Actress Marissa Bode Alleges Denied Boarding by Southern Airways Over Wheelchair

Actress Marissa Bode, known for her role in the Broadway production of Wicked, publicly accused Southern Airways of denying her boarding on a connecting flight to Pennsylvania last week, citing her use of a wheelchair as the reason. The incident, which Bode detailed in a TikTok video posted on April 23, unfolded at an airport gate as she prepared to travel to a speaking engagement in a small Pennsylvania town.

Bode, who has used a wheelchair since a car accident at age 11, described approaching the gate agents for assistance in locating her boarding pass after arriving on a separate airline. According to her account, the agents asked if she could stand, and upon her response of no, they informed her that she would be denied boarding. Bode alleged that the airline's aircraft require passengers to climb stairs, with no accommodations for those with disabilities. "They proceeded to tell me all the planes within this airline have stairs to get onto the plane," she said in the video. When she questioned whether disabled individuals had ever flown with the carrier, the agents reportedly replied that even elderly passengers struggled with the stairs and that no such accommodations existed.