Most airlines say you can have two checked bags and one carry on. BUT, apparently the wheelchair doesn't count. They will ship them through for free. ALSO, as I mentioned in Section #2, they will usually ship other NECESSARY accessories for no charge. What's important to understand, is that they are concerned with WEIGHT limits on the airline. We travelled on United, and they were very good about just checking the commode and wheelchair.
When checking a wheelchair, you have a couple options. You CAN check it at the front counter with your luggage. But then, you have to use an airport chair during your time in the airport. If you've gotten there earlier, like you should do, then you might have a very long time in an uncomfortable chair. We thought it was better to keep Mom and her chair together, until the last minute. The plan was to wheel her right to the door of the airplane and then have her walk to her seat. They took the wheelchair at that point, and put it down with the luggage. We had two tags on it...one was a luggage tag and one was a handicap tag of some kind. It meant that it had to be UNLoaded first at the destination. As soon as we got off the plane in L.A. it was faithfully waiting there at the door. More in the next section, on dealing with "parts" from the chair.
By the way...once you have your bags checked, you still have to pass through security. Be sure to do this EARLY!!! The person in the wheelchair has to go through a special area and YOU will be handed all the "stuff"...the cane, jackets, purses, etc....while a security guard "frisks" the person in the chair. They're usually real good about it. It's fun to watch, though. Mom loves it when they say, "Put both arms out." She just says, "Can't do that, sorry!" And then it's fun when they hit the orthodic and get that funny look, like, "HUH? Do you have a weapon in that thing?"
