Flying with Autism
Together with FOF Events and with support from Ryanair, the initiative 'Flying with Autism' is aimed exclusively at parents and carers of people with autism. It will take participants through all the stages of a journey by air to help them fully prepare the person with autism for a flight. The programme will provide advice and coping techniques to assist them to support someone with autism through the more stressful parts of the experience such as airport security as well as the noises and sensations on board an aircraft.
There will be a ground information day which will then be followed 10 days later by a unique experience flight on board a Ryanair Boeing 737 flying from and back to Edinburgh Airport. This exclusive 30 minute round trip flight will enable the participants, accompanied by the individual with autism, to experience a short air journey together in a controlled environment. From there they can assess how comfortable they have been with air travel before committing to a potentially expensive overseas holiday.
The lives of over 50,000 families in Scotland are affected by autism. For many the prospect of a journey by air is too daunting to contemplate because of the worry of how their family member with autism will react to this unique environment. The new sounds and sensations of air travel, together with the noise and bustle of an airport can be unnerving and frightening to anyone the first time, but for someone with autism, this can be greatly amplified. As a result, many avoid the risk of booking expensive holidays due to concerns as to how their family member will react.
Edinburgh Airport is unique among UK airports in having a dedicated team for passengers with additional needs, and they will be on hand from check-in to boarding the flight, ensuring that what is likely to be a first time experience for many with autism, to be as smooth and comfortable as possible.
Charlene Tait, Director of Development at Scottish Autism, commented: “This is a wonderful opportunity for parents and people with autism to get support to access the airport and overcome their anxiety around flying. We are delighted to be working with FOF Events and being part of what will be a really worthwhile project that opens up new experiences for families living with autism in Scotland.”
Ryanair's Director of Personnel and Inflight, Eddie Wilson added: "We are pleased to support this initiative by providing free use of our aircraft and we hope this course will make flying that bit easier for families touched by autism. We are striving to improve the Ryanair experience for all customers and especially families, and we look forward to welcoming these parents and children on board in April, and hopefully on future Ryanair flights."
Flying with Autism is organised by specialist events company FOF Events, whose Director Mark Wein commented: “Through our other flight experience courses that we run, we have received a large number of requests from parents of children with autism to see if they can bring them on one of our experience flights to assess how they react to the unique environment of an aircraft before booking a holiday. We are therefore delighted that we can now offer this experience exclusively for families affected by autism and, at the same time, help prepare the parents and carers for the journey with the educational ground course that will precede the flight. We are also very grateful for the generosity of Ryanair for making this possible.”
We will have our Scottish Autism advisors on hand throughout the programme and will also take calls to our advice line from anyone with questions about the suitability of the course for their family member.
*Please note the Flying with Autism programme has been rescheduled to take place in autumn 2015.
For further information and full course details, please see:
or telephone FOF Events on 0845 130 5515.
To speak to a Scottish Autism Advisor, please call 01259 222022 or email advice@scottishautism.org
