Arabic version: فيرجن أستراليا تعتذر لمستخدم كرسي متحرك أُخرج من رحلة

According to The Guardian, Virgin Australia has apologised to disability advocate Shane Hryhorec after he was removed from a flight over the storage of his wheelchair motor. Hryhorec, who lives with C5 incomplete quadriplegia, uses a wheelchair with a power-assist device called a SmartDrive.

Hryhorec published a video of the incident from a flight from Sydney. The video has received 16 million views across TikTok and Instagram. In it, he says he had taken three Virgin Australia flights in the previous week without an issue. Staff instructed him to store the motor under the seat, although there was no space to secure it.

On the earlier flights, Hryhorec had been permitted to place the SmartDrive in the overhead locker. On the final leg, he was told it had to be stowed under the seat because of a new rule. He said the business-class armrest in front created a barrier that left no room by his feet for the device. He said he was upset, angry and humiliated after being removed from the flight.

Virgin said it “sincerely apologises to Mr Shane Hryhorec following his recent experience” and acknowledged it did not meet its own standards in handling the situation. The airline said it had contacted Hryhorec to apologise and understand his experience, adding that it would learn from the incident and strive to meet the standards it aspires to deliver.

The 41-year-old has lodged a complaint with the Australian Human Rights Commission and said he would not withdraw it until he was convinced the airline would make changes. Between 2016 and 2022, the commission received more than 100 disability discrimination complaints against airlines. The federal government’s 2024 aviation white paper recognised barriers faced by people with disability and committed to aviation-specific disability standards, including enforceable obligations for airlines and airports.