Boy 'lost his dignity' on ryanair flight to liverpool, says mum

RYANAIR SAID THE DIMENSIONS FOR HIS WHEELCHAIR WERE AVAILABLE TO VIEW PRIOR TO FLYING OISIN DOHERTY and DAN HAYGARTH Liverpool Daily Post Editor and Regeneration Reporter 19:48, 01 Jun

2025Updated 20:40, 01 Jun 2025 A mum claims Ryanair made her son "feel like an inconvenience" when they said her son couldn't bring his power wheelchair on a flight to

Liverpool to watch the Premier League title being lifted at Anfield. Daire Gorman, who has no arms and no femur bones in his legs, was born with a rare condition called Crommelin syndrome,

which impacts the development of limbs. Daire, a 13, is a big Liverpool fan and he last year met the entire squad and then-manager Jurgen Klopp at the AXA Training Centre in Kirkby. The Co

Monaghan native was set to travel from Dublin to Liverpool to see his beloved Reds lift the Premier League trophy at Anfield last weekend, reports BelfastLive. However, just a few days

before the trip, Daire's mother, Shelley, was asked by Ryanair whether the power wheelchair was able to be folded, before informing her that the wheelchair exceeded the airline's

maximum dimensions, which she told The Irish Times in an interview. After being asked whether the wheelchair could be folded, Shelley "replied saying it was a power wheelchair and

couldn't fold down." When informed that the chair would be too big, Shelley rang special assistance customer service. She said: "I ended up ringing special assistance customer

services and they asked could he not go without the chair, and refused to take his chair." "As a parent, you try and do your best for your children and especially children with

additional needs and protect them from negativity – my child needs his wheelchair, imagine asking can he not go without it." Article continues below She claims that Ryanair initially

refused to offer a refund before relenting. In response to Shelley's complaints, Ryanair issued a statement to The Irish Times and rejected the claim it didn't offer a refund. In

the statement, the airline said "regrettably, these emotive claims made by his mother are false. She fails anywhere in her complaint to accept that this wheelchair exceeded our

well-publicised max dimensions." The power wheelchair wasn't needed in the end, as the family was able to source a manual wheelchair which was used on the day. Shelley said this

caused more problems. She said Daire needed to use an "aisle chair" to transfer onto the plane seat. She also claims that Daire entered the plane last, when the aircraft was full,

resulting in him being pushed the entire length of the plane, "knocking off people" and "losing his dignity (with) everyone watching him transfer on to the seat". She

said that the airline "completely took Daire's independence away and made him feel like an inconvenience". A Ryanair spokesperson said the max dimensions information was

"readily available to Ms Gorman when this booking was made and if she had simply complied with them then that would have been the end of the matter". The airline also denies asking

Daire's mum whether he could travel without a wheelchair and confirms that they did offer a refund. Furthermore, the spokesperson explained that wheelchair boardings are handled by the

Dublin Airport Authority and not by individual airlines. The statement states that Shelley's "claim that 'Ryanair completely took Daire's independence away' is

false and absurd". Ryanair did not respond to The Irish Times' follow-up queries relating to Daire's positioning at the back of the plane. On Friday, Shelley appeared on

Northern Sound radio to speak more on the issue: "He was devastated. It's hard enough for someone in a wheelchair, especially a child with additional needs. They find it hard

sometimes to fit in. "So yeah, he was very upset. And he thought then 'oh this is my fault. If I wasn't in a chair this wouldn't be happening. So he was very upset."

Ryanair has been contacted by our sister the Irish Mirror for further comment on the matter. Article continues below