Family gets apology, refund after missed flight

ORLANDO, Fla. (FOX 35 ORLANDO) - Less than a day after The News Station started asking Norwegian Airlines how an 82-year-old, nearly blind woman in a wheelchair was left behind at a gate, her son gets an apology and a refund.

"Well Holly, you did a wonderful job. Within 24 hours we got a response, where I had waited a month as a member of the general public," said Brian Moorhead, following a report by FOX 35's Holly Bristow, which aired a day earlier.

On July 14,  Moorhead said he took his mother to Orlando International Airport three hours before her flight home to London on Norwegian Airlines. He was not allowed to wheel her to the gate, so he left  her with a worker who was supposed to take care of her.  Hours later, he received a call from his crying mother saying she had missed her flight. Moorhead claims, instead of Gate 94, she was taken to Gate 96.

"When I looked at the boarding pass, the person who wrote the number on the boarding pass, it looks, it could look like a '4,'  a genuine mistake," Moorhead explained.

The next day, Moorhead had to pay $449 dollars for a second ticket to fly his mom home. A spokesperson for Norwegian Airlines said a vendor handles airport services for the airline.  

A Norwegian Airlines spokesperson gave FOX 35 a statement that says in part, "There seems to have been miscommunication as to what happened to Ms. Moorhead, who should not have been left by herself. She should of course have been given proper attention and care until she boarded, which is when Norwegian air cabin crew would be responsible for her well-being until she arrived in London. Due to this miscommunication of events, Mr. Moorhead was unfortunately charged for a new ticket the following night, which should also not have happened, and Norwegian apologizes for this. A refund has been issued."

Moorhead said he received an e-mail alerting him early Friday morning, informing him that a refund was being processed.

The Norwegian Airlines spokesperson also told The News Station that they have had an internal investigation with their vendor to ensure this will never happen again to any passenger requiring assistance.