Codee had been airlifted to Randwick Children’s Hospital Friday before last with a dislocated hip. She was given the all clear to go home on Tuesday.

At the hospital Codee’s hip had been manoeuvred back into place and her leg strapped in a brace to hold it still until she can have major surgery.

“Because we went down in their air ambulance we had no way of getting home and no wheelchair,” Mrs Holmes said. “I couldn’t take her on a train and we had no money to fly home so the social worker at the hospital organised for the Isolated Patient Transport Assistance Scheme to pay for a flight.”

She said this was done through a Dubbo booking office.

Mrs Holmes said staff at REX were told exactly what was going on and what Codee’s needs were at the time of booking.

“We had to be at the airport at 3.30pm the next day. At 2pm the booking office rang and said Rex had informed them that unless Codee was able to climb or crawl up the stairs by herself we could not board the flight,” Mrs Holmes said.

Even though she was happy to carry her tiny daughter onto the Rex aircraft herself she was told this was also against policy.

“I asked if a mother could carry a toddler and was told that was different,” she said.

“Codee only weighs 18kg and I carry her every day. I don’t see how it’s different.

“We were stuck at the hospital. I was a mess,” she said.

Mrs Holmes said she made a very panicked call to her husband Evan to come and collect them the next day. They had to pay for accommodation.

Mr Holmes was forced to borrow money from a friend for petrol, get the couple’s remaining two children off to school and drive down to Sydney.

“It wasn’t safe at all. We had to keep stopping. The trip home was very hard on Codee,” she said.

Mrs Holmes said the hardest thing, however, was explaining to her daughter why they had not been allowed to catch the plane.