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Notice of temporary exemption
application: Airnorth

Exemption application

The Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission has received, by letter
dated 15 April 2003, an application for temporary exemption under section
55 of the DDA regarding carriage of passengers with disabilities on low
capacity aircraft, for a period of five years.

The exemption application is attached together
with two supporting documents, a proposed classification
system for passengers with assistance requirements and procedures
regarding medical certification where relevant.

See also submissions received in response

An extract from the exemption application is set out below:

"Capiteq Limited seeks an exemption under section 55 of the DDA
from the provisions of sections 23 and 24 of the DDA for a period of five
years, regarding:

• Lack of access to aircraft seats for people requiring wheelchair access,
  where this is prevented by limited aisle width.
• Lack of access to aircraft or seats for passengers requiring lifting,
  where this cannot be performed in compliance with the requirements of
  applicable occupational health and safety laws due to space constraints
  of the particular aircraft.
• Requirement for a passenger to be accompanied by an assistant if the
  passenger is:-
  • unable to understand instructions given by the flight crew (even
    if instructions are available in both visual and audible form),
    or
  • unable to exit the aircraft unaided in case of an emergency, or
  • unable to administer themselves oxygen unaided during a depressurisation
    of an aircraft during an emergency, or
  • unable to attire themselves in a life jacket during an emergency
    landing over water (where applicable to the flight concerned).

A person who is mobility impaired may require to be lifted into and out
of the aircraft. Where this assistance is unable to be provided by Airnorth
due to the application of occupational health and safety laws, and due
to space constraints of the particular aircraft, the person may have to
provide his/her own assistants. In such a case Airnorth will offer the
person travel at our proposed "greater freedom fare" where the
cost of travel will be no more than 25% of the normal economy fare for
that sector (75% discount which makes it significantly cheaper than even
the heaviest discounted airfare). This discount is intended to defray
any costs the person may incur in providing the necessary assistants.

When an assistant is required by Airnorth to accompany the person on
the flight for safety reasons, travel by the assistant is also to be at
our proposed "greater freedom fare" where the cost of travel
will be no more than 25% of the normal economy fare for that sector."

Note: By further email (received 1 May) Airnorth has amended
its application to clarify that an exemption is also sought from the operation
of the Disability Standards for Accessible Public Transport on the same
conditions:

"Would you please amend the application to add an application for
Exemption from the Requirements of the Disability Standards for Accessible
Public

Transport 2002 for those of our aircraft which have 30 or more seats,
namely all but one of our Brasilia fleet.It is our understanding that
this second application is necessary because the Standards define a Small
Aircraft as an aircraft with less than 30 seats for the carriage of passengers.
We understand that the two

applications will be processed in parallel."

Call for submissions

In accordance with its policy on exemption applications, the Commission
seeks to give interested parties an opportunity to participate in the
process of considering this application.

Accordingly, the Commission seeks submissions by 10 June 2003, preferably
by email to disabdis@humanrights.gov.au
. Submissions may also be addressed by mail to Disability Rights Unit,
Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission, GPO Box 5218, Sydney 1042.
Where submissions are made by mail a copy on disc should be included if
possible.

To promote open public discussion and exchange of views, the Commission
intends to make submission publicly available by posting submissions made
electronically on its Internet site. Requests for material to be treated
as confidential should be clearly indicated.

The Commission will decide further actions on this matter after considering
submissions received.

Graeme Innes

Deputy Disability Discrimination Commissioner

28 April 2003