[Wasagdu] Delta Airlines

[Michael Forzano]

This is very concerning, please keep us updated.

Mike

On 1/19/18, Becky Frankeberger via WASAGDU <wasagdu at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> We are in communication with the Department of Transportation and in the
> coming days will follow up with the membership as we learn more. ACB
> strongly opposes any policy that creates an undue burden for passengers
> with
> service animals.
>
>
>
> Delta introduces enhanced requirements for customers traveling with service
> or support animals effective March 1
>
> Link to press release:
> https://news.delta.com/delta-introduces-enhanced-requirements-customers-trav
> eling-service-or-support-animals-effective
> <https://mandrillapp.com/track/click/30489975/news.delta.com?p=eyJzIjoid09Ud
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>
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> ATLANTA, Jan. 18, 2018 – Delta Air Lines (NYSE: DAL) is taking steps to
> further protect its customers, employees and service and support animals by
> implementing advance documentation requirements for those animals. This
> comes as a result of a lack of regulation that has led to serious safety
> risks involving untrained animals in flight. The new requirements support
> Delta’s top priority of ensuring safety for its customers, employees and
> trained service and support animals, while supporting the rights of
> customers with legitimate needs, such as disabled veterans, to travel with
> trained animals.
>
>
>
> Delta carries approximately 700 service or support animals daily - nearly
> 250,000 annually. Putting this into perspective, Delta carries more than
> 180
> million passengers annually. Customers have attempted to fly with comfort
> turkeys, gliding possums known as sugar gliders, snakes, spiders and more.
> Ignoring the true intent of existing rules governing the transport of
> service and support animals can be a disservice to customers who have real
> and documented needs. Delta has seen an 84 percent increase in reported
> animal incidents since 2016, including urination/defecation, biting and
> even
> a widely reported attack by a 70-pound dog. In 2017, Delta employees
> reported increased acts of aggression (barking, growling, lunging and
> biting) from service and support animals, behavior not typically seen in
> these animals when properly trained and working.
>
>
>
> New Procedures & Updated Requirements
>
> In compliance with the Air Carrier Access Act, Delta provides in-cabin
> travel for service and support animals without charge. The guidelines,
> effective March 1, require that all customers traveling with a service or
> support animal show proof of health or vaccinations 48 hours in advance. In
> addition to the current requirement of a letter prepared and signed by a
> doctor or licensed mental health professional, those with psychiatric
> service animals and emotional support animals will also need to provide a
> signed document confirming that their animal can behave to prevent
> untrained, sometimes aggressive household pets from traveling without a
> kennel in the cabin. These measures are intended to help ensure that those
> customers traveling with a trained service or support animal will no longer
> be at risk of untrained pets attacking their working animal, as has
> previously been reported.
>
>
>
> “The rise in serious incidents involving animals in flight leads us to
> believe that the lack of regulation in both health and training screening
> for these animals is creating unsafe conditions across U.S. air travel,”
> said John Laughter, S.V.P. – Corporate Safety, Security and Compliance. “As
> a leader in safety, we worked with our Advisory Board on Disability to find
> a solution that supports those customers with a legitimate need for these
> animals, while prioritizing a safe and consistent travel experience.”
>
> In developing the updated requirements, Delta solicited the feedback and
> input of its 15-member Advisory Board on Disability, a group of disability
> advocates established more than a decade ago and composed of diverse Delta
> frequent flyers with a range of disabilities.
>
>
>
> Air Carrier Access Act
>
> As the Title 14 Code of Federal Aviation Regulations § 382.117 dictates,
> “you must permit the service animal to accompany the passenger with a
> disability at any seat in which the passenger sits, unless the animal
> obstructs an aisle or other area that must remain unobstructed to
> facilitate
> an emergency evacuation.” However, untrained animals that have been
> misidentified as service and support animals are regularly reported to
> occupy seats, stretch across the aisles and move throughout the cabin
> during
> flight, often without restriction. That same regulation also requires that
> airlines determine whether any factors preclude travel in the cabin by a
> service animal. Such factors include: “whether the animal would pose a
> direct threat to the health or safety of others” and “whether it would
> cause
> a significant disruption of cabin service."
>
>
>
> “We are committed to consistently improving our policies, prioritizing the
> safety of all Delta customers and employees,” said Laughter. “We have
> received extensive customer feedback through calls, emails and social posts
> – many from among those within the disability community – urging Delta to
> take action. This new policy is our first step in better protecting those
> who fly with Delta with a more thoughtful screening process.”
>
>
>
> What Customers with Service and Support Animals Need To Know
>
> Any customer traveling with a service or support animal after March 1 will
> need to meet the new requirements as outlined below:
>
>
>
>  Traveling with a trained service animal
>
> • Customers traveling with a trained service animal will be required to
> submit a signed Veterinary Health Form and/or an immunization record
> (current within one year of the travel date) for their animal to Delta’s
> Service Animal Support Desk via Delta.com at least 48 hours in advance of
> travel.
>
>
>
> Traveling with an emotional support animal or psychiatric service animal
>
> • Customers traveling with an emotional support animal or psychiatric
> service animal will be required to submit a signed Veterinary Health Form
> and/or an immunization record (current within one year of the travel date),
> an Emotional Support/Psychiatric Service Animal Request form which requires
> a letter prepared and signed by a doctor or licensed mental health
> professional, and a signed Confirmation of Animal Training form to Delta’s
> Service Animal Support Desk  via Delta.com at least 48 hours in advance of
> travel.
>
>
>
> Delta is creating a Service Animal Support Desk for customers traveling
> with
> service and support animals to improve their travel experience and ensure
> they receive excellent customer service. This desk will verify that the
> above documentation is received and confirm the customer’s reservation to
> travel with the animal, prior to arrival at the airport. If a form is not
> completed, a representative will communicate with the customer via e-mail
> to
> request the missing or incomplete items.
>
>
>
> Delta does not accept exotic or unusual service or support animals.
> Additional information on types of accepted animals and other questions
> related to traveling with service and support animals is available here.
>
>
>
> Delta Air Lines serves more than 180 million customers each year. In 2017,
> Delta was named to Fortune’s top 50 Most Admired Companies in addition to
> being named the most admired airline for the sixth time in seven years.
> Additionally, Delta has ranked No.1 in the Business Travel News Annual
> Airline survey for an unprecedented seven consecutive years. With an
> industry-leading global network, Delta and the Delta Connection carriers
> offer service to 314 destinations in 54 countries on six continents.
> Headquartered in Atlanta, Delta employs more than 80,000 employees
> worldwide
> and operates a mainline fleet of more than 800 aircraft. The airline is a
> founding member of the SkyTeam global alliance and participates in the
> industry’s leading transatlantic joint venture with Air France-KLM and
> Alitalia as well as a joint venture with Virgin Atlantic. Including its
> worldwide alliance partners, Delta offers customers more than 15,000 daily
> flights, with key hubs and markets including Amsterdam, Atlanta, Boston,
> Detroit, Los Angeles, Mexico City, Minneapolis/St. Paul, New York-JFK and
> LaGuardia, London-Heathrow, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Salt Lake City, São
> Paulo, Seattle, Seoul, and Tokyo-Narita. Delta has invested billions of
> dollars in airport facilities, global products and services, and technology
> to enhance the customer experience in the air and on the ground. Additional
> information is available on the Delta News Hub, as well as delta.com,
> Twitter @DeltaNewsHub, Google.com/+Delta, and Facebook.com/
>
>
>
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> <https://mandrillapp.com/track/open.php?u=30489975&id=4331b7e331e44273bbbdb3
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