Tony Hudgell: Family appalled at Gatwick wheelchair wait

An eight-year-old boy who has had both legs amputated was forced to wait hours for his wheelchair to be returned at Gatwick Airport.

Paula Hudgell said she was “appalled” the airport left her and her son Tony stranded at 03:00 GMT “with no help”.

Tony lost his limbs following abuse by his birth parents, who were jailed for 10 years in 2018.

Gatwick Airport has apologised for the distress caused but said it experienced significant disruption on Sunday night.

Ms Hudgell, from King’s Hill in Kent, tweeted a picture of a downcast Tony at the airport, and said she had been “trying to get help or assistance”, but the response was “nothing”.

Ms Hudgell told BBC Breakfast they sat on the aircraft initially to wait for the wheelchair while the captain “kept chasing” where it was.

She said: “It didn’t arrive, so they decided to get us assistance to get us off the plane, which we had until baggage reclaim.

“We weren’t bothered about our baggage, we could have come back the next day, but we could not leave the airport because we didn’t have Tony’s wheelchair.

“We had to sit on the floor, there were no seats. It was just absolutely horrendous.”

The wheelchair finally came through four-and-a-half hours later, she added.

A Gatwick Airport spokesperson said: “We are aware of this awful situation and apologise for the distress caused to the Hudgell family.

“This is unacceptable and we have picked it up as a matter of urgency with the airline, Jet2, and their ground handler, Menzies.

“We experienced significant disruption last night and had to close the airport for a two-hour period for safety reasons.”

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