Emirates Apologizes to Pakistani Passenger for Overcharging for Life-Saving Device

Emirates Airlines has issued an apology to a differently-abled Pakistani passenger for charging her extra baggage fees to carry a life-saving oxygen concentrator with her on a flight.

Amna Raheel, the owner of a wellness gift venture, suffers from muscular dystrophy and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, for which she requires oxygen support when she runs out of breath, especially at higher altitudes.

She was told to pay extra charges to carry her oxygen concentrator on flight EK606 from Dubai to Karachi, which forced her to abandon her luggage at the airport and travel with only her medical device on 9 August.

After her social media post describing the incident went viral online, the Dubai-based airline issued an apology in relation to it.

Addressing her statement, an official from the Emirates said, “Emirates would like to offer our sincere apologies for the distress and inconvenience caused to Ms. Raheel”.

We pride ourselves on our customer service and were disappointed to learn that our policies relating to the carriage of portable oxygen devices were misinterpreted by check-in staff, coupled with behavior that did not reflect our values and service standards. We take this feedback seriously and are taking the necessary steps to ensure that incidents such as this do not happen again. Our customer affairs team is currently in contact with Ms. Raheel.

The airline has a policy that allows passengers to bring similar medical devices on board if they are signed by a medical official in advance. However, as Raheel checked her luggage in at terminal three of Dubai International Airport, the ground staff demanded an extra fee for her baggage as the equipment surpassed the free allocated weight.

She claims to have presented a medical letter signed by Dr. Ali bin Sarwar Zubairi, a pulmonologist at the Aga Khan University Hospital in Karachi, during the check-in, despite which the staff refused to acknowledge the device as life-saving medical equipment and charged her excess baggage fee.

Taking to Twitter, she posted, “I was told that I was overweight and my oxygen concentrator would be counted in my baggage allowance, which was highly absurd since I was carrying a medical certificate with me”.

“That would mean that if a person with a disability is carrying life-saving equipment with them, they are not allowed to carry any other form of luggage, including essential items like clothes, shoes, or toiletries. If a wheelchair for disabled passengers is free of baggage allowance, then lifesaving medical equipment should be too,” she said.

I am a frequent traveler and I have never in my 31 years of travel life faced such humiliation by airport staff.

Oxygen concentrators help people suffering from breathing or respiratory diseases such as asthma, and long-term COVID-19 patients and usually cost about $816 each.

Charity Donates Portable Machine to Amna Raheel

After learning about her experience, the Chairman of the Humanitarian Association for National Development Support in Islamabad, Faisal Jamil, donated a smaller, portable device to Raheel for future use.

He said, “We have been using these devices with Covid-19 patients in Pakistan for more than two years now”.

“Normally, some airlines do not allow people to fly with these [larger] kinds of machines, so we have arranged for a brand-new, battery-operated oxygen concentrator for her to use in the future,” he added.

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