Airline personnel at an airport in central China barred a 13-year-old boy with autism from checking in for his Tuesday flight because of his “abnormal behavior.”

“They told me an autistic child cannot take flights,” said Cui Yaodong, the child’s father. Cui told Sixth Tone that employees of Yangtze River Express Airlines did not accept his son’s disability certificate, which is issued by the China Disabled Persons Federation. Instead, he was asked to show hospital-issued documentation that he did not have. The incident happened at Zhengzhou Xinzheng International Airport in Henan province.

Father and son then tried to book a flight with China Southern Airlines but were refused a second time. As a Henan native who works in southern China, Cui said he takes his son back to his hometown to visit family members around twice a year and has never had any problems with other airlines in years past.

“The child’s voice was so loud that people around him took notice,” Zhang, a Yangtze River Express Airlines representative who refused to reveal his given name, told Sixth Tone. “The personnel determined that he could pose a safety risk to the other airline passengers,” he said, adding that the company handled the case “humanely” and gave Cui a full refund.

Cui’s son was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder before his second birthday, and his development is currently equivalent to that of a 5-year-old. “He speaks a little louder, with poor language skills and inaccurate pronunciation,” Cui said. He admitted that his son's behavior was a little unruly on Tuesday. “His voice was loud, and it affected other passengers,” Cui recalled, “but did it affect safety?”

Diao Weimin, a professor at the Civil Aviation Management Institute of China, told Sixth Tone that according to civil aviation laws, carriers can refuse passengers if they are deemed unsuitable for travel or a potential source of discomfort or danger to other passengers or property. He added that because the law does not specify what kinds of behavior fall under this umbrella, airlines are free come up with their own interpretations. “As far as I know, different companies’ standards are not exactly the same,” Diao said.

Regulations on civil aviation health state that people with health issues should provide hospital documentation to carriers before buying tickets, Diao said. “If the family members of the patient want to be responsible for themselves and public safety, they’d better inform the carriers earlier,” he said.

“The airline company protected the majority’s benefits but neglected those who most need support,” Sun Zhongkai, executive director of Beijing Stars and Rain Education Institute for Autism, told Sixth Tone in a phone interview. “How dangerous can a child be?” he said.

Sun believes that the root cause of the recent airline conflict is a widespread lack of awareness of how to engage with autistic children, who rarely go out in public. “Some people even say that these children shouldn’t leave the house,” Sun said, “but autism is a social communication disorder, so children should be encouraged to appear in public and interact with others.”

Between 5 and 9 million Chinese children are estimated to be on the autism spectrum. However, many parents are stung by the stigma of taking their autistic children outside because social acceptance and understanding of autism is so low. Educational and health care resources are scarce, especially outside of China’s larger cities.

In April, the death of autistic 3-year-old Jia Jia underscored ignorance about the condition in China. The boy died after undergoing two months of treatment at a rehabilitation center that included strenuous physical exercise meant to help children “recover” from autism.

This article has been updated to reflect a correction. Professor Diao’s given name is Weimin, not Weiming as previously reported.

Additional reporting by Lin Qiqing.

(Header image: An autistic boy plays on the playground at a school for special needs children in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, April 1, 2010. Shao Quanda/VCG)