> <BR>I have a good friend who has a similar allergy so I can understand the severity of your situation. I will certainly pass this info on to her.

That is unbelievable. I know several people with nut allergies. I will pass this information on to them. Your experience with American leads one to conclude they have little regard for the people they serve.

I didn't know any airlines even served nuts anymore as a result of these kinds of allergies in the first place- is American totally clueless?? <BR>I too will pass you story on to an acquaintance who has a peanut allergy.

So the majority of people who don't have peanut allergies have to do without because of one person? That is what sounds outrageous and unreasonable to me.

It is unfortunate in this day of companies striving for world class customer service that a company would refuse a simple, one-time, one flight request. Check out the customer service of Dell. Compare that to American Airlines. American Airlines is way out of step with the rest of the business world. As for Tom, he sounds like an insensitive American Airlines employee. Tom, respond to this and I will send you a bag of nuts to make up for the ones that you might not get to save someone else's life. Hard to believe others insensitivities and lack of regard for their fellow man. Tom, keep your nuts, as you are nuts!

I agree with Peter and the other responses. My boyfriend suffers from this allergy and it's a matter of life or death. Clearly Tom, you have never seen anyone go into anaphylactic shock. Your ignorance and disregard for human lives says a lot about you. You must work for American.

I hate to admit this, but I tend to side with Tom on this issue. I too, have a very severe allergy to nuts. Being anywhere near them causes me to have an asthma attack. However, I think it is unfair to criticize an airline for refusing to change its menu. I think it is a lot to ask of such an airline. Personally, I would simply look to fly the airlines that DO accomodate my needs and fly them. I do not think American should have to buckle to every need of a passenger. What if someone brought nuts on board? Is American supposed to tell that person he cannot eat his own food? I think it's unrealistic. Just my two cents. <BR> <BR>Ryan

Sarah, thank you for this post. In the past, I have brought on planes trail mix containing nuts. I never gave it a moment's thought. However, I now will refrain from doing so now that you have posted such an informative message. Tom and Ryan, get a life. Bags of nuts really aren't that important in the grand scheme of things.

Well Ryan, I am sorry you feel that way. Actually, every other airline I contacted was more than willing to try to accomodate me. Interestingly enough, I had a supervisor from American Airlines say to me, "We have had people with much worse allergies than you fly on our airlines." Oh really? Hmmm... I did not know that supervisors in the Special Services department are required to have a medical degree and furthermore, how could one possibly diagnose an individual over the telephone? Life or death, gee could that be ANY worse of an allergy? And trust me, I flying American is out of the question, I value my life too much.

Oh and Tom, I have nothing to say about your comment. It seems to me that you are outrageous and unreasonable. Enough said.

As an asthmatic and as someone who knows people with analphylatic allergies, I have empathy for Sarah. But I side with fellow allergy suffer Ryan. Instead of spending time excoriating American, spend your money with carriers that will meet your needs and offer nut-free flights. Vote with your wallet. If American does not get the message, it is their loss. <BR> <BR>I understand that losing the opportunity for unfettered travel is upsetting. And, having been on the short edge of several customer service dealings with various organizations, I can also understand your anger, but I cannot agree with your unstated assumption that unfettered travel on one's own terms is a non-negotiable right. <BR> <BR>To give you an example: my mother is frail, requires a wheelchair, and is of dimished cognitive capacity because of various medical conditions. Would it be outrageous of the airline to refuse my demand that my mother be given a free escort for a trip, or would it be outrageous of me to make such a demand? <BR> <BR>I think it would be the latter. <BR> <BR>I guess what one considers outrageous depends on one's definition of reasonable accommodation

Koop- <BR>While I see your point in the above post, I must point out that the example of your mother is not equivalent to Sarah's situation- in your scenario, you are asking the airline to provide a free escort (which also means a free seat on the flight, no?). I agree wholeheartedly that this is not a feasible request. Sarah is simply asking that they not serve a bag of, say, pretzels instead of nuts in 1st class for one flight. I still maintain that this is a simple request, and one which, especially considering the increasingly competitive climate of the airline industry, should have been granted.

I'm just wondering whether or not everybody's allergies are going to be addressed, and at what point do we just make airplanes completely sterile vessles? Scrub everyone down, and dress them in sterile cover-ups to sit in a stainless steel comfort-less plane? <BR>A close friend of mine has dramatic enviromental illness. She sees this as something SHE must deal with and that means she can't be trapped in small places like planes. She doesn't expect everyone in the world to accomodate her, however simple it may be. It is her illness, her responsibility.

Methinks thou dost take thyselves a little too seriously. Lighten up!

I think Sarah is very selfish.

Bustanut, I think that you're ignorant. Living under a rock, are you?

In my experience, the very people who criticize those who have special needs for being selfish are the ones who think rules don't apply to them anyway -- a really childish, "you're not the boss of me" attitude. At some point in your life, you will be different or have a special need -- you'll have an emergency, you'll break a leg or develop some other disability, you'll just plain get OLD. All very well to say piously that you wouldn't expect others to adjust for you, but look at yourself, you already do!

Interesting points on both sides, and I don't think it helps to berate those who disagree with Sarah as merely selfish. However, having thought about it for a bit, I am inclined to agree with Sarah. The reason is that if ALL airlines refused her request, she would be unable to fly at all, but the accomodation is really not that difficult. Pretzels, rice crackers and so on, are supplied by the same companies that supply the nuts, and it is just a minor flexibility to make the switch. I am inclined to think that refusing to the request would sail pretty close to the wind of illegal disability discrimination in my country (Australia) but I am no lawyer, so this is merely a guess. On the other hand, the "disabled mother" situation is a little different if it means supplying a staff member to personally accompany the passenger for the whole flight. This would cost, potentially, more than the revenue earned on the ticket. <BR> <BR>Having said that, many airlines will offer special assistance at little or no cost for people with disabilities, similar in practice to the way they assist "unaccompanied minors", eg, one of the cabin takes special care of the person, assisting with meals, travel documents dis/embarkation and so on.

We just came back from Europe on Delta, and they served snack mixes with peanuts in them.......

Many of my friends work for American Airlines. They tell me the gist of American's policy on nut allergies is something to the effect of....if a passenger notifies the airline in advance of their nut allergy, they will remove nuts from the flight and replace them with a comparable food item. However, if a passenger brings their own nuts, the employees do not have authority to confiscate the passengers' private supply of nuts.

Hi Rose, <BR>I did try to make arrangements way ahead of time with Amerian Airlines. They refused my request five days prior to my departure date due to a series of errors on their part. There were errors made as far as the Special Services department not contacting me in a timely manner. Somehow a customer service rep did not "put my request in the correct computer prompt" not once, but twice, and therefore it did not reach the Special Servies department. I had to make several calls to American to try to arrange for a nut free flight because I had not heard from their Special Servies department. Normally when I fly, I purchase the ticket, request the nut free flight and within a few days I hear from the airlines. Unfortunately American did not do this. I have since received a letter from them stating that they will be retraining their customer service reps so that when a special request is made by a passenger, it will be sent to the Special Servies department. They also apoligized for the very poor customer service I received.I was glad to hear this and I did appreciate their response to my letter even though it doesn't change the fact that I can't fly their airlines. <BR> <BR>I have their policy in writing stating that they will not accomodate passengers with nut allergies. Luckily Northwest Airlines is more than accomodating. If you know of something different, please let me know.

Sarah, can you clarify something. Are you buying a coach ticket and requesting that the entire plane be nut free? <BR> <BR>If so, I can understand why someone paying upwards of $7000 a ticket might have a problem with the airline seving rice cakes or pretzels. <BR> <BR>Does the whole plane have to be nut free or just your surrounding area? With many airlines dropping or reducing food service, more people are bringing their own food on board. If someone brings a trail mix with them as their only food, are you advocating that they not be allowed to eat it-or not eat it next to you? <BR> <BR>While I can appreciate the severity of your situation, I think, practically speaking, it would be close to impossible to get several hundred people, on a large plane, to keep them from eating fodd they brought on board.

I've been using the Internet a lot lately, as opposed to calling the airlines' 800 number, to check seat availability, fares, etc. <BR> <BR>Of the several web sites I've been on, I have not seen one which allows the prospective passenger to specify a nut-free flight or seating area, but I wasn't really paying attention to that particular type of request . . . it seems like it would be easy enough to set up, wouldn't it? Any programmers out there?

Curious, <BR>Northwest Airlines removes all nut and nut products off of the aircraft for me, so it's not an impossibility. (Plus there are LOTS of people with this allergy) I was in London a few weeks ago and was amazed at how educated the English are in regards to nut allergies. Before boarding the aircraft in Gatwick, a very nice announcment was made several times in regards to my allergy. The English took it seriously as the Americans laughed. <BR> <BR>And Brett one would think so! That would be a dream come true for me! <BR>

Sarah, <BR> <BR>I think you should be very happy you have found at least one airline willing to put your needs above everyone else's on board the airplane. While I understand your allergy is potentially life threatening, to demand and expect every air carrier bend to your serious, but yet distruptive, request is asking too much. Additionally, if you were buying a international first class ticket, their response may have been different. <BR> <BR>Take advantage of Northwest's accomodation, but don't berate American for choosing to provide a full service to the majority of its customers. They have a right to provide the service they would like to, you have the right to choose another carrier. <BR> <BR>PS What do you do if someone brings on their own nuts?

Sarah, get a fucking life!

I am a person who has a severe reaction to fucking losers like Sarah. <BR> <BR>If I complain, will the airlines be willing to kick her sorry ass off of any plane that I am on? <BR> <BR>Thanks

Poopy and Tom if you must comment, please refrain from your inappropriate language. Nobody wants to read that crap. You two are the ones who need to get lives. Speaking of losers...

In talking to one of the guards who works in my office building, I learned that she has severe nut allergies too. She said it really limits the amount of processed foods she can eat. <BR> <BR>She told me about a dinner party she was invited to. She had told the hostess she was severly allergic to nuts and could not safely eat them. The hostess assured her there would be no nuts in her dinner, but apparantly she ground up some nuts and put them in something . . anyway, when the hostess came to visit her in the hospital the next day, she said "Oh, I just figured that, if you couldn't see them, they would't hurt you." So I guess that's the mentality these folks are dealing with. <BR> <BR>To my surprise, she told me that peanuts are not really a nut, and thus ok for her. She also said some varieties are worse than others, and that walnuts are about the worst for her; one walnut could literally kill her. <BR> <BR>Sarah: Can you eat peanuts safely?

Looks like this is a little out of hand. There really is no need to threaten and berate, especially if one is willing to make a cowardly post and not leave a legitimate email address. Those folks should just be ignored. The issue is simple. Sarah apparantly has a big problem with nuts; excluding the ones that disagree with her. All she has is a simple request that a product, with a reasonable substitute, be eliminated from a flight to ensure safe passage. Does not seem to be tough to me. As a society, we make special accomodations for circumstances every day. Check out handicap parking spots, public bathrooms and sidewalks. This is not different. In fact, it is even a smaller request and easier to implement. I know that there ARE people that can acutally die from very minor contact with nuts. This is not to be taken lightly. I would like to believe that any reasonable person would not mind going without a bag a bad peanuts for one flight knowing that it would help someone else. Does American Airlines have to comply with this request? Absolutely not. "Should they" is the real question. In my humble opinion, accomodating this is morally correct, good for business and good for Sarah. And, we all could be spending our time feeling good that we helped someone else out and did not waste our time on things like this. Have a great day and I hope that none of you have to endure a severe allergy like Sarah suffers.

I think this entire discussion is just plain (or salted) silly. I think we should see if one of these people really does die if they are around nuts before we do something drastic like banning nuts from airplanes. I'd say if oh, 7 out of 10 people die after I rub my nuts on them then I will agree with the banning. Otherwise...bring on the nuts!

Nutty: <BR>I thought you had gone away--Fatty Mc Fatty--Malboro Mc Malboro--you are really a moron!

Dear Mr. Geez: <BR> <BR>I tried to email you at [email protected] idiot but it bounced back. Care to explain?

<BR>Nutty: <BR>Just look in the mirror you'll see you are an idiot!

I don't get it.

<BR>No, I guess you wouldn't.

For those suffering from this allergy, Foodallergy.org is a very informative site. <BR> <BR>And Geez, ignore Nutty as he/she clearly is not worth the time of day.

I think its unfair for the rest of the passengers or majority to be deprived of such delicious, wholesome, and nurishing food products such as airline peanuts for a select few individuals. I feel bad that those who suffer from allergies need special care however we don't see doctors going around and cleaning everyone's air for people who have lower immune systems or police vehicles clearing the way for senile drivers. my point is the majority should rule and if the majority is a bunch of nut loving passengers then I say let them eat nuts and put the allergic one in a bubble. in coach.

Sarah: <BR> <BR>Sorry to hear about your allergy, but I'm afraid that I fall on the side of those who feel that your demands are too unrealistic. <BR> <BR>Just as you have a severe allergic reaction to nut products, there are people who have similar reactions to perfumes, wool, and a host of other items. Should we start demanding that the airlines make special accommodations for them, as well? I think that unfortunately, the burden for protecting yourself from nut products rests on your shoulders. Perhaps you should carry a mask to filter out the dangerous particles? As others here have mentioned, what would you do if someone brought their own food containing nuts with them? <BR> <BR>I just think that there needs to be a line drawn somewhere. We are becoming a society that DEMANDS that others make special accommodations for them, when we need to become a society of people who figures out ways of how they can adjust to the mainstream polulation WITHOUT demanding unreasonable accommodations. <BR> <BR>Best of luck to you in coping with your condition.