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autism

tilliet4u
Explorer C

i am wondering if southwest has a program at the tucson, az airport for preparing autistic children for a flight

4 REPLIES 4

Re: autism

bec102896
Aviator A

Hello 

 

I am not aware of a program to prepare someone with a disability for a flight. My recommendation is to show up to the airport early and talk with the gate agent and then the ops agent who takes your ticket then I would introduce the child to the FA's and captain this might help the child feel better about flying and that way the crew is aware so they can try to check on the child to see how he/she is doing and if they need anything like a drink or snack to help them. 

 

I do know for security purposes you can call the TSA ahead of time and they can help as I know that security might be frightening for the child as well. They have a Special department for that and I will try to find the phone number for that department so you could call them if you would like. 

 

I would pre board so there is extra time for getting settled and then things should go smoothly. Back In the day my brother was scared of flying so the first time we got hi. On a plane we introduced him to the crew and he felt better and then they made sure he was good throughout the flight 

 

hope all goes well

Blake 

Re: autism

CareforNOLA
Frequent Flyer A

@bec102896has some good suggestions.  Are you asking because Phoenix has a program?  If yes, I cannot vouch for effectiveness, but I noted that they have some kits for sale that might be a help.  http://www.fearlessflight.com/about/  (They are not cheap though, and because video tapes cannot provide a training simulator, you may not want to invest.)

 

Best of luck with the travels.

Re: autism

DancingDavidE
Aviator A

@tilliet4u wrote:

i am wondering if southwest has a program at the tucson, az airport for preparing autistic children for a flight


TUS isn't a very big operation for Southwest - I'd probably expand your search to airports in general to find some resources that would be helpful. It sounds more like something that might be generally applicable instead of provided by one airline?

 

For TUS:

Nonstop Destinations:

Chicago Midway
Denver
Houston Hobby (Seasonal)
Las Vegas
Los Angeles
Oakland (Sundays through June 3; resumes October 7)
San Diego

Home airport MDW, frequent visitor to MCO to see the mouse.

Re: autism

swabikedude
Explorer A

Howdy - I know that Southwest doesn't 'own' a program like this, but we have participated as an airline in some programs across the country.

 

Here is a great site to search and keep up with the updated programs throughout the US:

 

https://www.thearc.org/wingsforautism

 

I hope this helps a little bit.  Good luck.

Instagram and Twitter @swabikedude