Can you fly with a broken arm????

[carron81]

Hi

My brother broke his arm yesterday in 3 places from the elbow to the wrist. He had an op last night and he's had metal plates put in and a cast on.

He doesn't get sick pay at work so he's thinking he'll have to use his whole years holidays as he's a mechanic and I was saying to him since me, my boyfriend and daughter are going to tenerife in 2 weeks to meet my dad he might as well come along since he'll have no holidays left when he goes back to work

Spoke to someone who works abroad and they've said there can sometimes be problems flying with a cast on and it can depend on the size of cast/injury etc

Does anyone know anything about this? Surely if he gets a doctors not it'll be okay

[mrs_overall]

Get ready for some joke remarks!
I guess you mean can he fly on an aeroplane with a broken arm!
I don't see why not, but it won't do any harm for him to check with his GP first.

[Reincarnated]

Ill be honest with as long as he's not the pilot then i think you should be ok! LOL!

[mudskipper]

Yes you can. You have another arm. Beware of flying round in circles though.

[ChuckFickens]

I'll avoid the obvious joke here too...

Yes you can, but he will not be able to sit in an emergency exit seat and he may want to get a letter from his doctor explaining the metal in his arm as he might set off the metal detectors when he goes through them.

[rinkins]

Sorry when I saw the title I did snigger a bit LOL @ mud!

Enjoy your holiday

[carron81]

lol, whoops :D

[HillyHugger]

The only problem I can see is that the pressure changes may be very painful

[Reincarnated]

LOL@mudskipper,and if he comes down in water...............he'll be swimming around in circles!LOL!

[sqad617]

There bmay well be a problem......during flight, arms and legs do indeed tend to swell and if he has a cast on and the arm swells, then he may be in trouble.

[joannie10]

my friends husband broke something not long before their holiday last year - I think it was just his wrist though. He was allowed to fly but had to get a slightly looser cast fitted due to the swelling the flight would cause.

[Reincarnated]

Can you fly with a broken arm????


Well.............have you ever seen a bird fly with one wing???


LOL!



Sorry thats the last one!

[Connemmara]

Hi carron I broke my arm and ankle last year in Fuerteventura - it was the upper arm so it was put in a sling. However I had to get/buy "Fit to Fly" certificate from the Spanish doctor which I did but nobody asked me for it at the airport. Hope that helps.

[No,Knowledge]

it wasn't one really was it.
was it?

[carolegif]

I travelled with two metal plates in my leg, a few weeks after breaking it. I asked about the alarm going off at security, but they said that it only checks one in three people anyway and I would probably be OK. Nice to know our security is only checking a third of travellers - not to worry!
The cast does get tight with the pressure though, so ask if you can have a looser one.

[kira000]

A few points,

1) as other posters have mentioned, the pressure will cause the arm to swell, so make sure he has a loose cast put on before he flies home.

2) Tell him to take painkillers and anti-imflammatories before he flies.

3)Get him to get a doctors note saying he is fit to fly, ready to show at the airport if asked.

4)Get him to check his travel insurance that he is covered for medical emergencies that cause the aircraft to divert. If it happened, and he was uninsured, he could be liable for Tens of thousands of pounds. (Its unlikely but swelling or DVT could in theory happen). Also you need to make sure the insurer will cover him for the trip, with an existing injury. They may not.. which means if he has problems there, it could get expensive.

5)Make sure he has his EU healthcare card. EHIC (replaced e111). This will give him entitlement to a level of medical treatment in the EU. Otherwise he will have to pay the lot. Apply here.
http://www.ehic.org/?gclid=CJGL-bO5m5oCFRNM5Qo dPhTcBg

6)Finally, If he just has a normal cast that sits in front of him, he will be fine. However, if it was a large cast that sits out from the body at an angle, they could refuse him travel or charge him for an extra seat if his arm would take up more than one seats worth of space.

Hope that helps.

[madmaggot]

The day we were due to fly home from Spain one of our party fell and injured her leg. She was put into a 'half' cast and was given a letter from the clinic to say that she was fit to fly. Regardless of this the staff had to consult with the pilot who had to give permisson for her to board the plane. After a nervous hour waiting whe was finally given permission to board.

[weas]

A lose cast defeats the object of holding all the metal work ,that the surgeon has worked so hard on ,i am sure he will have a follow up in7 days in plaster clinic so wait and see then.