A 101-year-old woman is repeatedly mistaken for an infant due to an error in American Airlines' booking system. Patricia, who prefers not to disclose her last name, was born in 1922, but the airline's systems register her birth year as 2022.

This discrepancy leads to amusing misunderstandings, as witnessed by the BBC during a recent incident onboard. Despite the mix-up, both Patricia and the cabin crew find humor in the situation.

Reflecting on the confusion, Patricia remarks, "It was amusing that they mistook me for a little child when I'm an elderly woman!" However, she expresses a desire for the glitch to be rectified, as it has caused inconvenience in the past.

On one occasion, airport personnel failed to arrange transportation for her within the terminal, expecting a baby who could be carried instead.

The incident observed by the BBC occurred during Patricia's flight from Chicago to Marquette, Michigan, a journey shared by the reporter. Patricia was accompanied by her daughter, Kris, who had made the reservation online.

Patricia explains, "My daughter booked the ticket online, and the airport computer mistakenly recorded my birth year as 2022 instead of 1922."

"The same thing happened last year and they were also expecting a child and not me."

Patricia’s seat was booked as an adult ticket.

But it appears the airport computer system is unable to process a birth date so far in the past - so it defaulted to one 100 years later instead.

The former nurse, who flies every year to see family and escape the cold winters, says on both occasions staff at American Airlines were kind and helpful, in spite of the confusion.

American Airlines has not responded to a request for comment.

The centenarian says she would like it to be fixed. On a previous flight, Patricia and her daughter were waiting inside the plane after other passengers had left, as airport staff had not arranged a wheelchair for her.

She says having her real age acknowledged would also be beneficial for Kris.

“I would like them to fix the computer as my poor daughter had to carry all our luggage and apparel almost a mile from one gate to the other,” she said.

Next trip
Patricia travelled solo until she was 97, but has been reliant on help from her family since then.

“I have some trouble with my eyesight now so I wouldn’t want to do it on my own,” she said.

But she is adamant the IT problems will not put her off flying, and says she is looking forward to her next flight in the autumn.

By then she will be 102 - and perhaps by then the airline computers will have caught on to her real age.

Wonderful

Good one