Airport Security and
People With Disabilties
Steps Taken to Ensure New Security Requirements Preserve
and Respect the Civil Rights of People with Disabilities
The Air Carrier Access Act (ACAA) and the Department of
Transportation's implementing rules prohibit discriminatory treatment of persons
with disabilities in air transportation.
Since the terrorist hijackings and tragic events of
September 11, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has issued directives to
strengthen security measures at airline checkpoints and passenger screening
locations. In securing our national air transportation system, where much of
FAA's efforts have been directed to date, steps were also taken to ensure that
the new security procedures preserve and respect the civil rights of passengers
with disabilities.
This Fact Sheet provides information about the
accessibility requirements in air travel in light of strengthened security
measures by providing a few examples of the types of accommodations and services
that must be provided to passengers with disabilities.
The examples listed below are not all-inclusive and are
simply meant to provide answers to frequently asked questions since September 11
concerning the air travel of people with disabilities.
Check-in
 | Air
carriers must provide meet and assist service (e.g., assistance to gate or
aircraft) at drop-off points. The lack of curbside check-in, for certain
airlines at some airports, has not changed the requirement for meet and
assist service at drop-off points. |
Screener checkpoints
| Individuals
assisting passengers with disabilities are allowed beyond the screener
checkpoints. These
individuals may be required to present themselves at the airlines' check-in
desk and receive a "pass" allowing them to go through the screener
checkpoint without a ticket. |
| Ticketed
passengers with their own oxygen for use on the ground are allowed beyond
the screener checkpoints with their oxygen canisters once the canisters have
been thoroughly inspected. If
there is a request for oxygen at the gate for a qualified passenger with a
disability, commercial oxygen providers are allowed beyond the screener
checkpoints with oxygen canisters once the canisters have been thoroughly
inspected. Commercial
oxygen providers may be required to present themselves at the airlines'
check-in desk and receive a "pass" allowing them to go through the
screener checkpoint without a ticket. |
| The
limit of one carry-on bag and one personal bag (e.g., purse or briefcase)
for each traveler does not apply to medical supplies and/or assistive
devices. Passengers with
disabilities generally may carry medical equipment, medications, and
assistive devices on board the aircraft. |
| All
persons allowed beyond the screener checkpoints may be searched.
This will usually be done through the use of a hand-held metal
detector, whenever possible. Passengers may also be patted down during
security screenings, and this is even more likely if the passenger uses a
wheelchair and is unable to stand up. Private
screenings remain an option for persons in wheelchairs. |
| Service
animals, once inspected to ensure prohibited items are not concealed, are
permitted on board an aircraft. Any
backpack or sidepack that is carried on the animal will be manually
inspected or put through the X-ray machines.
The service animal's halter may also be removed for inspection. |
| Assistive
devices such as walking canes, once inspected to ensure prohibited items are
not concealed, are permitted on board an aircraft.
Assistive devices such as augmentative communication devices and
Braille 'N Speaks will go through the same sort of security screening
process as used for personal computers. |
| Syringes
are permitted on board an aircraft once it is determined that the person has
a documented medical need for the syringe. |
| Personal
wheelchairs and battery-powered scooters may still be used to reach
departure gates after they are inspected to ensure that they do not present
a security risk. Any backpack
or sidepack that is carried on the wheelchair will be manually inspected or
put through the X- ray machines. |
| Personal
wheelchairs will still be allowed to be stowed on board an aircraft. |
| Air
carriers must ensure that qualified individuals with a disability, including
those with vision or hearing impairments, have timely access to information,
such as new security measures, the carriers provide to other passengers.
For example, on flights to Reagan Washington National Airport, persons are
verbally warned to use the restrooms more than a half an hour before arrival
since after that point in time passengers are required to remain in their
seats. |
Alternative formats are necessary to ensure that all
passengers, especially deaf persons, understand new security measures such as
the one at Reagan Washington National.
We hope this information is helpful to you.
Members of the public, who feel they have been the subject
of discriminatory actions or treatment by air carriers, may file a complaint by
sending an email, a letter, or a completed complaint form to the Aviation
Consumer Protection Division (ACPD).
ACPD's e-mail address is airconsumer@ost.dot.gov and its
mailing address is: Aviation Consumer Protection Division, U.S. Department of
Transportation, Room 4107, C-75, Washington, DC
20590. Complaint forms that consumers may download and/or print are
available at http://www.dot.gov/airconsumer/problems.htm .
Issued on 10/29/01 by the Office of the Assistant General
Counsel for Aviation Enforcement and Proceedings and its Aviation Consumer
Protection Division.
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