Manufacturers have been warned by the European Commission that aircraft designs must accommodate disabled passengers better – or they will face future sanctions.
The European Parliament has approved a bill of rights for disabled passengers that makes airport operators responsible for ensuring a minimum level of assistance for all people with reduced mobility, although service provision can be contracted out to third parties.
However, a clause was added to the bill urging carriers to “take into account the needs of disabled persons and persons with reduced mobility when deciding the design of new and newly refurbished aircraft”. The bill’s sponsor, MEP Robert Evans, says he hopes the non-binding clause will ”stimulate debate between airlines and aircraft manufacturers on access, especially for wheelchair passengers.”
He expects carriers covered by the new law to press Airbus, Boeing and regional jet manufacturers to consider new configurations, such as several rows of quick-change removable seats, in new and retrofit cabin designs.
Disabled rights activists say air travel has been “off limits” to disabled people for too long. Sources at Scope, a UK charity for the disabled, say it will push for access to be mandatory in new aircraft designs if the industry does not respond to this voluntary plea.
Another long-term aim is to carry passengers with more severe disabilities, he says. “It ought to be possible to design an aircraft to handle people in electric life-sustaining wheelchairs.”
The new law, due to be in place by late 2007, makes denial of carriage to anyone disabled illegal within the European Union, so long as the carrier is given 48h notice of the passenger’s special needs.
However, the rules place final safety oversight with national aviation authorities, which could lead to “loopholes” until precedent decides a safe limit on such matters as emergency evacuation procedures, Evans admits.
JUSTIN WASTNAGE / LONDON
Source: Flight International
