Airline advice
 

My 84 year old mother-in-law just flew to SFO from the east coast. when they changed planes in Atlanta and she learned that the walk to the new gate was really long, she requested a wheelchair and the gate agent said "no problem". the wheelchair took 30 mins to arrive and she missed her connecting flight. They put her on standby for the next 2 flights, which were full. She finally reached SFO 4 hours late at 11 pm our time.

Do you think I would be out of line to complain to the airline? Have any of you ever had something like that occur?

Sorry, but I think you would have a complaint only if you had requested the wheelchair in advance. I know that 30 minutes seems like forever, especially when you have a tight connection, but there are only a certain number of the chairs (and attendants to staff them): Just like planes they get booked solid, and apparently this was a very busy travel time. Your poor MIL must have been frustrated and exhausted, but frankly there's a very good chance that the airline/airport was doing their very best for her.

Just curious . . . is the airline responsible, or the airport?

As I stated in an earlier post, Atlanta Hartsfield Airport is so huge, the minimum time between flights should be an hour. Always request a wheelchair ahead of time.

I don't think it is the airline nor the airports fault. I think your MIL should have requested the wheelchair ahead of time.

Unfortunately, many elder folks are not aware of or do not take advantage of the WWW!

Nowadays, when planning travel, the WWW has enormous resources and advantages, including travel forums such as this one.

Last year, when planning a trip to Hyde Park, NY, and checking on the web to ensure that the sights would be open Columbus Day, I stumbled upon the Parks website where you could book timed tickets in advance in a "package", for a reduced price even, which I did. I was more than a little distressed when, upon picking up our tickets, there were many, many seniors who had driven from all over only to find that all four sights were completely booked for the entire day at 9AM and they didn't have a chance of admittance.

If your mother-in-law booked her flights with a travel agent, the travel agent, depending upon the connecting time (or even not), should have arranged for a wheel chair based upon the size of the airport and time between flights and mother-in-law's age. Or, if a family member booked the flights for her, they should have been savvy enough to investigate the connection contingencies.

Those of us who understand the wonders of the WWW would check their tickets/itineraries, visit the website of the airport, and make any necessary arrangements. In addition to wheelchairs, there are those golf carts to transport folks from here to there.

While it is not unrealistic to expect the airlines or the airport personnel to "take care" of you, fact is that you must take care of yourself as well.

It would surely not be out of line to complain. But, I can't imagine any value whatsoever in taking the time and effort to "complain" to anyone now. How would that help?

No doubt your mother-in-law has long passed the "Well, live and learn..." realization of life.