FIMITIC

Brussels, December 15, 2005

The European Parliament has adopted a regulation this week with major improvement of the rights of air travellers with disabilities. The new initiative, in line with the common rules on compensation and assistance to passengers and the recently published EU blacklist of unsafe airlines, aims to reinforce the rights of European consumers, without forgetting people with disabilities, explicitly including not only people with reduced mobility, but also those with other disabilities, such as individuals who are blind, partially sighted, deaf, hard of hearing, or who have an intellectual disability.
Disabled persons and persons with reduced mobility may not be refused transport on the grounds of their disability or lack of mobility. They also have the right to receive the necessary assistance they need in order to use air transport. This assistance must be given free of charge and must enable them to, for example, check-in and register baggage, to board the aircraft, with the provision of lifts, wheelchairs or other assistance needed, to disembark from the aircraft, to move to the toilet facilities if required or to handle all necessary mobility equipment, such as electric wheelchairs, subject to advance warning of 48 hours.



For details on this new resolution read the European Parliament´ s press release