Aircraft: Oxygen

Mr. David Anderson
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what his policy is on airline companies' obligations with regard to allowing people with a lung condition to (a) access oxygen provided, (b) take their own (i) portable oxygen cylinders and (ii) portable oxygen concentrator on board flights; and what guidance he has issued on this matter.

Jim Fitzpatrick
European Regulation 1107/2006 on the rights of disabled persons and persons with reduced mobility when travelling by air, came fully into force in July 2008. It imposes a number of obligations on airlines with respect to the services they provide, including an obligation to carry passengers' medical equipment free of charge. However, there are no specific obligations to carry or provide oxygen in the cabin.

To help the air transport industry to comply with its obligations under the regulation, the Department for Transport has published an updated version of its code of practice ‘Access to Air Travel for Disabled Persons and Persons with Reduced Mobility’. The code includes a section on oxygen which advises that air carriers may approve the carriage of gaseous (not liquid) oxygen or air cylinders required for medical use, but notes that carriers will wish to ensure that these do not pose a risk to security. The code also recommends that portable oxygen concentrator devices should normally be allowed if battery powered. Where air carriers wish to supply medical oxygen to passengers on request, the code acknowledges that it would be possible to make a charge for this service to cover the provision of the oxygen.