Disability is a binary in the minds of many - either you are and thus entitled to assistance, or you aren’t at all. The difference between being able to walk 5

Disability is a binary in the minds of many - either you are and thus entitled to assistance, or you aren’t at all. The difference between being able to walk 500m in 30 minutes with a bench or two in the middle and being able to walk 1km in 15 minutes without sitting is one that seems to escape lots of people. The latter capability is necessary for making a lot of connections at big airport, especially if immigration/customs and/or a delay is involved, and the latter is all many of my 70+ year old relatives are capable of. I encourage them to register as needing assistance to get to and from their gates (there usually is an option without wheelchairs), telling them that airlines assume “able-bodied” is a healthy frequent flyer around my age or younger.