14 CFR Part 382 Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Disability in Air Travel (Air Carrier Access Act): Preamble and Section-by-Section Analysis (with amendments issued through July 2010)

4. On-board wheelchairs

The existing rule requires that, on aircraft with more than 60 seats, the carrier must provide an onboard wheelchair in any case if the aircraft has an accessible lavatory, and on a passenger’s advance request even if the aircraft does not have an accessible lavatory. The rationale for the latter requirement is that some passengers with limited mobility may be able to use an inaccessible lavatory on their own but may need to be assisted down the aisle to the lavatory in an on-board wheelchair. The Foreign Carriers NPRM proposed that this requirement apply on aircraft with 50 or more seats, as distinct from the criterion of more than 60 seats in the existing regulation. The reason for this proposal was that 50-seat regional jets are becoming an increasingly important component of the fleets of many carriers, and the accommodation provided by this section should be made available to passengers who use those aircraft.

Carriers and their associations objected to the application of the provision to 50-seat aircraft. Carriers cited cost as one reason for their position. In addition, they said, 50-seat aircraft typically have only flight attendant on board. If that attendant is assisting a passenger using an on-board wheelchair, he or she will be unable to carry out other duties. This could create difficulties if an emergency occurred while the flight attendant was assisting a user of an on-board wheelchair, which might also obstruct the aisle in an emergency situation. In addition, carriers questioned whether the interior of a 50-seat regional jet could be configured to provide storage space for the on-board wheelchair when it was not in use.

While the cost estimates of commenters for on-board wheelchairs appear to be overstated, we believe that the operational concerns of carriers with respect to the use of on-board wheelchairs on 50-seat aircraft with one flight attendant have merit. In addition, the typically very confined spaces in lavatory units on these aircraft make their use by persons with limited mobility problematic. Consequently, the final rule will retain the existing rule’s provision applying on-board wheelchair requirements to aircraft with more than 60 seats.