The 1986 Air Carrier Access Act has been updated and expanded to include foreign carriers, but travelers with disabilities still have a responsibility to help keep air travel as accessible as possible.
By Kleo King
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The Air Carrier Access Act (ACAA) was enacted into law in 1986 and the implementing regulations were promulgated four years later by the United States Department of Transportation (DOT). A lot has happened in the 21 years since the passing of the legislation.
Significant amendments to the regulations have been added, including requiring level-entry boarding, mechanical lifts or other devices for all aircraft with 19 or more passenger seats, and removing the baggage liability limits for damage an airline causes to a mobility device. The law itself was amended in 2000 to include foreign carriers to comply with the nondiscrimination mandate against people with disabilities. While the regulations have not been amended to outline the responsibilities of foreign carriers, DOT has stated that such an amendment will be issued in the upcoming months.
Finally, DOT has met with various advocacy groups and air carriers to understand issues and create policy to make air travel friendlier to passengers with disabilities. Topics of these meetings have included service animals, oxygen systems, passengers who are visually impaired and hearing impaired, and security screening. DOT has also created a Technical Assistance Manual and a model training program to assist airlines in complying with the ACAA. To review these materials and any new directives issued by DOT, visit www.dot.gov.
Your Voice Matters
A passenger with a disability, who believes an air carrier or one of its employees has violated the ACAA, should at the very least complain to the Enforcement Office at DOT. Enforcement is one of the best ways to effect change. The Enforcement Office pursues enforcement actions on the basis of the number of complaints against a particular airline and on the number of times a particular issue is raised. For example, from 2000 to 2003, DOT investigated eight major airlines for violations relating to boarding and assisting passengers who use wheelchairs for mobility. Of these eight investigations, seven resulted in consent orders directing the airlines to stop discriminating against passengers with disabilities and assessed civil penalties of as much as $1.35 million. DOT also pursues isolated incidents if the behavior is so egregious and is supported by the fact presented.
Complaining, either informally or formally, to DOT may result in modifying the airline’s behavior and accessing civil penalties. Often, DOT will allow the airline to offset a civil penalty by spending the money on improving service for passengers with disabilities. Southwest was assessed a civil penalty of $500,000 and was allowed to use $450,000 of its penalty to cover part of the costs associated with retrofitting all its older Boeing 737s with a closet to be used for the stowage of passengers’ folding wheelchairs.
You can file complaints via e-mail to airconsumer@ost.dot.gov or postal mail to Aviation Consumer Protection Division, US Department of Transportation, 400 7th Street, SW, Room 4107, Washington, DC 20590.
While it is important to be heard after your trip if something goes wrong, it is more important to ensure your trip takes off without a hitch. There are several things you can do to ensure a smooth trip. Make sure the airline knows the assistance, if any, you require. If something begins to go wrong at the airport ask to speak with the Complaint Resolution Official (CRO) as these are airline employees who have received additional training in serving customers with disabilities. And if all else fails call DOT’s complaint hotline at 1-800-778-4838 (voice) or 1-800-455-9880 (TTY) to obtain assistance in real time.
United Spinal can assist you in two ways. We have written a publication that outlines your rights under the ACAA because an informed traveler is a satisfied traveler. You can download a copy of United Spinal’s Accessible Air Travel brochure by going to www.abletotravel.org and download the publication or receive a copy of the publication by calling our toll free Publications Hotline, 800-4440120. If you want the assistance of a travel agency that knows the needs of travelers with disabilities and has worked with solving problems prior to the day of flight with all major airlines, book your trip through ABLE to Travel by calling 888-211-2635.
Kleo King is senior vice president of Accessibility Services and ABLE to Travel.
