A television presenter has condemned her “disrespectful” treatment after she was stranded on an empty plane for 40 minutes.

Sophie Morgan tweeted a picture of herself sitting on the empty aircraft at Gatwick Airport as she waited for her wheelchair on Tuesday.

The 33-year-old, who hosted Channel 4’s 2016 Paralympics coverage , has been paralysed from the waist down since a car accident in 2003.

She wrote: “What is the point? Just please start treating us with more respect. Your staff were helpful but the whole system is pathetic.”

Ms Morgan tweeted Gatwick: “It has happened far too often.

“This sort of service is almost the norm now. Incredibly rude staff made the situation even worse.”

A spokesman for Gatwick said they apologised “unreservedly” to Miss Morgan.

It came a day after former Paralympian Sophia Warner cried ‘all the way home’ after being asked to prove her disability to EasyJet staff.

Warner, 43, has cerebral palsy and ran in world championships and at London 2012.

After her flight back from Milan to Gatwick one member of staff asked: “You look completely normal. Why do you need help?”

Ms Warner raised the issue of her treatment on Twitter and EasyJet have been forced to apologise.

She said: “I’ve not complained on Twitter before. The order to publicly prove my disability incident by yesterday was beyond devastating.

“I was told “you look completely normal. Why do you need help” I cried all the way home. I don’t even know where to begin”.

Others quickly responded to give their own experiences.

One said: “They made me walk all the way out of the plane before it took off so I could explain how to take my wheelchair to the hold to yet more hopeless baggage handlers.

“The plane was delayed and the other passengers blamed me even though it was easyJet’s fault for not boarding me first!”

EasyJet has apologised.

“The safety and wellbeing of our passengers and crew is easyJet’s highest priority.”

Sophia won medals in the 1998 Paralympic World Championships in Birmingham and at the same competition in New Zealand in January 2011.

She gave up her job to pursue professional running in the build-up to London 2012 and finished fourth.

Read the full article online: https://www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/midlands-news/tv-presenter-stranded-plane-after-14467142