Airport Police Open Doors To Families With Disabilities

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — Hundreds of children and their families spent Saturday at LAX learning how to make air travel easier.

It was a win for LAX and travelers of all abilities as airport police opened their doors to get to know those needing assistance.

Lucia Babb brought her son Ian to LAX. He has autism. And although he's never been on a plane she wants him exposed just in case.

"This is his first time and he's really excited to see the airplanes going up and down," she said.

Just feet from the runway, the airport police set up an informational meet and greet — with games, food, and all things police, including tactical equipment and police dogs.

"If they are coming to LAX they have friends here, they wear uniforms, they are part of the canine team," Airport Police Chief Dave Maggard said.

Those passing through also got advice on dealing with TSA and asking for help, regardless of a travelers' abilities.

"I've let people know ahead of time how they can help me, if i needed the help, and I've not been disappointed," traveler Myrna Cabanban said.

There are wheelchairs if needed and assistance with lines — something many at the event didn't know existed.

"Always when we travel it's a disaster," said traveler Basma Abadi, adding: "It's hard to control and hard to explain to the people with autism that they can not wait in line."

And that's what this event was all about — learning from differences to try and make travel a better experience for all.