According to an article by ABC Australia, a student by the name of Isabella Beale has called out the national carrier of Singapore, Singapore Airlines (SIA) for ‘discriminating’ her a few times on the flight as she’s an amputee.
Said that she was singled out by SIA’s crew for being seated at the emergency exit row
The 23 year old who was on a trip with her family to Europe at the start of the year said that she was called out as she had been seated on the seats at the emergency exit row.
The seats had been booked by a family member of hers.
SIA website had set conditions for seating in the emergency exit row on their website
When booking flight tickets on the SIA website, there are conditions for passengers who want to sit on the emergency exit rows to meet.
Pregnant women, people under the age of 15, passengers travelling with infants and passengers who require ‘special assistance’ are not allowed to be seated at the emergency exit rows.
Beale said that even though she is an amputee without a left forearm, she did not need any assistance.
Alleged that SIA crew humiliated her on her flight from Australia
Beale also said that when she got onto the flight from Australia, one of the staff left her feeling ashamed in front of the other passengers.
She alleged that one of the female crew went up to her and said in a tone which was quite loud and rushed and demanded that she get out of her seat immediately.
She said that she was shocked but switched seats with her partner which she thought that would settle the issue because she was not directly next to the emergency door.
However, she said that the crew still insisted that she had to move to the seats behind.
She also said that she cried a little due to the feeling of being humiliated by the crew.
Beale said that she understood that there are policies in place by the airline about people with disabilities and the emergency exit row but she feels that even so, the staff could at least treat her like a normal human being.
Said that her return flight was worst, manager straight up pointed at her amputated limb
When she returned to Australia, she claimed that the treatment she received was much worst than the flight out from Australia.
She was still ‘discriminated’ by the staff even after she checked with the ground staff at the check-in desk about her seating arrangements.
She said that the ground staff had confirmed her queries and reissued her ticket but it was also at the plane’s exit row.
On board the plane, she said that a female crew went up to her when it was almost time for take off demanding for her ticket and telling her that she have to move without treating her like a human being.
Beale also mentioned that the crew spoke to her partner and his mother, making her feel like the crew took it that she was unable to understand her explanation.
When she asked for an explanation, more staff from the airline boarded the flight and by the time when all of them came up, she said that the entire flight was watching them.
She also said that the manager pointed at her missing limb and said out loudly and repeatedly that it was an obvious problem in front of the whole row of people.
All these made her hurt and upset and made her felt like she was being strongly ‘discriminated’.
Follow up actions by SIA
An SIA spokesperson apologised for causing ‘distress or embarrassment’ in a statement to Beale.
The statement also said that SIA takes all these allegations seriously and does not tolerate discrimination or harassment.
SIA also investigated on the matter and found out that the crew which were on the flight had taken those actions because they had assessed that Beale did not conditions to sit at the emergency exit row.
Singapore’s Civil Aviation Authority has clear rules on passengers with disabilities or have their mobility restricted to not be seated at the emergency exit row.
They added that the decision to not allow Beale the seat should have been made when she checked in or during the process of boarding, but it was not done.
SIA also said that the crew onboard the flight made the decision to move Beale in the event of any eventualities regarding safety and also said that the interactions between the crew and Beale could have been rushed because there is a short time frame to prepare the aircraft to be able to take off.
SIA also said that the staff involved were given extra customer service training after the complaint was received, and Beale and her family had been refunded for the extra costs which they paid for the emergency exit row seats.
Image source: Belle Beale/Facebook