6 months on from the initial survey, the global landscape has changed. It is relevant to now understand whether peoples perceptions of flying has changed since May earlier this year.

Respondents answered the same questions as in the previous survey to ensure a comparison was possible. Additional questions covered likely engagement of the disabled community with industry in advisory groups and consultations, as well as views on those who have travelled with a disability during COVID-19.

The main comparisons and findings from the survey

It is clear that since May, people are now less confident in flying until there is a vaccine. But a significant portion of disabled people are still considering flying.

According to research reported by the Independent (a UK newspaper), 4 in 10 people have been financially impacted by Coronavirus. It is clear from surveys that disabled peoples financial constraints have not impacted their decision to book future travel by air.

After assessing peoples willingness to fly without a vaccine, coupled with consideration of peoples financial impact. Respondents identified when they visage being able to fly next. Clearly people are much less likely to fly in the shorter term (in the next few months). With people preferring to hold on for 6-12 months before flying again. There appears to still be much uncertainty to give disabled passengers the confidence and trust to return.

Respondents also identified where they would be willing to fly to when they get round to flying again. Interestingly, there appears to be a rise in domestic travel. People clearly feel more confident travelling closer to home.

To provide greater insight as to why many disabled passengers are still opting not to fly and what gives them most cause for concern. Here is a list in order of most cause for concern by the respondents:

• Sitting/being in close proximity to others, particularly onboard aircraft
• Air conditioning / recycled air inside the cabin
• Being assisted by special assistance – particularly for wheelchair users
• Wearing face masks for long periods
• Catching the virus abroad or quarantined
• Not understanding people with face masks on

Given flights have resumed, disabled people have been flying. Therefore, it was important to give respondents the opportunity to share their experiences of flying during COVID. So the following questions were asked.

Overall the aviation industry is positively handling COVID-19 safety requirements

The statistics suggest the industry is successfully managing COVID-19 safety requirements inline with passenger expectations. And should be a re-assuring message to the disabled community and further a field that aviation is a safe environment to travel. However, do the respondents suggest others to travel based on how they felt.

It’s clear that although people may feel safe when travelling, due to nature of COVID-19, people are still feeling uneasy at recommending others to travel. Suggesting that most believe it is down to ones individual risk appetite to fly. Which could be a whole host of different variables such as government restrictions, regional lockdowns, testing facilities and more.

COVID-19 has accelerated the industry to advance its implementation of technology to reduce the amount of touchpoint areas to reduce the risk of transmitting infections. However, such technologies could have a significant impact on disabled people and their ability to navigate airports. And as aircraft look for long term solutions to make their cabins more robust to breakout of infections in the future, potential redesigns of cabins expose significant implications to those with disabilities.

It is critical in all areas across the aviation industry to ensure disabled people and their insights are captured at different stages into new designs, process, training and technology to ensure disabled people and their journeys are as seamless and independent as possible.

We therefore asked respondents if they would be willing to support the industry in consultations, advisory groups etc.

That concludes the research for this year and the impact COVID-19 has had on the disability community and of course the industry. Hopefully this insight has been valuable, providing a clearer picture of when people might return to the skies with a disability.

Thankyou

Thanks to everyone who has supported the survey. Without you, this insight for the industry would not have been possible.

For more information, please contact:

• Josh Wintersgill
• Telephone: +44(0)7770510766
• Email: joshwintersgill@easytravelseat.com

Notes for editors:

• easyTravelseat – award winning transfer device for wheelchair users to use when being lifted on and off aircraft. You can follow us on Facebook or Twitter using @Able_MoveUK
• Across the two surveys, 500 disabled people across the globe shared their thoughts on flying in a COVID-19 world with a good variety of mobility/impairments and geographical responses across Europe, America, Asia, Australia/New Zealand and Africa

The post COVID-19: Take 2 – Flying with a disability survey appeared first on easyTravelseat.

On arrival at Gatwick South Terminal drop-off point, the staff were brilliant. They helped Josh and his father with all their luggage right through to check-in and into departure lounge.

When arriving at the gate to board, passenger had already started boarding, whilst Josh and 6 wheelchair users were yet to board. He will never forget Virgin allowing certain passengers to board, whilst a couple were sipping champagne at the aircraft door watching all of us waiting and of course boarding! Josh and the crew were given an apology by crew mid-flight.

At arrival in Antigua, the group were prompted with special assistance extremely quickly. However, the two gentlemen failed to turn up with an appropriate aisle chair. This is what was used to take 7 wheelchair users of the aircraft.

This is what should have been used.

After making it through Antigua airport, Josh was then faced with accessible transport to Falmouth harbour. It was a minibus with no ramps. All wheelchair users needed lifting or supporting into their seats. Whilst another minibus was used to transport the wheelchairs and luggage.

On arrival at the harbour, Josh and his father were greeted by the fabulous crew and a spot of rain, before making their way to the wonderful Tenacious. This is the way in which wheelies are to get on and off Tenacious when docked. 

After inductions and signing in at Tenacious, there were a few days of onboard training, including emergency training.

Josh and his father were then shown their bunks, below are some photos of how Josh got onto his bed, including the Wheelable shower chair which Josh used during the trip and comes with its own case.

After completing all the inductions, training, and getting their bunks. A trip was organised to go and visit Shirley heights with all the wheelies and volunteers.

Then it was time to get sailing, after being introduced into our watches. The original plan was to head to Anguilla but due to some changes, the captain had decided that sailing to Barbuda was going to be the new route – which from Antigua is around an 8-hour sail.

The morning after arriving in Barbuda, it was time for Josh and his father to get ready to go ashore onto the Princess Diana beach. Initially josh wasn’t going to go ashore, but with the beach buggy and gentle encouragement by the crew Josh made it.

After a day and evening in Barbuda, it was time for the crew, Josh and his Father, to sail back to Antigua.

When they had arrived back in Antigua, all the wheelies got the opportunity to be winched up to the crow’s nest so to speak. On Tenacious, wheelies were winched to the first deck which is just above the Coarse beam. To see the footage watch the full v-log here. But this was the view when Josh got to the top.

After all the sailing it was time to dock back in at Falmouth harbour for our last evening in Antigua. The tradition on this voyage every year is to have a form of Pantomime – the theme this year was James Bond!

After packing up and saying their farewells to all the crew and the amazing volunteers, it was time for the wheelies group including Josh and his Father to head back to Antigua airport and head home.

On arrival at the airport, the group where hit with a 5 hour delay due to the storms going on in the UK. At the point of arriving Josh needed to sit on the toilet. Unfortunately, Antigua airport (VC Bird) does not have a changing places toilet, so Josh was to hold on to the toilet for what turned out to be 14 hours.

When going through Security at the airport, Josh was asked by Security if he could stand up out of his wheelchair for Security to check his cushion for Security. Obviously, Josh cannot stand and after 15 minutes of waiting as they checked with management and Josh was allowed through. Although Security did ensure all the other 6 wheelies got out of their wheelchair!

After waiting for the delay to pass, the group were allowed to board. To Josh’s amazement, again there was no aisle chair to board the wheelies and they ended up having to use the tiny onboard toilet chair again – absolutely disgraceful!

Upon arrival back in the UK the group were then faced with a 40-minute wait before being able to disembark the aircraft. The group were originally told they would have to go to the baggage claims area to collect their wheelchairs, this was due to the high winds causing a problem for a lift that is usually used to bring the chairs straight to the door, but after waiting and resisting, the wheelchairs finally arrived at the aircraft door 40 minutes later.

Josh and his father finally made it hope from a trip of lifetime with huge ups and downs but my gosh was it an eye opener for a world that has endless possibilities, set only by one’s imagination.

To learn more about:

easyTravelseat – visit here

Jubilee Sailing Trust – visit here

Stelios Philanthropic Foundation – visit here

easyTravelseat Shop

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Dehydration is the biggest single issue in healthcare, and one of the main causes is the lack of easy access to fluids for people with limited mobility. Those recovering or receiving care in hospital, a hospice or at home who are unable to reach, lift, or hold drinks without help are at risk of dehydration.

Founder of easyTravelseat, Josh Wintersgill has a muscular wastage condition called Spinal Muscular Atrophy, which over time has made drinking independently more difficult. With the deterioration and weakness, Josh subconsciously would avoid drinking.

“For years, I have suffered with dehydration. My urine would always be very dark throughout the day and I suffer with a lot of fatigue. Family and carers are always saying, Josh you need to drink more. But I always subconsciously avoid it because it requires a lot of effort to lift bottles, particularly now I am getting weaker. So, when I saw the Hydrant I had to contact Mark and get myself one.”

Josh Wintersgill, Founder of easyTravelseat

The Hydrant refillable water bottle solves the problem for healthcare staff, carers and patients, simply by closing the gap between the drinker and the drink. For people like Josh, it delivers independence and dignity for those who would otherwise struggle to stay hydrated. It allows carers to accurately measure fluid intake and frees up more time for them to care for people in other ways.

“Josh is a primary example of someone who struggles to access fluids independently and easily. It reemphasises why the Hydrant is so critical and I am so glad he is seeing the improvements and using the Hydrant in different aspects of his day to day life.”

Mark Moran, Founder of The Hydration Foundation

The unique, patented, award-winning Hydrant water bottle clips, hooks or hangs using the brilliantly simple one-piece cap/hook/handle. It attaches to beds, chairs, wheelchairs, bikes, pushchairs, drip stands…virtually anywhere. 

“I clip it on my wheelchair when working, driving, or on the side of the bed. I even clip it to my jacket while shooting air rifle (see photo below). I can drink now without having to ask. I was so thrilled with my increased hydration, I had to meet Mark to see how we could collaborate together. I am pleased to say with every easyTravelseat we rent or sell. The Hydration Foundation will provide our customer with a free Hydrant. Being able to promote and encourage better hydration from my own experiences, with the support of easyTravelseat and The Hydration Foundation is simply incredible. I am extremely thankful to Mark for making this happen.” 

Josh Wintersgill

“Every time I meet Josh, it is clear of the impact he wants to make in the world. I am pleased that The Hydration Foundation can support Josh in achieving this. I very much look forward to suppling and seeing easyTravelseat customers with Hydrants in the future. 

Mark Moran

Press Release Contact:

Name: Josh Wintersgill Mobile: 07770510766 Email: joshwintersgill@easytravelseat.com

Press Release Details:

easyTravelseat – www.easytravelseat.com

easyTravelseat is an award-winning and life changing transfer device for wheelchair users when travelling particularly by air and is part of the easy family of brands. Joshua Wintersgill, the Founder of easyTravelseatcreated the device through his own experiences and challenges of flying as a wheelchair user. Josh won the UK Disabled Entrepreneur Awards in 2018 and crowned Great British Young Entrepreneur of the Year in 2019.

The Hydration Foundation – www.thehydrationfoundation.org

Mark Moran MBE, the Founder of Hydrate for Health lived with limited movement for months, following spinal surgery in 2005. He noticed how difficult it was to get enough to drink, with the jug and glass by his bed either empty or impossible to reach, lift and hold. In short, he was unable to drink without assistance and at risk of dehydration. Mark’s Hydrate for Health won The Queen’s Award for Enterprise, in the Innovation category – the highest accolade for business success in the UK and went on to receive an MBE in 2013. 

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1. Explore its culture known for elegant beauty, cafes, pastries and historical buildings — such as the Eiffel Tower and Notre Dame. 
2. Understand accessibility for wheelchair users.

The trip started at Bristol Aiport, United Kingdom.

With our flight direct to Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport. At Bristol Airport the special assistance team are fantastic and accessibility is generally very good (where I also sit on their disability advisory group). The boarding was seamless and smooth with the easyTravelseat.

Wheelchair problems on arrival

On arrival at Charles de Gaulle Airport, it was clear a few challenges lay ahead of us. Special assistance took around 10 minutes to get to the cabin door – which is perfectly acceptable. However, they did not speak much English and immediately boarded to lift us into the aisle chair. Cabin crew had noticed, my electric wheelchair was not at the door and rather a manual one.

After 15 minutes of waiting and cabin crew/special assistance chatting, the airport advised they could not bring our electric wheelchair to the door… (as the wheelchair had to go through a special baggage area which is where the lift was to bring the wheelchair up, as disembarkation took place via an air bridge).

Your right to have your wheelchair brought to the cabin door

For wheelchair users who fly regularly, know it is your right to have your wheelchair brought to the cabin door. Cabin crew advised us exactly that and were happy for us to remain on the aircraft until the wheelchair arrived. By this point, 20 minutes had passed since landing and we were still on the aircraft.

The airport was persistent my wheelchair wasn’t coming, I was getting frustrated and wanted to get of the aircraft. Rightly or wrongly, I did agree to get off the aircraft. I was easily transferred to the aisle chair as with the easyTravelseat, the French Special Assistants had not come across the easyTravelseat before and were very impressed, they welcomed the easy of transfer to the aisle chair.

Then to my disbelief the special assistant said I did not need to transfer to a manual wheelchair. Proceeding to push us through passport control, into baggage claims (where special baggage as comes up) in the aisle chair whilst not being strapped in! I was waiting for 20 minutes before my wheelchair arrived.

By this point, I had been waiting 40 minutes for the wheelchair to arrive. Imagine if I was still on the aircraft…

The wheelchair was damaged

When the wheelchair arrived it was clear it had been damaged. The joystick was missing and the arm rest was bent! I normally take the wheelchair joystick off, including arm rests for this reason. So a mistake on my part, or maybe not?

Shuttle at Charles de Gaulle Airport

Within the Charles de Gaulle Airport the CDGVAL (airport shuttle train – no fee to pay or tickets required, free to all users) allows you to move around landside linking quickly and easily terminals 1, 2, 3 + RER-TGV railway stations + PR, PX remote car parks in 8 minutes. Trains run every 4 minutes between 04:00 AM and 01:00 AM and is very accessible for Wheelchairs – you can literally drive/wheel on and off with no assistance, brilliant – I hate to say it but I believe this was the best part about the airport…!

Airport to CDG Hotel

I stayed in the Innside Paris CDG Airport Hotel which is near Terminal 2, a few minute Shuttle ride and a 5 minute stroll to a lovely modern, clean and friendly hotel with large rooms and comfy beds. However, when booking the hotel there were no accessible rooms left (and with our meeting being in the hotel over the few days we were there and the nearest accessible hotel being 20km away at the time), we had to upgrade to a much larger room to make it work – this meant no shower, and having to hoist over the toilet.

Exploring Paris as a wheelchair user

There are three transfer options to Paris; Train (60mins), Bus (75-90mins) or Taxi (30-45mins).  One of the cheapest transfer option is taking the regional RER train. This takes around 50 minutes to reach the city and costs around 10€ one way.  Another cheap transfer option is the bus which can be between 8-16€  one way depending on the Bus Company.

Initially we decided to take the bus to Paris thinking it would be the easiest and safest way of travelling. Taking the Airport Shuttle to Terminal 1 or 2 and a 4 minute walk to the bus access points.

We soon found out that traveling to Paris from Charles de Gaulle Airport as a wheelchair user can be challenging, so you need to ensure you do plenty of research on accessible Paris transportation.  

At the Bus access point there is a waiting room where you can purchase your bus tickets, you can buy online or on the bus.  We were waiting for the bus and the time of arrival on the display board of arrival times did not seem to lessen. Nearly an hour went by,  we then found out from a friendly French lady there was a problem with the traffic, with a lot of police around, all traffic was being delayed.  

Broken lift/ramps on the bus

Once the bus had arrived advising us that it could take up to 2 hours to reach Paris due to traffic. Though that didn’t put us off, we asked if they could accommodate my wheelchair.  Unfortunately, the Bus Wheelchair lift was broken so there was no access!  Now to plan B as over an hour had passed, so we looked at taking the Train.

Back to the airports free train shuttle and to Terminal 2 where the RER train from Charles de Gaulle Airport (CDG) to Paris City is located.  Trains are Line B of the Paris RER system and run at least every 15 minutes. They alternate between fast and slow trains.  All trains stop at the key stations in central Paris. The slow trains stop at about 6 or 7 additional stations in the suburbs, think we must have caught the slow train as it took an hour to the Saint-Michel–Notre-Dame Train Station.   

There were signs showing Disabled Access points to board the train, with the platform even being raised for levelled entry. However,  I could not board the train due to a large gap between the platform and the train. The train driver got out and said he would radio through for a member of staff to bring a ramp so that I could board the train.  We had to wait for the next train to arrive and a member of staff with a ramp.  

Be sure to ask for assistance at the help desk at the train station

All aboard and on our way, though the dilemma/no reassurance if we could get off the train!  Arriving at Saint-Michel–Notre-Dame Train Station and to our relief we were met with a member of staff with a ramp.  Then a 10 minute train to Champ de Mars Tour Eiffel – no access for a Wheelchair on this line, it seems from this stop onwards most of the services are out of bounds for those on wheels.  

The only way to the Eiffel Tower from the Saint-Michel–Notre-Dame Train Station was to catch two buses.  The first bus a 1 minute walk from the train station which we found easily, it had an automatic ramp for Disabled access and friendly bus driver.  The second bus is a few minutes walk and again with good access. 

Accessibility at and around the Eiffel Tower

A short walk to see the Eiffel Tower, which was an amazing sight and well worth the two and half hour journey. At the Eiffel Tower there was a disabled toilet.  You are able to go around the Eiffel Tower easily and entry is free, you just need to go through a security check of your bags etc.  

Inside the grounds of the Eiffel Tower is accessible and looking up the middle of the tower seeing it’s amazing structure and engineering is astonishing, a wrought-iron lattice tower on the Champ de Mars in Paris, which is named after the engineer Gustave Eiffel, whose company designed and built the tower, taking two years, two months and five days. The work started in 1887 and the tower was inaugurated in 1889.  

Apparently there is a rental wheelchair near the top of the elevator that is reserved for disabled and elderly visitors. Wheelchair access at the Eiffel Tower is not possible to the top (3rd) landing.  For safety and security reasons they don’t allow wheelchair visitors to the top.

General building accessibility in Paris

There are lots of old buildings in the city centre that are not accessible, and many of the tourist destinations are far apart from one another.  There is some challenge to getting around by wheelchair due to the occasional cobblestone street.

We stopped in a local café where customers were typically sat outside even though it was a cold autumn afternoon, then we realised the café had heaters under the canopies so it was actually toasty and warm while we sat outside and ate our French soup and baguettes. 

Returning back to hotel with challenges again using the train

Homeward bound the same way we came, and again the challenge being the train journey back, we had to wait for the platform staff to be in place from the Saint-Michel–Notre-Dame Train Station and also at our arrival station at Charles de Gaulle Airport (CDG) Terminal 2 before we could board the train, this took around 30 minutes. 

All in all you will need to spend a considerable amount of time travelling by wheelchair and planning accessible train, buses or taxis routes.  While there are one or two accessible Metro lines, only one will bring you to tourist destinations, so you will not be able to rely on the subway. 

Departing from Charles de Gaulle Airport

I was astounded to find when we arrived back at Terminal 2 using the shuttle from the hotel, there was no wayfinding to help locate special assistance desk, nor did I see any special assistance call points.

We made our way to easyJet checkin to find there was not a special assistance desk, and so we had to ask and pointed to a general check in desk – although check in was a breeze. We were not told though where to meet special assistance, nor did we know what they looked like.

So we made our way to the gate about 10 minutes for before the gate opened. Made our way to the front next to speedy boarding to the easyJet crew could see us waiting. Still no signs of special assistance and easyJet proceeded to started speeding boarding. After 5 minutes, a chap in a pair of jeans and a shirt with a walky-talky approached us and asked if we wanted special assistance.

Now I don’t know if this was by luck or easyJet phoned through, but I did not have any contact with special assistance until this point. Now for many people with a disability this is just not acceptable at all. For such a major airport, with no clear wayfinding, help points or special assistance desks I find it really hard knowing other disabled folk will face the exact same problem. I recommend when checking in to ask for special assistance to help through security and to the gate in order to get the re-assurance and help you require.

The Verdict – Paris and Paris Charles De Gaulle Airport as a wheelchair user

My verdict – The overall travel to Paris, experiencing Paris & its culture, seeing the Eiffel Tower was exciting & created treasured memories, yes there were challenges, but with a zest for life, an open mind and a let’s do it attitude we created an amazing accessible day out in beautiful Paris.

Paris itself is reasonably accessible with the right planning, and the airport is majorly behind the curve with a tremendous need for review. In it’s current state, Im sad to say, I would not be recommending flying to Paris CDG airport without pre-warning people on what to expect as a wheelchair user. And be prepared to fight with the airport staff to get the assistance and help you require. In the meantime, I will be sure to make this known to right people.

easyTravelseat

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Learn more about the easyTravelseat and how it can help you as a wheelchair user

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Nominated for ‘Young Entrepreneur of the Year’ and ‘Great British Entrepreneur of the Year’ categories was quite phenomenal. Especially surviving a field of 3,000 applications and making it to the final 8 for each category.

The night unraveled, with a 3 course dinner, great entertainment including the famous GoCompare, Mr Wynne Evans and Mr Oli Barrett as presenters. The awards proceeded, with a long nerve wrecking wait to find out who had won the two categories I was nominated in for.

Great Britain Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award 2019

The announcements were reeled off, the finalists were:

A pause… and then our name was called out… I turned to my Nan, with both of us extremely proud – a big hug and a kiss – and I made my way to the stage.

The sense of recognition was incredible, the feeling of being able to share the challenges disabled people go through when travelling to a vast audience felt amazing.

Never had I thought I would come out from the National finals being crowned Great Britain Young Entrepreneur of the Year. Especially when your coming up against such fantastic people.

Great Britain Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award 2019

Then for the final category, all 3,000 entrepreneurs were whittled down 8 for the outright Great British Entrepreneur of the Year, the finalists were:

Celia Hodson, Hey Girls (Glasgow)
Claire Harper, Muscle Moose (Manchester)
Dave Linton, Madlug (Belfast)
David Banner & Richard Pring, Wales Interactive (Cardiff)
Guy Schanschieff, Bambino Mio (Birmingham)
Josh Wintersgill, Able Move Ltd (Exeter)
Nick Coleman, Snaffling Pig (London)
Sara Davies MBE, Crafter’s Companion (Newcastle)

Mr Evans called the names out one by one… and the winner is Celia Hodson, with Hey Girls. Hey Girls is a range of sanitary products and a campaign to end period poverty. For every purchase of its no-leak, super comfy, chlorine and bleach-free, and environmentally friendly products, Hey Girls donates a pack to a girl or young woman struggling to make ends meet.

Celia and the reasons behind why she started out this social enterprise is brilliant – you can check more of the story out here

It was a remarkable evening and I would like extend my congratulations to all who made the Regional and National finals and to Francesca, her team and all the partners who worked tirelessly to put on the regional and national finals to celebrate entrepreneurship in Great Britain!

To learn more about the awards, please see here

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The conference had presence from the European Commission, IATA, UK CAA, several airlines and airport managers across Europe.

There was a clear presence in the room from the UK. Including British Airways, Gatwick, Heathrow and Birmingham airports, OCS, ABM/Omniserv and Wilson James. A clear indicator that the UK is really taking the lead on the global map in improving accessibility for PRM’s in aviation. 

The conference had an exclusive workshop led by the European Commission. To identifying best practices to further enhance the scope and application of Regulation (EC) 1107/2006. This was supported by airports, airlines, service providers, regulators, trade associations, experts, and persons with disabilities contributed.

Following the workshop, easyTravelseat was presented and was extremely well received in the room. It’s incredible to see all the support from industry towards our innovation and their understanding of our focus to making sure passengers’ safety, dignity and comfort comes first.

Key takeaways from the conference

Overall, the key takeaways were:

Harmonisation – is critical to driving positive change – this means, aircraft manufactures, airlines, airports, charities, and most importantly the disabled community all working together to ensure aviation is accessible for all.

Policy – is fundamental to ensuring the change we want is implemented and this stems from harmonisation. 

Us – It should no longer be about ‘We’ do it this way, ‘We’ do it that way. The industry has no consistency in place and in order to improve on that, we need to change our perception and stop working in silos. The EC stated, the regulation of EC 1107/2206 is interpreted differently by all airports and airlines. Therefore, it must be about ‘Us’, it’s about all of us and how we make the industry work for all. And I think the Global Symposium recently in Dubai, is the start of all three of these above points.

Toileting – This is now on the radar of the EC, and how toileting on aircraft can be improved for people with reduced mobility.

The term PRM – is was lightly debated whether the term ‘PRM’ is still fit for purpose, or rather, should we be adopting the UN definition ‘PWD’ Person with a Disability

Information – A special shout out to Nick Galle, account director for Wilson James at Gatwick Airport who said, “access to coherent and unified information will help encourage PRMs to fly to help overcome anxiety.”

The IATA/Emirates led Global Accessible Air Travel Symposium

We briefly mentioned about the Global Accessible Air Travel symposium. Tt’s a first of its kind globally and only happened a few weeks ago in Dubai. The symposium was held by Emirates and IATA, bringing together guests from airlines, regulators, and accessibility advocacy groups across the world. 

Little did we know until we were told by Roberto Castiglioni, the Canadian Transport Agency CEO, Scott Streiner spoke about “No person left behind: Working together to advance the accessibility of air travel”. In order to achieve this, Scott believed in ‘Innovation’ and ‘Alignment’. During his address, he went on to mention the easyTravelseat in his Innovation part. This what he had to say:

Another example of persons with disabilities driving innovation is Josh Wintersgill,a 25 year-old from Bristol, UK who was diagnosed with spinal muscular atrophy at age 18 months and has had to use an electric wheelchair since he was 10. Feeling unfulfilled with his job after university, he decided to start a business focused on tackling the problem of uncomfortable moves of passengers with highly restricted mobility between wheelchairs and airplane seats. 

The result was the easyTravelseat, which allows those passengers to stay in the same seat as they’re transferred to and from a wheelchair, making the whole process quicker, easier, and more dignified for all involved – and offering increased safety in the event of an emergency. This innovation won Mr. Wintersgill the Stelios Award for Disabled Entrepreneurs in the UK in 2018, and the first South West Great British Entrepreneur of the Year Award in 2019.

When asked what industry could do to facilitate the safe and dignified movement of travellers between wheelchairs and seats, Mr. Wintersgill said, “there is no reason why there cannot be an international standardised process in place. As a minimum, all airlines and airports should have some form of appropriate transferring equipment that can be used for all lifting of passengers. This would ensure better protection for both the passenger and special assistance (providers).”

It is clear, easyTravelseat is now starting to get onto the global radar, and we are playing a small part in making air travel more accessible. Whilst the whole industry is grabbing the problem of inaccessible travel by the hand. It is finally starting to drive change the disabled community has been crying out for, for far too long.

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Josh, who also picked up the Young Entrepreneur of the Year award, was diagnosed with Spinal Muscular Atrophy at 18 months old and has been confined to an electric wheelchair since the age of 10. He launched Able Move in 2018 to enable disabled people to board airplanes with dignity. 

Stelios Awards for Disabled Entrepreneurs

He won the Stelios Award for Disabled Entrepreneurs in the UK and secured a brand license with easyGroup, rebranding the product to the easyTravelseat.

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Now in its seventh year, the NatWest Great British Entrepreneur Awards celebrate the hard work and inspiring stories of entrepreneurs, rather than the business’ balance sheet. It is the first time the Awards have held a dedicated regional final in the South West.

Founder of the NatWest Great British Entrepreneur Awards

Francesca James, founder of the NatWest Great British Entrepreneur Awards, said: “Josh is an incredibly inspiring person. He has faced more challenges than most of us will ever face, and yet he has dedicated himself to improving the lives of others. He may be at the start of his entrepreneurial journey, but it’s clear to see that he has an extremely bright future ahead of him.

“It’s the first time we’ve held a final for the South West as its own region, and it has been fantastic to see the quality of entrepreneurs in the area. I want to congratulate all of our winners in South West and wish them the very best of luck for the National Final in November. With over 3,000 entries this year across the UK, it really is a great achievement in itself to get to the regional final.”

Gordon Merrylees, managing director of entrepreneurship at NatWest, said: “NatWest is proud to support the Great British Entrepreneur Awards celebrating another year of amazing achievements for entrepreneurs starting and growing businesses from every corner of the country.

Supporting entrepreneurs is a key priority for NatWest and our dedicated programme of fully funded accelerator hubs, mentoring, insight and bespoke coaching, is specifically designed to meet the needs of entrepreneurs who want to start, scale and succeed in business. Congratulations to all of the winners and to those who were shortlisted for one of these prestigious awards.”

Great British Entrepreneur National Finals:

The winners of each category will now go to the National Final of the NatWest Great British Entrepreneur Awards, which takes place in London in November.

Full list of winners for the South West:

Creative Industries Entrepreneur of the Year
Katherine George | Oh So Social

Disruptor of the Year
Johnny Pearce & Tom Stringer | Oltco

Entrepreneur for Good Award
Harry Dennis | Waterhaul

Entrepreneurial Spirit Award
Katie Davies & Justina Perkins | Habox

Entrepreneurs’ Team of the Year
Swanky

Family Business Entrepreneur of the Year
Bethan & Joe John | The British Blanket Company

Food & Drink Entrepreneur of the Year
Lee Peacock | CUPP

Health & Beauty Entrepreneur of the Year
Gail Francombe & Gareth Despres | School of Natural Skincare

Scale-Up Entrepreneur of the Year
James Hadley | Immersive Labs

Services Industries Entrepreneur of the Year
Mick Lindsay | Mocean

Small Business Entrepreneur of the Year
Grantley Rogers | 3P Enterprises

Start-Up Entrepreneur of the Year
Georgie Stewart | Tumelo

Young Entrepreneur of the Year
Josh Wintersgill | Able Move

Great British Entrepreneur of the Year (South West)
Josh Wintersgill | Able Move

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Never before, have wheelchair users had the opportunity to rent such a product that provides so much value starting at £38.00 + p&p a week. We believe this will now make air travel even more accessible and affordable.

How will the rental service work?

1. Choose what size easyTravelseat and type of cushioning (if any) you want to rent
2. Select the duration of hire – minimum of 7 days
3. At checkout select the format you would like our  rental hire agreement to be sent in
4. Submit the booking request for rental
5. We shall triage the booking and confirm availability
6. Complete our hire agreement form including payment
7. Upon payment confirmation, we will send your easyTravelseat 2 business working days prior to hire start date
8. You have the option at the end of the rental period to purchase the easyTravelseat
9. If you choose not to purchase, you must return your easyTravelseat within 2 business working days after the hire end date
10. We will quality check the easyTravelseat and confirm completion of the rental hire agreement unless any charges may apply.

How much is the easyTravelseat going to cost to rent?

easyTravelseat experiences, more than just aircraft use

Many of our customers realise the wider benefits other than just flying with the easyTravelseat. Wheelchair users use it to access areas you thought weren’t always possible, for example:

• Accessing the sea
• Getting into boats
• Sitting in a taxi or a sports car
• Transferring into a dentist chair
• Getting into a ski seat
• Accessing a Kayak
• Getting into a helicopter

Testimonials

All plane assistants love Claire’s seating , so thank you , makes life so much easier !

Maggie

I’ve found it good so far which is brilliant, and like I said my confidence is better than normal now.

Neil

Fantastic Josh, just got back from Greece – your product is excellent.

Stephen

I used your travel seat earlier in the year and it was fantastic. Much better than using other slings.

Kevin

The post Rental service coming soon appeared first on easyTravelseat.

Recent customer reviews

Our out of the wheelchair campaign – #outofthechair

We have created a new page on our website called ‘out of the wheelchair experiences’. This page highlights the amazing possibilities other than just flying. Such as, swimming with dolphins, getting into a beach wheelchair, accessing a boat, a car, sitting on the beach. How about trying a helicopter, or skiing, or a theme park ride – its up to YOU! Read more here #outofthechair

UK Disabled Entreprenurs Award 2019 Launch

Josh our Director at easyTravelseat, went to launch this years UK Disabled Entrepreneur Awards 2019 along with a host of amazing previous disabled entrepreneur winners. Josh gave a speech explaining how far easyTravelseat had come since winning the awards back in 2018, and how important awards such at this ran by the Stelios Philanthropic Foundation and Leonard Cheshire, which gives disabled entrepreneurs a platform to stage their business idea. Its important to recognise, the awards this year are giving away £100,000. The largest amount of money given away for any disabled entreprenuer award here in the UK. Visit Leonard Cheshires website today for more information on applying for the awards 2019.

British and Irish Aviation Expo

This year saw the 4th British-Irish Airports EXPO hosted by Heathrow Airport at the London Olympia, with 100+ speakers, 130 exhibitors, 3000+ visitors and some big names including Frank Gardner and Dion Dublin. At the event Josh, had the fantastic opportunity to open the 2 day expo as the first speaker on the main Concorde stage. Introducing the easyTravelseat to the UK aviation industry.

Southampton Airport Accessibility Forum

We were recently at Southampton Airport following the British and Irish Expo, to showcase the easyTravelseat, alongside attending their 6 monthly Accessibility Group Forum for the Airport. It’s clear they are doing a fantastic job in growing their airport and at the same time making it more accessible and as smooth as possible for disabled passengers – this was evident in the recent UK CAA Airport Accessibility Report, rated very good.

Kidz to Adultz South West Event – Bristol

Another fantastic exhibition hosted by Disabled Living, giving the opportunity for those with disabilities, parents, OT’s, physios and businesses to come together to share the latest products, services, opportunities available for those with disabilities. We were very busy across the day and sharing a stand with Bristol Airport helped drive conversations with customers about accessibility as a whole at Bristol Airport but also their delight with easyTravelseat. A fantastic day and we will see everyone again in Manchester for the North event later this November.

Posture and Mobility Group Conference – Telford

A special thanks to AATGB for allowing us to share their stand at this years PMG conference in Telford. A great 2 days meeting many Occupational Therapists and Physiotherapists, wheelchair services, wheelchair manufactureres and other seating specialists. We are working AATGB, looking at the Stabilo functionality and application within the easyTravelseat – watch this space folks!

easyTravelseat

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We now have an FAQ page live, Josh’s trip to Sweden who accessed a car for the first time since he was 10 years old and our Disability Horizons competition and what’s happening in June. Before this, what happened in May?

Accessible Aviation Network

As part our belief in making aviation more accessible for disabled people. easyTravelseat are pleased to announce we now have a spot on the Accessible Aviation Network ran by Queen Elizabeth Foundations – Tryb4ufly. Josh will be voicing his views as a disabled passenger with the UK CAA, airlines and various other fantastic aviation gurus who want to make aviation accessible for all. The latest event was held/hosted at the British Airways HQ at Waterside, Heathrow. And if any of you are aviation geeks, book yourself in for the tour around the British Airways museum to see the evolution of Britain’s most iconic airline.

Kidz to Adultz – Farnborough

Kidz to Adultz in Farnborough was quite the occasion with tremendous amounts of interest in the younger community, OT’s and physios. With our stand next to QEF – Trybe4ufly, Heathrow Airport and Graine Villas. Collectively it worked extremely well and the visitors during the day found it extremely useful to see the variety of options available to fly with a disability. If any of you fancy an accessible trip to Florida with a fully accessible villa, with no extra costs to hire equipment such as an electric bed, electric hoist and a shower chair. Please visit Grainge Villas in Florida

FAQ Page Launched

We want to provide you with as much information as possible to help you:

1. Make an informed decision before buying an easyTravelseat
2. Understand how the easyTravelseat can be adjusted to suit your requirements
3. Understand why the easyTravelseat has been designed to specific requirements
4. Recognise the versatility of the easyTravelseat

Visit the FAQ page here

This page is being updated regularly. If you have a question which has not been answered. Please get in touch with us through email, telephone or social media.

Josh’s wheelchair transfer and car experience with easyTravelseat

Hey everyone, I was recently in Sweden. Some of you will know from our social media streams. I will be writing a separate blog about the journey to Sweden from Heathrow airport, discussing the experience and the benefits associated with the easyTravelseat going through the airport – keep an eye out for this.

However, below is a video of me being transferred in the easyTravelseat from my wheelchair to a car seat. As you can see the lift is being done by two people, taking one side each, in raw video footage. The transfer was relatively straight forward, quick and pain free. 

We had to use the seat, as my friend’s car was not big nor safe enough to tie down my wheelchair. The only way we could all go out together was for one of us to be sat within the car itself. What a great opportunity to show you my first experience of sitting in a car for the first time in 15 years – it was a surreal feeling.

easyTravelseat Product Developments

Over various exhibitions, it has become clear people require more seating support due varying abilities and are specifically drawn to products such as the Stabilo cushion. It is acknowledged people want to use the Stabilo – learn more but still have issues with the transferring element. Given easyTravelseat have the ability to provide space for additional support products and provides the transfer. We will now be testing and understanding the viability of integrating the Stabilo within the easyTravelseat. Giving some passengers the all-in-one solution they need in order to fly. 

Large Dimensional Gel Pads

We are pleased to announce, we are now providing a gel dimensional pad, instead of foam for specific users who require slightly more pressure relief (upto grade 2 pressure sores). 

We are using Gelovations 0.5” gel pad

These gel pads can be used on their own inside the easyTravelseat (recommended) or even placed on top of your own cushion inside the easyTravelseat. 

The gel pad helps overcome any issues people have with height increases if they are unable to make the relevant adjustments to their chair when using a foam cushion. The dimensional pad does provide less support than a foam-based cushion. The pads can now be chosen when selecting your easyTravelseat at checkout.

Disability Horizions Competition

We recently ran a competition to win your own easyTravelseat for FREE with Disability Horizons. The competion closed on the 31^stMay 2019 and the winner will be announced in due course. We shall be in touch with the lucky winner!

Martyn Sibley of Disability Horizions will be flying out of the UK in July with his very own easyTravelseat. Have a good flight from all of us here Martyn!

What to expect in June

• Launch of the Stelios Disabled Entrepreneurs Awards 2019
• British and Irish Aviation Expo
• Entrepreneurial festival – Ent Fest with Peter Jones: 28^thJune 2019
• Kidz to Adultz – 4^thJuly 2019
• PMG conference – 16^thand 17^thJuly 2019

The post Insitu transfer seat allows wheelchair user to access a car appeared first on easyTravelseat.