Heathrow rated poor over access for disabled passengers

The proportion of Heathrow passengers using assistance increased 50% since 2019

Heathrow Airport has failed to meet minimum standards for disabled passengers over the past 12 months, the aviation regulator says.

The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) rated accessibility at the airport as "poor" for April-June 2022 and "needs improvement" for July 2022-March 2023.

The disability charity Scope said passengers were being "let down".

Heathrow Airport said it had a "strong plan" in place to improve and that it is now meeting targets.

Disability equality charity Scope is calling for tougher rules, meaning airports would be fined for failing disabled passengers.

Heathrow is the UK's busiest airport, serving almost 61.6m passengers last year, according to the CAA.

The findings have been announced as part of the regulator's Airport Accessibility Report, which assesses efforts at 26 of the UK's largest airports to provide disabled passengers and those with mobility problems a standard of service they are entitled to.

The report highlighted a 50% increase in the proportion of Heathrow passengers using its assistance service compared to 2019 levels, and added the airport was serving more people who required assistance than ever before.

Assistance includes wheelchair provision, access to accessible toilets and moving disabled people onto and off aircraft.

Heathrow says it is investing £55m to "underpin the delivery of consistently excellent service" for disabled passengers

Among other airports evaluated in the report, 18 consistently achieved a "good" or "very good" rating for the 2022-23 period including Belfast International, Cardiff, East Midlands and Edinburgh.

'Let down'

Charlotte Morley, of the disability equality charity Scope, said the report's findings are "a world away from the reality for disabled passengers who are still being let down far too often by the air industry".

"Far too many disabled people are left stranded on planes when assistance doesn't arrive on time, or land to find expensive wheelchairs have been damaged or lost on the way."

Heathrow's chief operations officer Emma Gilthorpe admitted the airport did not deliver an "appropriate level of service for passengers requiring extra support with their journey through the airport" last year.

"I want to reassure those passengers that we have put in place a strong plan which is turning that around and we are now meeting service targets.

"We are also kicking off a £55m investment programme which will underpin the delivery of consistently excellent service for this growing segment of passengers."

The CAA's joint interim chief executive Paul Smith said it was "important to acknowledge that there is still a way to go in providing a consistently good service for disabled and less mobile passengers across the industry". particularly for those with more complex needs, and throughout the busier summer months".

He added: "With 18 airports consistently achieving good or very good ratings, and others demonstrating significant improvements, the industry is making strides in returning accessibility levels to those seen before the Covid-19 pandemic."

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