Posted , 3 users are following.
I've just been advised to use oxygen when flying and my slight concern is with the rather complicated form I have to fill in to travel with Thomas Cooke airlines. Has anyone out there had experience of this please - were they helpful, obstructive, was the process quite simple? Any advice would be welcome.
Thanks
0 likes, 7 replies
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Vee2 campbell74456
Posted
Its not my personal experience. You may find this question put on the BLF unlocked forum gets a lot of replies.
The British Lung Foundation website if you put in the search 'flying with COPD' you will get pages titled:-
Going on holiday with a lung condition
and
Holiday abroad with a lung condition
also
travel abroad with a lung condition, with a little planning. Read our advice on travel insurance and flying with oxygen treatment.
The BLF helpline may also be a useful contact for you.
Hope all goes smoothly and you have a great holiday.
larry49033 campbell74456
Posted
Have you considered contacting the airline for their advice or their recommendation for someone that can assist you. You may need a special permit or certificate, and you may need to acquire it ahead of time. Your local police may also be able to put you in the right direction.
Best of Luck
sonsy campbell74456
Posted
campbell74456 sonsy
Posted
Thanks. My slight concern is that I'm supposed to wear it on the plane and the form you have to fill doesn't seem particularly user friendly to me. I presume that wasn't what your husband had to do?
sonsy campbell74456
Posted
We were unaware at the time that your oxygen levels deplete when flying, so unfortunately he didn’t use it as he felt he didn’t need it, which was a mistake.
The cabin staff were aware of it and were happy for him to use it if required.
Which airline are you flying with?
campbell74456 sonsy
Posted
Thomas Cook. I had the fitness to fly examination some months ago at it was decided I needed supplementary oxygen to fly with so decided to be a good little boy and do it "by the book" which I now regret! Although the the airline say they will do everything to help their forms seem to contradict that. I was hoping to get advice from anyone who had gone through the process, see if they could give me some pointers. Did your husband just get the concentrator out and use it on the aircraft?
sonsy campbell74456
Posted
No, he had 2small portable tanks with attachments but as I said he chose not to use it as he felt he didn’t need to. It was a mistake as 4 days later he was hospitalised abroad for over a fortnight with pneumonia. Whilst we don’t know whether the lack of oxygen had anything to do with it , I felt quite strongly that it made him more vulnerable to the infection.
in answer to your question though, had he chosen to use it, then yes, he had just intended getting it out when he needed it.
on the return journey we were flown back on a normal scheduled flight (with a doctor accompying us ) and he was on the concentrator the whole flight.