WASHINGTON — Citing "numerous serious violations" of the laws protecting airline passengers with disabilities, the U.S. Department of Transportation fined American Airlines $50 million on Wednesday.
The penalty follows an investigation by the DOT that found violations at American over a four-year period between 2019 and 2023.
The DOT says it uncovered cases of "unsafe physical assistance that at times resulted in injuries and undignified treatment of wheelchair users, in addition to repeated failures to provide prompt wheelchair assistance." The investigation also determined American mishandled thousands of wheelchairs by damaging them or delaying their return.
“The era of tolerating poor treatment of airline passengers with disabilities is over,” said Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg in a statement. “With this penalty, we are setting a new standard of accountability for airlines that violate the civil rights of passengers with disabilities. By setting penalties at levels beyond a mere cost of doing business for airlines, we’re aiming to change how the industry behaves and prevent these kinds of abuses from happening in the first place.”
In February, the DOT brought dozens of disability advocates to Washington to talk about a proposed regulation that would require airlines to up their game. Among them was Thomas Braddy who directs the National Council on Independent Living. "The reason I didn't fly anymore and I gave up flying was because too much damage to my chair," Braddy testified.
He said not flying has held him back in his career and stopped him from traveling with his wife.
Illinois Senator Tammy Duckworth lost both of her legs in the Iraq War. She spoke at the meeting and said a wheelchair is like a part of her body. "If this is broken, you've broken my legs."
Duckworth said airlines routinely damage her own wheelchairs and others. In fact, Duckworth says they broke 892 wheelchairs in a single month last year. "Imagine if the American public saw that the airlines broke 892 pairs of legs in a single month. There would be hue and cry, but there hasn't been."
In announcing the fine, the DOT highlighted this video recorded at the Miami International Airport showing an American Airlines employee dropping a wheelchair down a baggage ramp.
American says it has a long-standing commitment to serving passengers with disabilities. It says it's spent $175 million this year "in services, infrastructure, training and new technology to help ease their journey and transport their specialized equipment." In a release, the airline notes it received more than eight million requests for wheelchair assistance in 2023. Of those, the company says less than 0.1% of customers submitted a disability-related complaint.
"Today's agreement reaffirms American's commitment to taking care of all our customers," said Julie Rath, a senior vice president at American.
The DOT says the problems it uncovered are not unique to American Airlines. The department says it has active investigations into similar violations at other U.S. airlines.
NPR Transportation Correspondent Joel Rose contributed reporting.
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