A BBC investigation has revealed that major airlines are charging some disabled passengers double fare to fly from the UK
According to The BBC:
Nearly 30 carriers contacted by the BBC said passengers with mobility problems must purchase a full-price ticket for a personal care assistant (PA).
This is despite Civil Aviation Authority guidance on EU law, maintained by the UK post-Brexit, urging airlines to subsidise the cost.
Disabled people with mobility issues say the situation is discriminatory.
Melody Powell has been saving up to visit friends in New York who kept her company online during years of Covid shielding, but says the extra cost makes flying impossibly expensive.
Melody, 25, uses a wheelchair and needs to fly with a PA to help her reach the toilet and get off the plane. She now has enough money to pay for her own fare – almost £600 – but is still a long way from being able to afford another full-price ticket.
“Seeing how much it will cost me to fly because I’m disabled is quite scary,” she says.
Richard Amm is unable to visit his family in South Africa during the festive season or at short notice, when PA tickets can cost £1,500.
When his 77-year-old mother broke three ribs recently, flying over was too costly.
“I would love to visit my mum,” Richard says. “But facing double the cost, it just isn’t really feasible for me to go.”
The 40-year-old uses a wheelchair and has trouble lifting his arms, so needs help on long flights.
He feels the current situation is “totally discriminatory” and makes it even harder for disabled people to manage the already high costs of living.
“Most of us are too poor to even afford a ticket for ourselves,” Richard says.
According to disability charity Scope the average additional monthly cost of being disabled is about £600 – because of the higher cost of specialist equipment and higher usage of essentials like energy.
But the employment rate for disabled people is 54%, compared to 82% for non-disabled people.
BBC News contacted more than 100 airlines, including all that fly from Heathrow, to find out how many insist on a PA and whether they offer a discount.
Only Pakistan International Airlines offers PA discounts for both international and domestic travel.
Some 28 airlines confirmed that they require passengers with mobility problems to purchase an additional PA ticket at full price – these include major airlines like Emirates, Etihad Airways, American Airlines and Virgin Atlantic, as well as budget airlines such as Easyjet, Ryanair, Jet2 and Eurowings.
A further 40 carriers, including Turkish Airlines and Delta, list either a recommendation or mandatory requirement to travel with a PA on their website, but do not clearly set out how much it costs, nor whether the individual or the airline should pay.
Some airlines in Australia, Malaysia, Canada and India offer concessions for domestic flights only, and Aegean said it examines requests on a case-by-case basis.
The remaining 33 airlines either did not reply to the BBC’s request, had no information listed or stopped operating prior to publication.
British Airways told the BBC that it provided discounted PA fares on direct flights to Brazil and US, but refused to specify by how much.
US law allows for subsidised tickets, but only if the airline believes a PA is necessary for safety reasons and the individual does not.
But in reality, the BBC has been told, this excludes the majority of disabled passengers as it is extremely rare for the clause to be activated – as most people who are told they need a PA already accept that they do.
Being told by airlines to travel with, and pay for, a PA is a common frustration for disabled passengers, says Josh Wintersgill, a wheelchair user and entrepreneur who is trying to improve aviation accessibility.
“With many not requiring companions, being forced to travel with someone feels very undermining and incurs additional costs. This is significantly unfair and borderline discriminatory,” he says.
He says there is a need for “drastic international collaboration” to improve “outdated and ineffective regulations and guidelines”.
European aviation regulations, maintained by the UK post-Brexit, explicitly advise airlines to offer discounts for passengers who require an escort, but they are advisory only, and cannot be enforced.
The CAA, which regulates UK aviation policy set by the Department of Transport, also recommends free or discounted PA tickets, but again lacks the power to impose them.
The CAA’s chief, Anne Bowles, told the BBC that while there was no legal requirement for airlines to offer free or discounted seats to an accompanying person, “our view is that it is best practice for airlines to do so”.
