(Finance) – The commitment of Enac, IATA and some Italian companies to improve the travel experience of passengers with reduced mobility and to protect their rights and flight quality: today, 29 May 2023, at Verona the second ENAC-IATA (International Air Transport Association) workshop was held, entitled “To succeed better”, hosted by Air Dolomiti and created in collaboration with ITA Airways and Neos.
It was a moment of confrontation, which saw the main players of the transport airplane discuss how to ensure adequate services for special passengers and guarantee the right to travel in a simple way, even in the most complex situations.
The works were opened with i Greetings institutional of the honorable Alexandra Locatelli, Minister for Disabilities. “The commitment of ENAC, IATA and the airlines for the protection and mobility of passengers with disabilities, reduced mobility or other frailties, is an important signal regarding universal accessibility – explained the Minister Alessandra Locatelli -. Today’s occasion confirms the shared commitment to improve the quality of life andautonomy of the people. The right to live a dignified, full and participatory life, as enshrined in the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, also passes from the possibility of moving and travelling, and therefore from the construction of accompaniment paths to voyage which become opportunities for people, but also for territories. It is a great challenge that must see us increasingly united, because only if we combine our energies and strengthen collaboration at all levels can we achieve concrete objectives”.
In his speech the President ENAC Pierluigi Of Palma he underlined: “On these occasions, the mobility of the future is planned, which must be within everyone’s reach. ENAC, for years now, has been investing resources and time in looking for the best possible solutions to facilitate the air travel of passengers with reduced mobility. A country in step with the times, projected to the future, must look to the world of air transport, because the plane will increasingly be a means that will concern the masses. For such reason it is not conceivable leave someone behind: everyone must have the opportunity to fly. It is necessary to find the right compromise between safety and the right to air mobility for those people who are dealing with a disability, even one that today may appear incompatible with air travel. Furthermore, the attention reserved by Minister Locatelli makes the need for everything to be carried out with coordination between institutions and the private sector even more central”.
The works were moderated by the lawyer. Laura Pierallini and hosted speeches, among others, by the Deputy Director General of ENAC Mauro Bell; by Paola Severini Melograni, journalist and Director of AngeliPress.com; by Alberto Casamatti, DGO & Accountable Manager of Air Dolomiti, for IATA, international association co-organizer of the meeting, Stefania Tomasini, Regional Manager Ground Operation and Linda Ristagno, Assistant Director External Affairs.
The director for the protection of passengers’ rights ENAC, Mark De Laurentiisin his speech, highlighted a regression of the numbers in relation to reservations of assistance in airports. If in 2019 71% of travelers who needed it requested assistance well in advance, in 2022 the percentage dropped to 68%, a step backwards that must ring an alarm bell. The common effort, therefore, must be to adopt concrete actions to raise the percentage of pre-notifications, in favor of both people who need assistance and all the operators who must provide it.
Many advances have been made since the first edition of the workshops of last year: various activities have sprung up, which are still ongoing, including, for example, the creation of theItalian Disability Advisory Board – IDAB, a permanent technical table that meets periodically. Representatives of IATA, ITA Airways, Air Dolomiti sit at the table; Neos, AICALF, Assaeroporti and Aeroporti 2030, the main national associations dealing with disabilities – FISH, FIABA, FAND and ANGLAT, the tour operator and sales agency associations – FIAVET, ASTOI, FTO, AIDIT, MAAVI and ASSOVIAGGI, as well as representatives of the Ministry for Disabilities and INPS.
Another important passage born from this important one collaboration is represented by the project One Click Away intended to simplify and make fully accessible assistance booking systems at the airport and on board aircraft and useful information for people with disabilities and reduced mobility. L’Enacmoreover, continues to carry on the project “Autism – Traveling through the airport” conceived by the Organization and implemented in collaboration with Assairports and the airport management companies, continued subsequently also with the support of Aeroporti 2030 and with the participation of the ITA Airways company.
Rafael Schvartzmann, Regional Vice President Europe IATA, said: “Once again, this meeting brought together key figures from the aviation industry. Since the number of passengers with disabilities is expected to increase over time, ENAC, together with its working group, is playing a key role in promoting concrete measures. Collaboration between the parties is key and this approach should serve as an example. Attention needs to be paid to the practical challenges the sector faces in providing appropriate services for disabled people both at airports and on board. IATA supports the creation and sharing of ‘best practices’ that can contribute to a better travel experience for all”.
The commander Albert Casemates, General Manager Operations & Accountable Manager of Air Dolomiti, who hosted the meeting, highlights: “This second meeting, which brings together many important players in the air transport panorama, makes us very confident about the great awareness-raising work that is been done together with IATA, Enac and the other companies; we are truly creating a great synergy, based on communication and the real desire to be concrete and operational to create a common practicable path, dedicated to all passengers with disabilities and reduced mobility”
“ITA Airways works to guarantee everyone’s right to mobility, it is committed to promoting universal access to air transport” – he declared Fabio Lazzerini Chief Executive Officer and General Manager of ITA Airways. “Participation in the IATA One Click Away initiative and the launch of the Autism Project, developed in collaboration with ENAC, are a fundamental part of this path, of this objective. We therefore warmly welcome the initiative of this workshop – added the CEO Fabio Lazzerini – because we believe that to create truly useful services to support passengers and their companions, starting from the trip planning phase, the involvement of all sector associations and transport players”.
“The work done so far – he comments Simon Cattle, Ground Services Manager of Neos – is the tangible sign of the will of all operators in the sector to make inclusiveness a concrete and feasible goal. We are satisfied with the results obtained with the “One Click Away” project and through the training program aimed at travel agents: a first step towards making air transport increasingly accessible to all passengers with disabilities and reduced mobility”.