Granny isn’t exactly sleeping
I have seen death on an airplane only a few times in my 17 years as a flight attendant, but I can remember each time as if it happened yesterday. I relive each occurrence over and over, wondering if there was anything anyone could or should have done differently.
My first experience was with a man who choked on a piece of meat. Instead of making a spectacle of himself, he went to the lavatory, were he was found an hour later — blue and quite dead. While the in-flight meal probably wasn’t very good, I can’t say it was to blame. No, the killer was humility, or perhaps pride. Surely, it is better to suffer an embarrassing scene and seek immediate help than to succumb in silence.
The second death occurred when an elderly man died in his sleep on a flight that was completely full. His wife, who realized what had happened, chose not to alert the passengers or flight crew so as not to make a scene. When the flight was over and all the other passengers had deplaned, she waved me over and told me that her husband had passed on. I thought she said “passed out,†so I asked whether her husband was on any medications or if this had happened before. She replied that they were expecting his death for some time and that he had been dead for the last four hours of the flight.
The last incident was on a full flight home from Europe. I noticed a woman sitting next to a seat that held an urn neatly strapped in with a seat belt. The woman told me that her husband had passed away on vacation. Since the airline was not going to refund the money for her husband’s ticket, and since she would prefer no one sit next to her, she had simply parked the ashes in the next seat. She was within her rights and seemed quite sensible about the whole situation. It was only later in the flight, when she decided to drink part of his ashes with hot water, that I thought she might have become a little unhinged.
It is true that the airlines will not refund any portion of a ticket that goes unused due to death, illness or accident. In fact, the airline will charge you extra to transport the body home, as a casket requires special handling.
Here’s another story — maybe true, maybe legend. Apparently a family from Mexico traveled to the United States for a family funeral. There were two young men, a girl, a mother and a rather elderly grandmother in a wheelchair. The mother and daughter cried for most of the flight, while the young men attended to their grandmother. Then the daughter went to the back of the airplane for a drink, she began talking with a Spanish-speaking flight attendant. The attendant got quite a shock when the girl revealed the truth: “Granny isn’t exactly sleeping,†she said. The family was indeed on the way to a funeral, but it was a funeral for their grandmother — the same one who came aboard in the wheelchair. Apparently, the family wasn’t able to pay the extra charge for a casket to be carried in the cargo hold. While this particular story may be hard to believe, I am sure some variation of it has happened somewhere.
While the airlines don’t give breaks when it comes to refunds or special handling, they do provide something called a “bereavement fare.†If you have to purchase a last-minute ticket because of a death in the family, the airline won’t gouge your savings account (as they often do when you buy a regular short-notice ticket).
Here are some things you need to know about bereavement fares:
* Bereavement fares are for family members traveling to funerals or visiting a gravely ill family member. Proper documentation will be asked for and verified.
* Eligible family members include spouse, children, parents, grandparents, in-laws, step-parents, aunts and uncles, siblings, nieces and nephews; most airlines accept same-sex partners as well.
* They aren’t necessarily the lowest fares, but they are fares that can be purchased right up until the time of departure. Discounts range from 15 to 70 percent off full fare and most often come in at 50 percent.
* The fares are flexible, permitting free changes and stays up to 30 days (there is no minimum stay). If you have already purchased a ticket, the airline can change dates or allow deviations to original itineraries.
* Bereavement fares are not available for all destinations, and international bereavement fares are rarely available. Still, you should always ask.
* You will need the name of the person who is deceased or ill, as well as the name, address and phone number of the health-care facility and doctor taking care of the patient. You will also need a copy of the death certificate (if applicable). If you cannot obtain a death certificate until after the funeral, a discount will be applied to the fare after presentation of the document.
* Most airlines will allow you to use frequent flyer points, and they will waive any program restrictions provided there are flights available, but you should definitely double-check on this.
Death is never an easy topic, and when a family member dies, the last thing on your mind is ticket prices. Perhaps you will never be confronted with this situation, but odds have it that most of us will be. So print out this column and put it with your end-of-life documents. Someday it may make a difficult time a little bit easier.
Cruise for a Cause
Tripso wants to take you on a cruise for a cause! See how far New Orleans and Cozumel have come since Katrina and Wilma. Join us October 26, 2006, for four nights on Carnival’s Fantasy, one of the vessels that Carnival offered for hurricane relief. Chat with your favorite Tripso columnist and contribute to a worthy Gulf Coast relief organization. Space is very limited. For more information, e-mail us or check out our cruise page.