Air Carrier Access Act Technical Assistance Manual (2005)

Chapter 3: Assisting Air Travelers with Disabilities, Planning a Trip

A. Advance Notice

B. Information about the Aircraft

C. Mobility Aids and Assistive Devices

D. Service Animals

E. Accommodations for Air Travelers who are Deaf, Hard of Hearing, or Deaf-Blind

F. Communicable Diseases

G. Medical Certificates: When are They Allowed?

H. Your Obligation to Provide Services and Equipment

I. Attendants

A. Advance Notice

You cannot require passengers with disabilities to provide advance notice of their intention to travel or of their disability except as provided below. [Sec. 382.33(a)]

Advance Notice Only for Particular Services and Equipment

You may require up to 48 hours’ advance notice and one hour’s advance check-in from a passenger with a disability who wishes to receive the following services:

• Transportation for a battery-powered wheelchair on an aircraft with fewer than 60 seats;

• Provision by the carrier of hazardous materials packaging for the battery of a wheelchair or other assistive device;

• Accommodations for 10 or more passengers with disabilities who travel as a group; and

• Provision of an on-board wheelchair on an aircraft that does not have an accessible lavatory for passengers with disabilities who can use an inaccessible lavatory but need an on-board chair to do so. [Secs. 382.33(b)(5)-(8)]

Example: While making his reservation, a passenger with a disability gave the reservation agent 48 hours’ advance notice that he would need an aisle chair to access the lavatory on his upcoming flight. The flight is on an aircraft with more than 60 seats and it does not have an accessible lavatory. During the call, the passenger is made aware of the fact that the lavatory is inaccessible, but explains that he can use an inaccessible lavatory as long as he has access to a carrier-provided aisle chair. Because the passenger has complied with the advance notice requirement here, normally this information would have been entered into the passenger’s reservation record (otherwise known as the passenger name record (PNR)) by the carrier and the request for an aisle chair would have been handled through that notification process. You are a new gate agent for your carrier and when this passenger approaches you at the gate more than an hour before the scheduled departure time of the flight and asks about the aisle chair, you are not sure how to reply. What should you do?

To begin, as a matter of good customer service, you should tell the passenger that you are not sure but you will find out for him. You should ask a colleague and, if necessary, contact a CRO. When you ask your colleague, you are told that all aircraft with more than 60 seats in your carrier’s fleet maintain an in-cabin aisle chair. Once you receive this information you should assure the passenger that an aisle chair is available so he can use the inaccessible lavatory on the aircraft.

Advance Notice for Optional Services and Equipment

Although carriers are not required to provide the following services or equipment, if they choose to provide them, you may require 48 hours’ advance notice and one hour’s advance check-in for:

• Medical oxygen for use on board the aircraft;

• Carriage of an incubator;

• Hook-up for a respirator to the aircraft’s electrical power supply; and

• Accommodation for a passenger who must travel on a stretcher. [Secs. 382.33(b)(1)-(4)]

If appropriate advance notice has been given and the requested service is available on that particular flight, you must ensure that the service or equipment is provided.

Make a Reasonable Effort to Accommodate, Even Without Advance Notice

In addition, even if a passenger with a disability does not meet the advance notice or check-in requirement, you must make a reasonable effort to furnish the requested service or equipment, provided that making such accommodation would not delay the flight. [Secs. 382.33(c) and (e)]

Example 1: Mr. Thomas uses a battery-powered wheelchair. He travels frequently between Washington, DC, and New York for business. One day, he finds out that he has an important business meeting in New York and must travel up to New York that afternoon. He has no time to provide advance notice regarding the transportation of his battery-powered wheelchair and arrives at the gate 45 minutes before his flight is scheduled to depart. The aircraft for the flight has fewer than 60 passenger seats. What should you do?

Carriers may require 48 hours’ advance notice and one-hour advance check-in for transportation of a battery-powered wheelchair on a flight scheduled to be made on an aircraft with fewer than 60 seats. Carriers may require the same advance notice for provision of hazardous materials packaging for a battery. However, airline personnel are required to make reasonable efforts to accommodate a passenger who fails to provide the requisite notice to the extent it would not delay the flight. Therefore, you must make a reasonable effort to accommodate Mr. Thomas as long as it would not delay the flight.

Mr. Thomas is a frequent traveler on this particular route and he knows that usually it is feasible to load, store, secure, and unload his battery-powered wheelchair and spillable battery in an upright position [Sec. 382.41(g)(2)] or detach, “box”, and store the spillable battery [Sec. 382.41(g)(3)] within about 20-25 minutes. If this is the case, you must accommodate Mr. Thomas, his battery-powered wheelchair, and the spillable battery even though Mr. Thomas did not provide advance notice, since doing so would not delay the flight.

Example 2: Ms. Webster must travel with medical oxygen and shows up at the airport without providing advance notice of her need for medical oxygen. As a policy, your carrier does not provide medical oxygen on any flights. What should you do?

To begin, you should confirm that your carrier does not provide the optional service of medical oxygen for use on board a flight. If no medical oxygen service is available on your carrier, you should explain this to Ms. Webster and tell her that the carrier cannot accommodate her.

As a matter of customer service, you may direct Ms. Webster to another carrier that does provide medical oxygen service in that market. The passenger should be aware, however, that the provision of medical oxygen involves coordination with the passenger’s physician to determine the flow rate and the amount of oxygen needed and arranging for the delivery of the oxygen by the carrier to the point of origin of the passenger’s trip.

Therefore, normally, it is not possible to accommodate a passenger who needs medical oxygen on a flight unless the advance notice is provided because the accommodation cannot be made without delaying the flight.

If Aircraft is Substituted, Make an Effort to Accommodate

Even if a passenger with a disability provides advance notice, sometimes weather or mechanical problems require cancellation of the flight altogether or the substitution of another aircraft. Under these circumstances, you must, to the maximum extent feasible, assist in providing the accommodation originally requested by the passenger with a disability. [Sec. 382.33(f)]

B. Information about the Aircraft

You should be familiar with and be able to provide information about aircraft accessibility for passengers with a disability when they request this information. [Secs. 382.21 and 382.45] When feasible, you should provide information pertaining to a specific aircraft to be used for a specific flight. In general, you must take into account safety and feasibility when seating passengers with disabilities. [Secs. 382.37(a) and 382.38(j)]

If requested, you should be able to provide information on the following:

• Any limitations concerning the ability of the aircraft to accommodate an individual with a disability;

• The location of seats, if any, in a row with a movable aisle armrest and any seats which the carrier does not make available to individuals with a disability (e.g., exit rows);

• Any limitation on the availability of storage facilities in the cabin or in the cargo bay for mobility aids or other equipment commonly used by an individual with a disability; and

• Whether the aircraft has a lavatory accessible to passengers with a disability.

C. Mobility Aids and Assistive Devices

If, in assisting a passenger with a disability, a carrier employee or contractor takes apart the passenger’s mobility aid or assistive device (e.g., a wheelchair), another carrier employee or contractor must reassemble it and ensure its prompt return to the passenger with a disability in the same condition in which the carrier received it. [Secs. 382.43(a) and (b)] You must permit passengers with a disability to provide written instructions concerning the disassembly and reassembly of their wheelchairs. [Sec. 382.41(h)] You cannot require passengers with disabilities to sign a waiver of liability for damage to or loss of wheelchairs or other assistive devices. [Sec. 382.43(c)] However, you may note preexisting damage to wheelchairs or other assistive devices.

D. Service Animals¹

A service animal is (i) an animal individually trained and which performs functions to assist a person with a disability; (ii) an animal that has been shown to have the innate ability to assist a person with a disability, e.g., a seizure alert animal; or (iii) an emotional support animal. You should be aware that there are many different types of service animals that perform a range of tasks for individuals with a disability.

Service Animal Permitted to Accompany Passenger on Flight and at Seat Assignment

You must permit dogs and other service animals used by passengers with a disability to accompany the passengers on their flights. In addition, you must permit a dog or other service animal to accompany a passenger with a disability to the passenger’s assigned seat and remain there as long as the animal does not obstruct the aisle or other areas that must remain unobstructed for safety reasons. [Sec. 382.55(a)] The service animal must be allowed to accompany the passenger unless it poses a direct threat to the health or safety of others or presents a significant threat of disruption to the airline service in the cabin. See also Appendix VI, DOT Guidance Concerning Service Animals in Air Transportation; FAA Flight Standards Information Bulletin for Air Transportation (FSAT) #04-01A, “Location and Placement of Service Animals on Aircraft Engaged in Public Air Transportation” http://www.faa.gov/avr/afs/fsat/fsatl.htm.

If Service Animal Cannot be Accommodated at Assigned Seat

If a service animal cannot be accommodated at the seat of the passenger with a disability and if there is another seat in the same class of service where the passenger and the animal can be accommodated, you must offer the passenger the opportunity to move to the other seat with the service animal. Switching seats in the same class of service must be explored as an alternative before requiring that the service animal travel in the cargo compartment. [Sec. 382.37(c)]

Verification of Service Animals

Under particular circumstances, you may see a need to verify whether an animal accompanying a passenger with a disability qualifies as a service animal under the law. You must accept the following as evidence that the animal is indeed a service animal:

• the credible verbal assurances of a passenger with a disability using the animal,

• the presence of harnesses or markings on harnesses,

• tags, or

• identification cards or other written documentation. [Sec. 382.55(a)(1)]

Keep in mind that passengers accompanied by service animals may not have identification or written documentation regarding their service animals. See also Appendix VI, DOT Guidance Concerning Service Animals in Air Transportation.

Carriers may require that passengers traveling with emotional support animals present current documentation (i.e., dated within a year of the date of travel) from a mental-health professional stating that:

• the passenger has a mental health-related disability;

• the passenger needs the animal for the mental-health condition; and

• the provider of the letter is a licensed mental-health professional (or a medical doctor) and the passenger is under the individual’s professional care.

Even if you receive sufficient verification that an animal accompanying a passenger is indeed a service animal, if the service animal’s behavior in a public setting is inappropriate or disruptive to other passengers or carrier personnel, you may refuse to permit the animal on the flight and offer the passenger alternative accommodations in accordance with part 382 and your carrier’s policy (e.g., accept the animal for carriage in the cargo hold).

Example 1: A passenger arrives at the gate accompanied by a pot-bellied pig. She claims that the pot-bellied pig is her service animal. What should you do?

While generally speaking, you must permit a passenger with a disability to be accompanied by a service animal, if you have a reasonable basis for questioning whether the animal is a service animal, you may ask for some verification. Usually no written verification is required.

You may begin by asking questions about the service animal, e.g., “What tasks or functions does your animal perform for you?” or “What has its training been?” If you are not satisfied with the credibility of the answers to these questions or if the service animal is an emotional support animal, you may request further verification.

You should also call a CRO if there is any further doubt in your mind as to whether the pot-bellied pig is the passenger’s service animal.

Finally, if you determine that the pot-bellied pig is a service animal, you must permit the service animal to accompany the passenger to her seat as long as the animal doesn’t obstruct the aisle or present any safety issues and the animal is behaving appropriately in a public setting.

Example 2: A deaf passenger is planning to board the plane with his service animal. The service animal is a hearing dog and is small enough to sit on the deaf passenger’s lap. While waiting to board the flight, the hearing dog jumps off the passenger’s lap and begins barking and nipping at other passengers in the waiting area. What should you do?

Since you have already made the determination that the hearing dog is a service animal and may accompany the deaf passenger on the flight, you may reconsider the decision if the dog is behaving in a manner that seems disruptive and infringes on the safety of other passengers. You should carefully observe the hearing dog’s behavior and explain it in detail to a CRO (if the CRO is on the telephone). If, after careful consideration of all the facts presented, the CRO decides not to treat the dog as a service animal, you should explain your carrier’s policy regarding traveling with animals that are not being allowed in the passenger cabin as service animals.

Requests for Seat Assignments by a Passenger Accompanied by a Service Animal

For a disabled passenger traveling with a service animal, you must provide, as the passenger with a disability requests, either a bulkhead seat or a seat other than a bulkhead seat. [Sec. 382.38(a)(3)]

If carriers provide special information concerning the transportation of animals outside the continental United States to any passengers, you must provide such information to all passengers with a disability traveling with a service animal on the flights. [Sec. 382.55(a)(3)]

E. Accommodations for Air Travelers who are Deaf, Hard of Hearing, or Deaf-Blind

If your carrier makes available a telephone reservation and information service to the public, you must make available a text telephone (TTY) to permit individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing to make reservations and obtain information. The TTY must be available during the same hours as the telephone service for the general public and the same wait time and surcharges must apply to the TTY as the telephone service for the general public. [Secs. 382.47(a) and (b)]

F. Communicable Diseases

Passengers with a Communicable Disease Are Permitted on Flight

Except as described below, you must not (i) refuse transportation to; (ii) require provision of a medical certificate from; or (iii) impose any condition, restriction, or requirement not imposed on other passengers on, a passenger with a communicable disease or infection. [Sec. 382.51(a)]

If Direct Threat to Health or Safety of Others, Limitations May be Imposed

Only if a passenger with a communicable disease or infection poses a direct threat to the health or safety of others, can you take any of the actions listed above. [Sec. 382.51(b)(1)] A direct threat means a significant risk to the health or safety of others that cannot be eliminated by a modification of policies, practices, or procedures, or by the provision of auxiliary aids or services.

If you are faced with particular circumstances where you are required to make a determination as to whether a passenger with a communicable disease or infection poses a direct threat to the health or safety of others, you must make an individualized assessment based on a reasonable judgment, relying on current medical knowledge or the best available objective evidence. If the presentation of a medical certificate would alleviate concerns over the passenger’s condition, or reasonable modification of policies, practices, or procedures would lessen the risk to other passengers, then you should consider this in making such an individualized assessment. You should also confer with appropriate medical personnel and a CRO when making this assessment.

If the Passenger Poses a Direct Threat to the Health and Safety of Others

If, in your estimation, a passenger with a communicable disease or infection poses a direct threat to the health or safety of other passengers, you may (i) refuse to provide transportation to that person; (ii) require that person to provide a medical certificate stating that the disease at its current stage would not be transmittable during the normal course of a flight or, if applicable, describing measures that would prevent transmission during the flight [Sec. 382.53(c)]; or (iii) impose on that passenger a special condition or restriction (e.g., wearing a mask). You must choose the least restrictive of the three options set forth above that would accomplish the objective. [Sec. 382.51(b)(4)]

At all times, as a matter of good customer service, you should treat the passenger with courtesy and respect.

G. Medical Certificates: When are they Allowed?

A medical certificate is a written statement from the passenger’s physician saying that the passenger is capable of completing the flight safely without requiring extraordinary medical assistance during the flight. Except under the circumstances described below, you must not require medical certification of a passenger with a disability as a condition for providing transportation.

You may require a medical certificate only if the passenger with a disability is an individual who

• is traveling on a stretcher or in an incubator (where such service is offered);

• needs medical oxygen during the flight (where such service is offered); or

• has a medical condition that causes the carrier to have reasonable doubt that the passenger can complete the flight safely without requiring extraordinary medical assistance during the flight. [Sec. 382.53 (a) and (b)]

Medical Certificate and a Passenger with a Communicable Disease or Infection

In addition, if you determine that a passenger with a communicable disease or infection poses a direct threat to the health or safety risk of others, you may require a medical certificate from the passenger. [Sec. 382.53(c)(1)] The medical certificate must be dated within 10 days of the flight date. [Sec. 382.53(c)(2)]

In the event that you determine the need for a medical certificate, you should indicate to the passenger with a disability the reason for the request. You should base your request on the reasons set forth under the law and outlined above. At all times, you should treat the passenger from whom you are requesting a medical certificate with courtesy and respect.

Example: A passenger arrives at the gate with her six year old daughter. The girl’s face and arms are covered with red lesions, resembling chicken pox. What should you do?

Generally, you must not refuse travel to, require a medical certificate from, or impose special conditions on a passenger with a communicable disease or infection. However, if a passenger appears to have a communicable disease or infection that poses a direct threat to the health or safety of other passengers, you may be required to make a determination about the best course of action based on the seriousness of the health risk and the ease of disease transmittal. For a communicable disease or infection to pose a direct threat, the condition must both be readily transmitted under conditions of flight and have serious health consequences (e.g., SARS). Medical conditions that are easily transmitted in aircraft cabins but have limited health consequences (e.g., a common cold) as well as conditions that are difficult to transmit in aircraft cabins but have serious health consequences (e.g., AIDS) do not pose a direct threat to the health or safety of passengers.

The first thing you should do is interview the passenger and her mother to obtain basic information about the girl’s condition. This exchange should be done discreetly and in a courteous and respectful manner. If you still have a question about the nature of the child’s condition that will impact decisions about transportation, you should contact a CRO and explain the situation.

Here, the mother tells you and the CRO that the child has chicken pox but is no longer contagious. The CRO would likely consult with appropriate medical personnel to verify whether the child could be contagious based on the mother’s statement.

If there is a reasonable basis for believing that the passenger poses a direct threat to the health or safety of others, you must choose the least restrictive alternative among the following options: (i) refusing transportation to the individual; (ii) requiring a medical certificate; or (iii) imposing a special condition or limitation on the individual. If the medical support people indicate that there is a chance that the child is no longer contagious but only if a certain number of days have passed since the outbreak of the lesions, you could request a medical certificate before you permit the child to travel. Having discussed the situation with the passenger and her mother and consulted the CRO and the medical support personnel, the request for a medical certificate appears to be reasonable under the circumstances and the least restrictive of the three options.

Keep in mind that section 382.53(c)(2) specifies that the medical certificate be from the child’s physician and state that the child’s chicken pox would not be communicable to other passengers on the flight. The medical certificate must also include any conditions or precautions that would have to be observed to prevent the transmission of the chicken pox to other passengers and be dated within ten days of the date of the flight. If the medical certificate is incomplete or if the passenger is attempting to travel before the date specified in the medical certificate or without implementing the conditions outlined to prevent transmission, the child would not be permitted to fly.

H. Your Obligation to Provide Services and Equipment

When assistance getting on or off a plane, making flight connections, or receiving transportation between gates is requested by a passenger with a disability, or offered by carrier personnel and accepted by the passenger, you must provide it. [Sec. 382.39(a)] More specifically, you must provide, as needed, the following:

• services personnel

• ground wheelchairs

• boarding wheelchairs

• ramps or mechanical lifts. [Sec. 382.39(a)(1)]

Aircraft with more than 60 passenger seats having an accessible lavatory must be equipped with an operable on-board wheelchair. [Sec. 382.21(a)(4)] On-board wheelchairs must be equipped with footrests, armrests which are movable or removable, adequate occupant restraint systems, a backrest height that permits assistance to passengers in transferring, structurally sound handles for maneuvering the occupied chair, and wheel locks or another adequate means to prevent chair movement during transfer or turbulence. The on-board wheelchair must be designed to be compatible with the maneuvering space, aisle width, and seat height of the aircraft on which it is to be used, and to easily be pushed, pulled, and turned in the cabin environment. [Sec. 382.21(a)(4)(iii)]

You must permit a passenger with a disability to provide written instructions and should accept oral advice from the passenger concerning the disassembly and reassembly of the passenger’s wheelchair. [Sec. 382.41(h)] In addition, you should be familiar with how (i) a passenger accesses and uses a particular service or piece of equipment; (ii) the passenger’s needs are being met by the service or piece of equipment; and (iii) that service should be provided or how that equipment operates, is disassembled, stored properly, and reassembled. Finally, consistent with good customer service, you should treat the passenger with a disability with courtesy and respect at all times by keeping the passenger informed about any problems or delays in providing personnel or equipment in connection with an accommodation.

Example: A passenger using a battery-powered wheelchair arrives at the gate and requests that the footrests and joy stick be removed and stowed. He expresses concern because after his last flight, the airline personnel initially misplaced one of the components of the wheelchair when they disassembled it and stored it during the flight. What should you do?

Presuming the aircraft is the type that can accommodate the storage of a battery-powered wheelchair, you are required to stow his wheelchair properly on board and you may, if needed, provide an aisle chair. As a preliminary matter, you should receive training from your carrier on the use of equipment and services for passengers with a disability, including battery-powered wheelchairs. In addition to the formal training, it is worthwhile to review with the passenger how best to meet his needs. For example, you should ask the passenger to review the procedure for disassembling the wheelchair, storing parts during the flight, and reassembling the wheelchair. Once you are clear about the process, you should communicate with the appropriate employees to ensure that they understand the passenger’s needs with respect to his battery-powered wheelchair. Your carrier should have a policy and process for ensuring that the battery-powered wheelchair is returned to the passenger at his destination in the same condition in which it was received by the carrier. Problems concerning the reassembly of expensive battery-powered wheelchairs can be minimized by following section 382.41(g)(2), which governs the proper storage of such wheelchairs. See also Chapter 5, Section D.

I. Attendants

Except under limited circumstances, you cannot require a person with a disability to be accompanied by an attendant. [Sec. 382.35(a)] See Chapter 4, Section E for a discussion of the requirements for an attendant under the law.