Delta Air Lines subsidiary Delta Flight Products has teamed up with UK-based consortium Air 4 All to protoype a new cabin seat option for wheelchair users.
Currently, powered wheelchair users have to use an airline-provided wheelchair when traversing airports and boarding aircraft. After being transferred from chair to chair and rolled down the jetbridge, they will be transferred one more time into a seat.
Their personal chair is checked by the airline and typically put into the cargo hold, and there have been many instances of carriers damaging and breaking the mobility devices — many of which are worth thousands and specifically tailored to the user.
In 2022 alone, 11,389 wheelchairs were mishandled by US airlines, according to the US Department of Transportation’s February 2023 Air Travel Consumer Report.
Because of the risks, Delta and Air 4 All want to squash the current practice with a product that would allow passengers with reduced mobility (PRM) to stay in their chairs for the entire curb-to-curb journey.
A working prototype will be officially debuted at the Aircraft Interiors Expo on June 6, but the seat still would need to be certified and tested before making its way to a plane cabin. Take a look at the design.
