MDA Updates on Air Travel Advocacy

With the busy holiday travel season, many members of the neuromuscular community may be wondering about the latest policy developments in accessible air travel. This blog provides a round-up of recent activity on the issue and news you can use as you make your own travel plans this winter. Remember that passengers with disabilities have rights, and airlines continue to have the responsibility to return your assistive devices in the same condition they received them.

DOT Wheelchair Rule: Enforcement pause & new resource

This fall, the US Department of Transportation issued its third notice that it would be using its enforcement discretion on four areas out of roughly a dozen major provisions of the final rule until December 2026. The four areas include:

1. Airline’s liability, if a passenger’s device is not returned in the condition received.
2. Frequency of refresher training required of those who assist passengers using assistive devices or those stowing assistive devices.
3. Passenger notifications about their wheelchairs and scooters.
4. Reimbursement of fare differences for a flight that can accommodate the measurements of the passenger’s mobility device.

The rationale provided aims to reduce regulatory burdens on industry.

Refresher training requirements have not yet gone into effect, with an original implementation deadline of June 2026, which may not be met with the latest enforcement notice. There were many concerns about what this meant for airline liability for wheelchair damage, which was the subject of a lawsuit brought by Airlines for America earlier this year.

In September, the Department issued its regulatory agenda for 2026, and within the long-term agenda was a potential future regulatory action titled ‘Wheelchair User Rule II’, indicating the administration is reconsidering airline obligations for wheelchair users on the four provisions noted above. While the agenda slated a notice of proposed rulemaking on the issue in August 2026, timing is not guaranteed.

MDA meeting with the Department of Transportation (DOT)

In late September, MDA staff and advocates met with the then-Acting General Counsel Gregory Cote to share our concerns with delayed enforcement of the wheelchair user rule and the need for greater safety and protections for air travelers with disabilities in the neuromuscular community. The Department shared that it was committed to upholding the Air Carrier Access Act and that all areas of the rule not referenced in the regulatory agenda (e.g. loaner wheelchair accommodations, transport of delayed wheelchairs) would be enforced.

Coalition letter and DOT response

On September 16, MDA joined Paralyzed Veterans of America and other leading disability, veteran, and health organizations in a letter urging the Department to maintain the final rule and refrain from imposing any new regulatory burdens on passengers with disabilities, highlighting the variety of burdens travelers with disabilities already experience in the air travel process.  We received a response to the letter from now-Principal Deputy General Counsel Gregory Cote on October 30 stating that the Department was “committed to upholding the principles of the Air Carrier Access Act” and that the rulemaking referenced in the regulatory agenda was initiated to “restore commonsense governance while also protecting the essential rights of individuals with disabilities”. Cote shared that the Department would carefully consider comments in determining how to proceed with rulemaking, and MDA intends to be fully engaged in that notice and comment period.

ACAA Advisory Committee nominations solicited

The 2018 Federal Aviation Administration Reauthorization law established an Air Carrier Access Act Advisory Committee, responsible for studying certain issues impacting the disability community. Committee members had been named earlier this year, then terminated with the change in administration. New nominations have been solicited, and the application process closed in September. We are waiting for new members to be named and we hope that applications from the neuromuscular community are among those selected.

Research update: Wheelchair spots on planes

With the shared vision of a future where the neuromuscular community can travel from the safety and comfort of their wheelchairs, MDA provided grant funding in 2025 to All Wheels Up to conduct crash testing on in-flight wheelchair restraint systems at the National Institute for Aviation Research at Wichita State University, following successful testing in previous years. The results were presented at the All Wheels Up Global Forum in September, finding both restraint systems tested successfully met FAA static load requirements for single-aisle aircraft without structural failure, meaning the surrogate wheelchair used in testing remained secured to the aircraft floor for the duration of the test. These findings confirm that the technology exists, and now policymakers must act to fund further research and pilot programs for onboard wheelchair securement.

The year ahead

Until air travel is truly accessible for all, MDA’s advocacy work on accessible air travel continues. In 2026, we know the Department of Transportation will be pursuing regulatory changes to the wheelchair user rule finalized last December and are prepared to safeguard the protections we’ve secured for passengers with disabilities, especially those who use wheelchairs. But, we’ll need your help! Join the MDA Action Network, take action when you receive alerts, and continue to share your air travel stories with us.