Edinburgh Airport: Edinburgh man hospitalised for two months after tripping up steps at Edinburgh Airport

A 64-year-old man who fractured his neck and ended up in hospital for two and a half months after tripping on the stairs at Edinburgh Airport has called on bosses to urgently improve accessibility for passengers.

Andrew Marshall-Roberts, an active travel manager at ScotRail, was travelling home from Tenerife via London in March when, in the absence of a connecting airbridge, he tripped climbing a set of stairs to the terminal after departing from the plane.

Mr Marshall-Roberts said the fall, which fractured his nose, forehead and neck, has left him unable to return to work and with potentially permanent damage to his right arm.

He is now calling on Edinburgh Airport to make urgent changes to its processes, to ensure airbridges, appropriate signage and staff are in place to make getting on and off a flight safer for its passengers.

“I was holding the bannister with my left hand and holding my carry-on case with my right. I went to climb the next step and all I remember is the loud bang when my head hit the edge of the steps. It cut open from my forehead to my left orbital, and all the way down my nose,” he said.

“Within a split second there were two further bangs, which was my neck breaking. Then I passed out.”

Mr Marshall-Roberts' operation involved six metal rods being put in his neck | Contributed

After waiting 45 minutes for an ambulance, in severe pain and unable to move his arms or legs, Mr Marshall-Roberts was taken to the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, where he was kept in the critical care unit for ten days and operated on. He said he had to be intubated twice due to problems with his breathing.

He then spent eight weeks in the Queen Elizabeth National Spinal Unit in Glasgow, receiving extensive physio and rehab to restore as much of his mobility as possible.

Marshall-Roberts was discharged from the spinal unit in mid-May | Contributed

As well as his physical injuries, Mr Marshall-Roberts said the incident had taken a “huge” emotional toll.

“One minute I was walking off the plane, planning my normal day of a Waitrose delivery, and thinking about what I’ve got to do. And then it changed to not knowing where I was, what had happened, with doctors telling me that they’ve got to operate otherwise if I fall again I might not survive.

“Suddenly I was bedbound and dependent on someone for everything. It was a huge journey to go on.”

He described his accident as a “fluke” but said the airport must improve accessibility for passengers where airbridges aren’t in place.

“The airbridges should be working, and if they are not there should be signs up directing people to a lift, or a phone number to dial to get someone to take you to one,” he said.

“I would have used the lift. When I get off a plane, I’m tired, and I’d choose to use a lift when I’m carrying a suitcase just because it’s safer.

“They need to up the ante in terms of making the airport more accessible to people, not just for people who use wheelchairs, but for people who are maybe older, who are tired and carrying luggage.”

Before his injuries, Andrew Marshall-Roberts flew every month for a holiday | Contributed

As a frequent traveller, he said he would feel “anxious” about flying into or out of Edinburgh Airport again, and would fear landing at a gate which did not have an airbridge.

In response, a spokesperson for Edinburgh Airport said: “We are aware of an incident that occurred on March 15 and enquiries are ongoing."

Edinburgh Airport has come under criticism from others in recent months. Earlier in July, business leaders took to social media to warn that without urgent improvements the airport risks damaging Scotland’s reputation among international visitors.

Chairman of Brechin City Football Club, Kevin Mackie, described his experience of landing at the airport as “something resembling a gym workout mixed with an endurance challenge,”.

In June, the airport was given a ‘needs improvement’ rating by the aviation regulator after failing to meet the standards for assisting disabled passengers in a “timely manner” in the year to March.

The Civil Aviation Authority said this was “primarily due to operational issues caused by a change of contractor for its service provider earlier in the year, which now appears to be resolved”.

In its response at the time, Edinburgh Airport said the rating was awarded during a "particularly challenging time” and was now routinely meeting a “very good” standard.

British Airways has been approached for comment.