Autism: 'Try-before-you-fly scheme lets our holiday go ahead'

Catherine McNerlin attended the Autism in The Air event with her son Haydn

Families with autistic children have said free try-before-you-fly events at George Best Belfast City Airport have reassured them about travel plans.

Autism In The Air, which is run through Queen's University Belfast (QUB), lets families experience the sights and sounds of a busy airport scenario.

Catherine McNerlin's son Haydn was diagnosed with autism two years ago.

She told BBC News NI a twice postponed holiday can go ahead after their visit to the airport last weekend.

Ms McNerlin said they had postponed a family holiday two years in a row fearing five-year-old Haydn might struggle with big crowds, long queues and loud noises.

"Haydn is hyper sensitive and not good with change, he needs constant routine and uses a visual support board to transition throughout his day," Ms McNerlin told BBC News NI.

Dr Nichola Booth, a lecturer in behaviour analysis and autism at QUB, believes giving children on the autism spectrum an opportunity to familiarise themselves with the process of air travel is beneficial for them and their parents or guardians.

"What we noticed was that a lot of families of autistic children and young people were finding that going on holiday was a distressing experience," she told BBC News NI.

"Some actually avoided going on holiday altogether because of the unknown situation of an airport with all the crowds and the unfamiliar sounds associated with them."

Dr Nichola Booth (pictured far right) with duty manager Bill Doole (far left) and support staff at George Best Belfast City Airport

Dr Booth said the scheme could help pinpoint any potential issues the child might experience during their time at the airport or on the plane and parents could then have a plan in place.

"Families really do benefit from this trial experience so that they can be less apprehensive about travelling in the future," Dr Booth said.

At the most recent event, 10 families got to experience busy check-in desks, go through mock airport security, wait at a departure gate and even get to board a grounded plane.

Ms McNerlin said she was overjoyed with how well Haydn's experience was at the airport, so much so that they were now planning to go on their long-overdue holiday.

"Haydn is now excited to go on the holiday, he got the opportunity to repeat things he was unsure about on the plane and now has a greater understanding of airports," she said.

"Before the event he had only ever seen airports through pictures at school or videos on TV or YouTube and didn't understand about them fully until he actually entered the building.

"Autism In The Air has completely turned around his whole way of thinking about them, we're now heading off [on holiday] in July and we are so much more confident."

Cunningham family, Ballyclare

Laurie Cunningham's 13-year-old son, Ethan, is autistic and is about to head off on a holiday for the first time without her

Laurie Cunningham's 13-year-old son, Ethan, is autistic and is about to head off with his friends on a Boys' Brigade (BB) trip to London.

Ms Cunningham said she was quite apprehensive about her young son flying without her for the first time, but said she knew he would be in capable hands.

"The BB leaders are all fantastic with Ethan and one of the leaders going has a brother who is autistic so is great with Ethan as well," she said.

Ms Cunningham signed herself and Ethan up for the Autism In The Air event to allow him an opportunity to experience what it would be like going through a busy airport.

"Airports are so big and there are just so many people everywhere and I would just be worried about how he would cope sometimes," Ms Cunningham said.

"This was just a way to put my mind at ease because I know he wouldn't be used to it," she said.

"As a parent you do worry, so it was a great way for him to see what it was like and I could then flag to his BB leaders about any potential issues that he had on the trial run."

Ferguson family, Dundonald

Zoe Ferguson's 3-year-old son, Rex, does not cope well in crowd spaces and she worries how he will feel in a busy airport

Zoe Ferguson's three-year-old son, Rex, is non-verbal and is currently being assessed for autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

Ms Ferguson said she had not been on a plane with Rex since he was a baby, and was apprehensive about the prospect of the potential lengthy waits when it comes to airports.

She was also nervous about how well he would cope in crowded spaces and attended the event to reassure her about them flying together.

Rex Ferguson got to sit on a grounded airplane as part of the Autism In The Air Event

"He is not one to sit still and, like any three-year-old, it's a handful to try and keep him occupied," she told BBC News NI.

"If it didn't go well on the trial run, we probably wouldn't have travelled through an airport again until he was much older.

"We probably would rather go on a boat or go somewhere in the car instead if we wanted to head off somewhere.

"But I was very pleased with how well he did and it was great preparation for him for when we do fly in the future."