These Are The Airlines That Best Serve Passengers With Limited Mobility

Choosing the right airline that meets the demands of passengers with limited mobility is not easy. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, over 13% of U.S. adults have mobility disabilities. It means significant trouble walking or climbing stairs. It requires mobility aids, such as wheelchairs or scooters when traveling through airports or boarding flights to help passengers with limited mobility.

Since 1986, the Air Carrier Access Act has required airlines to provide equal access to passengers with disabilities. The responsibilities include the airlines’ handling of wheelchairs and scooters during boarding and deplaning.

A new study by Bounce analyzed data from the Air Travel Consumer Reports for the first quarter of 2022 to rank popular airlines based on how often they mishandle wheelchairs and scooters.

The researchers collected information from the Air Travel Consumer Reports for the first quarter of 2022 to rank airlines. It was based on how often they mishandle wheelchairs and scooters.

According to Bounce, seventeen airlines were ranked based on the percent of wheelchairs and scooters mishandled. An item is considered mishandled when a customer files a formal complaint after a flight. 

The total number of wheelchairs and scooters mishandled in the first quarter of 2022 was 2,894 out of 195,965, or about 1.5 wheelchairs per 100 boarded. The numbers displayed are rounded to the first decimal point.