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Ditto...EY have the best A380 F experience fullstop!I have been fortunate to fly EY F on their A380 once and it was spectacularly good.
Ditto...EY have the best A380 F experience fullstop!
We are sitting in the F lounge at AUH after a fairly straightforward flight.
At check-in the Etihad gate agent declared that our CPAP machines could not be taken into the cabin as hand luggage, even though we had no intention of using them in flight, and had to be checked. A few J passengers were also caught out with this. This is a heart-stopping moment for a CPAP uservfor a number of reasons, not the least of which is that CPAP carry bags are simply not designed for being checked.
After requesting a supervisor to talk to, we waited over 30 minutes for a woman in Etihad flight crew uniform to arrive and explain to us that there had been a policy change in July. I had my iPad with me and adked her to show me where the new policy was available for passengers to see.
At that point she backed off and said that we would be allowed to hand carry the CPAP kit on board but we were warned not to let the flight supervisor see it. This is just a crazy policy as Etihad operates into the US and must comply with FAA regulations on those UD services, which mandate that CPAP devices cannot be denied for hand carry. It's not at all clear why they would have two different policies!
The SYD premium lounge service was quite average and not what I had expected, but the onboard service was faultless and fully met our expectations.
The IFE had to be rebooted a couple of times but the crew were quick to offer iPads for continued viewing until the IFE was running again. I was a bit disappointed in the choice of major release movies and TV series in the IFE, which was quite poor compared what was available earlier this year on QANTAS and LATAM.
The F lounge is AUH is nice, excellent service and lots of quiet space.
Our next leg is AUH-FUB in J on an A330.
That was my understanding as well.CPAP devices may be carried and used by guests on board providing the following conditions are met:
Prior medical clearance through MEDIF (Medical Information Form) system is required for the use of ventilators and respirators in the cabin. All MEDIFs shall be submitted along with the latest medical report from the treating physician at least 72 hours before departure of the flight, but not more than 14 days prior to the date of travel.
.A lot of information, we know, but it should clear things up a bit about the CPAP regulations.
If you need any help, just let us know.
That was my understanding as well.
I spoke to Janine, one of the scale excellent customer service people in the F lounge at Abu Dhabi, and she provided me with the link to the current policy which now states....
"If you intend to use your own device onboard, you must submit a MEDIF to obtain medical clearance at least 72 hours prior to the departure of your flight. A MEDIF is also required even if you do not intend to use the device onboard."
http://www.etihad.com/en-ae/experience-etihad/special-assistance/medical-information/ (Under the Medical Devices + Continuous Positive Airway Pressure devices headings)
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I understand the requirement for a MEDINF if I intend to use a mains powered CPAP device in flight (though Etihad should be aware that QANTAS has a much, much simpler policy, which has worked well for both the airline and its passengers, in place for years now), but it is totally over the top to require a MEDINF just to carry a mains powered CPAP device as a piece of passive hand luggage.
Obtaining a MEDINF for every journey is a tedious and expensive process, and if Ehihad sticks with this silliness of requiring just to be able to passively carry one on board, then my current journey will be my first and last with Etihad.
Right now we are traveling in Europe and we are simply not in a position to practically obtain MEDINFs for our return journey, so we are quite stressed about what we will face for our return flight from ZUR-AUH-SYD flight in ~ 6 weeks time. Is Etihad going to strand us in Europe!?!
I’m overall quite happy with the flight experiences but won’t fly Emirates again unless their CPAP policies catch up with the 21st Century.