Patricia, a 98-year-old woman born in 1922, has been flying with her daughter for three years due to her age-related walking and seeing problems. Each time her daughter books a flight for her, the airline’s computers mistakenly interpret her birth year as 2022 instead of 1922. This results in Patricia being registered as a two-year-old toddler in the flight records.
Despite the errors, Patricia remains determined to continue flying and visiting her loved ones with the help of her daughter. The most recent incident was reported by the BBC news network when Patricia was flying between Chicago and Michigan with her daughter. Despite her daughter entering the correct birth year of 1922, the airport’s computer system still recorded it as 2022. This has led to confusion and inconvenience for Patricia and her daughter during their travels.
The ground crew once failed to arrange a wheelchair for Patricia, causing her daughter to carry all their luggage over a long distance. However, despite these mishaps, Patricia praised the American Airlines flight crew for their courteous and helpful attitude, despite the ongoing confusion caused by the computer system glitch. The airline company itself did not provide a response to the BBC about the situation.
In conclusion, Patricia’s experience highlights the challenges faced by elderly passengers when technology fails to accommodate their needs. It is important for airlines to ensure that their systems are properly calibrated to avoid such errors that can cause confusion and inconvenience for passengers like Patricia.
