The Department of Transportation (DOT) in the US, home to over 44.1 million with a disability, or 13.4 percent of the civilian noninstitutionalized population as per the American Community Survey (ACS), has announced a series of protections designed to improve the flying experience for air travellers with wheelchairs and other mobility devices.
The changes mandate additional training for airline staff and improved communication and compensation when wheelchairs are damaged. According to official data, at least one of every 100 wheelchairs or scooters transported on domestic flights is damaged, delayed or lost.
The department in 2024 fined American Airlines (AA) a record $50 million for violating protections for fliers with disabilities. The fine covered a four-year period, from 2019 to 2023, and included “cases of unsafe physical assistance that at times resulted in injuries and undignified treatment of wheelchair users, in addition to repeated failures to provide prompt wheelchair assistance.”
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said: “Every passenger deserves safe, dignified travel when they fly — and we’ve taken unprecedented actions to hold airlines accountable when they do not provide fair treatment to passengers with disabilities.”
Among the changes are a requirement that airlines provide “safe and dignified assistance” to individuals with disabilities. Safe is defined as assistance that doesn’t put individuals at heightened risk of bodily harm; “dignified” means assistance provided in a manner that respects a passenger’s “independence, autonomy and privacy.”
There will be enhanced training for airline personnel who physically assist passengers with mobility disabilities or handle passengers’ wheelchairs or scooters. Also is to ensure prompt enplaning, deplaning and connecting assistance for passengers with wheelchairs. “Prompt” is defined as “available to deplane when the last passenger who did not request deplaning assistance departs the aircraft.” A presumption that an airline is at fault when a passenger’s checked wheelchair is not returned in the same condition it was received.
The new rule also calls for the return of delayed wheelchairs or scooters within 24 hours of a passenger’s arrival to a destination; the prompt repair or replacement of damaged wheelchairs (by the passenger’s preferred vendor); and other requirements related to delayed or damaged equipment. Many of the changes go into effect next week, although some will take longer to implement, including the training component.
In 2022, an estimated 18.6 million people reported travel-limiting disabilities. An estimated 5.5 million Americans use a wheelchair, and many encounter barriers when it comes to air travel, according to DOT data. Approximately 27 million passengers with disabilities travelled by air in 2019. In April 2024, nearly nine in 10 Americans (88 percent) think it is important for airlines to improve accommodations for flyers with disabilities. According to the Transportation Department’s statistics, airlines damage or destroy 10,000 to 15,000 mobility devices every year.
According to The Century Foundation, the US airlines in 2019 handled 685,792 wheelchairs and mishandled under 1,836 a day. Air travel has become essential for long-distance journeys but for many disabled passengers it has been a path filled with challenges. According to United Spinal Association, the rights of airline passengers with disabilities have been routinely disregarded, endangering the disabled community. According to All Wheels Up, there are currently four million wheelchair users in the US which observed August 20 as the National Accessible Air Travel Day focusing on the need for accessible air travel for people with disabilities.
Airline carriers are required to follow the ACAA law since 1986. The federal law prohibits discrimination against any individual with a disability during air travel. It also ensures people with disabilities have the same rights as other passengers when flying. In 2022, the Department of Transportation (DOT) published the Airline Passengers with Disabilities Bill of Rights. This Bill of Rights describes the fundamental rights of air passengers with disabilities under the ACAA and its implementing regulation. According to All Wheels Up, there are currently 4 million wheelchair users in the US. Adults with disabilities spend $17 billion on travel annually, with $4 million in European travel, plus millions more in other developing world countries. There are no wheelchair spot on aeroplanes, like there are on buses or trains.
