Perth Airport, assistance for disabled traveller

[melodien]

My elderly mother is currently visiting my brother in Esperance. In a couple of weeks she is due to return to Sydney, flying Virgin from Esperance to Perth and Qantas Perth to Sydney. My brother escorted her from Sydney to Esperance, but he can't make the return trip (work commitments), and we have discovered that getting an elderly lady in a wheelchair from the Virgin terminal to the Qantas terminal in Perth is impossible without the assistance of an able bodied person. Neither airline is willing to provide any assistance beyond the doors of their terminal, and my mother is physically incapable of getting herself, her luggage and her wheelchair from the doors of the Virgin terminal to the doors of the Qantas terminal. She needs someone to help her get in and out of her wheelchair, in and out of a taxi, and to help her move her suitcase. Once in the Qantas terminal and checked in she should be fine - she is flying business class, and can wait in the lounge until her flight is called. Does anyone know of any assistance service that can do a fairly simple "meet and transfer" job that should take no more that a couple of hours in the very worst case? I am more than happy to pay to get such a service, because the alternative is that I am going to have to fly to Perth and back to handle the transfer myself.

 

[VPS]

Volunteering

Don't know if this would help - I'm sure they'd be horrified in Perth to think you'd have to fly from Sydney to help someone transfer terminals - good luck

 

[kermatu]

VPS' link looks promising. hope it works out.

Only things I can think of are to call the WA Disability Commissioner's office and see if they are aware of any services that might do the trick. May come unstuck as they may be for WA residents only - don't know.

Can your mum use regular taxis/card? If so, maybe just hiring a chauffeur car (expensive I know) would at least ensure she is met at the baggage carousel and helped into the car (along with baggage) until met by a Qantas staff member??

Good luck.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

Hmmm... I got a bit excited reading the following document - disability assistance at Perth Airport... and the section marked 'Assistance Volunteers'... but sadly they are volunteers in the terminal to answer questions, and not relevant to the OP's issue.

The document states that Perth Airport provides the infrastructure for operators and tenants... and then it is for those parties to provide the relevant assistance.

Anyway - perhaps worth a read: http://www.perthairport.com.au/Libr...rport_Disability_Access_Plan_2013_1.sflb.ashx

 

[melodien]

A chauffeured car looks to the be the likely option. Neither airline will help, the airport themselves will not help, and none of the various so-called aged care services (ACNA, Silver Chain, etc) will help. I'm trying to reach the Disability Commissioner's office as a last resort. It appears that the space between the Virgin and Qantas terminals at Perth Airport is some sort of no-man's land, inhabited by the dreaded Liability, and no one who thinks that they might get sued is prepared to go there.

 

[Jurahn]

Can your mum use regular taxis/card? If so, maybe just hiring a chauffeur car (expensive I know) would at least ensure she is met at the baggage carousel and helped into the car (along with baggage) until met by a Qantas staff member??

Good luck.

This might be an option if you don't have any luck finding anything else (and yes VPS, I am quite horrified there doesn't seem to be any sort of "assistance service" available at the airport, other than that offered by the airlines for their own flights only). We live in Perth's northern suburbs and have used Hughes Limousines on a number of occasions for trips to and from the airport and have always had excellent service from them. They do transport and transfer services all around Perth and I've also seen them several times picking up/dropping off elderly passengers at the hospital I work at (although I guess that could possibly be the drivers helping out family members on their own time!). Hughes are a nationwide company but actually have a local office here in Perth - phone (08) 9365 9777 or Google search Hughes Limousines WA (wasn't sure if I was allowed to put the link to the website!) - I've always found them to be very helpful with any queries so might be worth giving them a call just to see if they could offer the sort of service your Mum needs and if so, what the cost would be.

 

[melodien]

This might be an option if you don't have any luck finding anything else (and yes VPS, I am quite horrified there doesn't seem to be any sort of "assistance service" available at the airport, other than that offered by the airlines for their own flights only). We live in Perth's northern suburbs and have used Hughes Limousines on a number of occasions for trips to and from the airport and have always had excellent service from them. They do transport and transfer services all around Perth and I've also seen them several times picking up/dropping off elderly passengers at the hospital I work at (although I guess that could possibly be the drivers helping out family members on their own time!). Hughes are a nationwide company but actually have a local office here in Perth - phone (08) 9365 9777 or Google search Hughes Limousines WA (wasn't sure if I was allowed to put the link to the website!) - I've always found them to be very helpful with any queries so might be worth giving them a call just to see if they could offer the sort of service your Mum needs and if so, what the cost would be.

Thanks, I've used Hughes in Sydney, and found them excellent. And they have to be cheaper than me flying to Perth and back.

According to the airport person I spoke to, this is a change of policy, due to "recent events", whatever that may mean.

 

[Jurahn]

Thanks, I've used Hughes in Sydney, and found them excellent. And they have to be cheaper than me flying to Perth and back.

According to the airport person I spoke to, this is a change of policy, due to "recent events", whatever that may mean.

Lord only knows what they mean by that - but it certainly leaves people like your Mum in the lurch when they need to get from one terminal to another .

 

[melodien]

Lord only knows what they mean by that - but it certainly leaves people like your Mum in the lurch when they need to get from one terminal to another .

Returning to this thread, to report the final outcome for the benefit of anyone else who may find themselves in a similar situation. The solution turned out to be Dial-an-Angel (Babysitting, Aged, Child Care, House Cleaning, Housekeeping, Nanny, Nursing, babysitting jobs | Dial an Angel). They arranged to send two people to the airport to meet my mother, deal with her luggage and wheelchair and get her to the check in desk at the Qantas terminal. Mum says that they were lovely and they certainly made her day much easier. And they charged me the princely sum of $AU100, which is a fraction of what I was expecting.

 

[kermatu]

So glad it worked out for your Mum melodien.

Great price as you say.

Thanks for reporting back.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

Returning to this thread, to report the final outcome for the benefit of anyone else who may find themselves in a similar situation. The solution turned out to be Dial-an-Angel (Babysitting, Aged, Child Care, House Cleaning, Housekeeping, Nanny, Nursing, babysitting jobs | Dial an Angel). They arranged to send two people to the airport to meet my mother, deal with her luggage and wheelchair and get her to the check in desk at the Qantas terminal. Mum says that they were lovely and they certainly made her day much easier. And they charged me the princely sum of $AU100, which is a fraction of what I was expecting.

Excellent! Thanks for reporting back.