Overview

This review is for Terminal 4 Heathrow Airport which I used to fly with Air France by. It includes my outbound and inbound flights. It serves European and international flights. The terminal has step free access and offers passenger assistance.

Transport & Parking

I travelled to by tube to Heathrow Terminal 4 which has step free access. Please be aware that there are 3 tube stops for Heathrow Airport and make sure you check which one you are flighting from. The tube stations are: Heathrow Terminal 4 Heathrow Terminal 5 Heathrow Terminal 2 and 3 The journey time was about an hour from central London. Travelling out was great, very easy albeit the tube train was very busy. For me it felt the best option as a taxi is expensive plus with traffic it will take longer than the tube. The journey home itself was great but my flight had been delayed due to fog. I was meant to be getting in at 9.25pm, which I thought would comfortably give me time to catch the tube. However, it was only thanks to a mega helpful member of passenger assistance staff (sorry I can not remember his name) that I managed to catch the last tube of the evening. I would therefore suggest if you have an evening arriving flight back to Heathrow to have a back up plan, hopefully you won't need it. All the ticket barriers at Heathrow Terminal 4 tube are the wider ones, which makes it so easier on exiting.

Access

From the tube there is step free access into Terminal 4 via a slope. The airport terminal has step free access. Wheelchairs are provided for to those who require them via Passenger Assistance. I did not see any vehicles to transport passengers. I had two people assigned when I had my luggage. One wheeled me and the other carried my luggage. Passenger Assistance Lounge The passenger assistance lounge was very quiet when I used it on my outward bound flight. While it ticks all the boxes seating, spacious, next to an accessible toilet. It feels like a Holding Pen. It looks very drab, everything is grey, the floor the walls the seating, given that passenger assistance includes families and disabled children the décor could have been be more welcoming and family friendly. I can't remember if there was a flight departure board in the seating area or just by the corridor entrance. The drinking fountain was also in the corridor entrance by the staff information desk. You had to go through the corridor to get to the accessible toilet. I haven't flown internationally since before covid, but I recall when I have been at Gatwick being given a beeper so I know to return to special assistance. I'm not into looking round duty free, but I may want to get food or water before I board my flight. Having the communal shopping/ eating area easily accessible is just as important for disabled people as for non-disabled people. The holding pen, sorry passenger assistance lounge feels cut off from the rest of the airport.

Toilets

The only accessible toilet I used was the one next to the Passenger Assistance lounge. It had a manual door. The toilet was spacious. There were grab rails but none on the door. There is no emergency cord but there is an emergency red button near floor level between the toilet and the sink, see photo. Bins blocked the transfer area next to the toilet. The toilet was clean and well maintained.

Staff

I had some excellent customer service, most notably after my inward bound flight, but it was a bit of a mixed bag. OUTWARD Passenger Assistance staff were fine, they did what they needed to do efficiently, with minimal verbal interaction. I found I received a better welcome from the security staff who checked in with me about what I could manage and explained what they were doing. There was a couple of people on the Passenger Assistance lounge check in desk, they did not speak to me, there was no welcome and they did not even acknowledge my presence even though there were no other passengers about (so it wasn't like they were busy dealing with other customers). The passenger assistance staff parked me in my wheelchair and just left me there. I had to ask should I remain on the wheelchair or transfer to a seat, as I had no idea how quickly I would be there. She told me I could take a seat. There was no goodbye or anything. I sat there having no idea when I was someone was going to come to collect me. Later I was collected and take to the flight. The people who operated the ambulift were friendly and explained what they were doing. INWARD Passenger Assistance staff were outstanding. My flight had been delayed and was the last flight of the evening. I explained I had hoped to get the tube but was now doubtful it was still running, and the man assisting me said he would try his best. My suitcase was one of the last to come out and he raced me down to the tube station and I caught the last tube train that evening. This was exceptional service, thank you.

Anything else you wish to tell us?

Overall, practically everything was done efficiently and quickly and I safely made it through the airport. It did the job. On a personal note, on the outward bound flight I found the customer service experience disappointing. I was a solo disabled woman travelling from a terminal I had never used before, there was little to none human interaction. The airport is so many different things for people, it's maybe the start of your holiday, you might be travelling for business or you maybe travelling to see family, attend a funeral or visit someone who is terminally ill. Whatever your reason it would be nice to feel welcomed or at least acknowledged, to feel you exist. Often during my outward journey through the airport I felt like a parcel, not a human being. Customer service skills are lacking with some members of staff and I would suggest some training, so staff feel more comfortable and able to interact with disabled passenger. The passenger assistance lounge could also do with a bit of a rethink to make it feel less sterile and particularly more welcoming for families with children who use it. In future I would not go out of my way to use this Terminal, but if I have other options I would use it. Overall it did what needed to to do and I felt safe.

Photos