American Airlines has reached a settlement with the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), reaffirming its commitment to enhance the travel experience for customers using wheelchairs and mobility devices, it said in a press release.
In 2023, the airline served more than eight million passengers who requested assistance and transported over 146,000 wheelchairs and other personal mobility devices. Despite challenging airport environments and factors such as weather and air traffic control, American provides these services free of charge in accordance with all regulations.
“This year, American invested over $175 million in service, infrastructure and training to improve the travel experience for customers travelling with wheelchairs or other mobility devices,” said Julie Rath, senior vice-president of airport operations, reservations and service recovery at American Airlines. “Today’s agreement reaffirms American’s commitment to taking care of all of our customers.”
As a result of these investments, the airline has improved its wheelchair and scooter handling rate by more than 20 per cent since 2022. Customer claims for mishandled wheelchairs and scooters have declined by over 20 per cent in the past two years.
American became the first U.S. airline to launch an automated tag for mobility devices, aiming to ensure more accurate and consistent information for team members handling the devices and to provide enhanced visibility throughout the customer’s travel journey. The airline has also delivered wheelchair movers to all of its hubs and gateways and invested in wheelchair lifts at more than 20 airports, with five more expected to be in place by the end of the year.
Despite these improvements, there are instances where services are disrupted or result in harm to passengers or their equipment. American investigates every complaint and routinely provides compensation to dissatisfied customers, including trip credits, miles, vouchers and cash.
The airline noted that less than 0.1 per cent of customers who requested wheelchair assistance submitted a disability-related complaint. “American is working to get that number to zero,” the company stated.
The settlement with the DOT is part of American’s ongoing efforts to address the special challenges passengers with disabilities face during air travel.