Italian flag-carrier Alitalia is to introduce an on-board safety card written specifically for sight-impaired passengers, which includes three-dimensional relief illustrations, as well as instructions in Braille symbols.
The safety card has been developed by the Italian civil aviation administration ENAC as well as the country's association of institutions for the blind, Federazione Nazionale delle Istituzioni Pro Ciechi.
Last November a European Aviation Safety Agency report on air transport of "special categories" of passengers, carried out by TUV Rheinland, recommended mandatory carriage of Braille safety cards.
Several major carriers offer safety cards written in Braille, on request, to sight-impaired travellers, although ENAC claims its new development is the first of its kind. Alitalia will initially carry the instruction card on board around 90 Airbus aircraft.
It takes the form of a ring-bound booklet in which large-print text is overlaid with Braille characters, with a colour scheme whose contrast is designed specifically to enhance readability.
Illustrations show the aircraft layout in raised relief, including tactile elements showing the location of emergency exits, lavatories and seats, as well as information on fastening seat-belts, brace positions, and the use of oxygen masks.
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© ENAC |
"Alitalia has chosen this new on-board welcoming policy for travellers with visual impairments, an indication of the carrier's particular focus on passenger needs," says ENAC president Vito Riggio.
The airline says it will also provide personalised safety briefings to passengers along with the new card.
Alitalia says that it transports thousands of sight-impaired passengers every year and says that the safety card "represents a further step along its path of innovation and social responsibility".
Source: Air Transport Intelligence news
