General Informations

AIRPORT ASSISTANCE

EC Regulation No. 1107/2006 – 05 July 2006 provides that the managing body of an airport must establish the rules and quality standards to guarantee effective and efficient assistance to disabled persons and persons with reduced mobility (PRMs).

Aeroporti di Puglia pays maximum attention to needs of disabled persons and PRMs, so as to safeguard their rights pursuant to the aforementioned Regulation and in compliance with its quality standards. For this reason, it relies on specialised and trained personnel, applies appropriate procedures, and has made suitable infrastructure available to facilitate access to the service.

AEROPORTI DI PUGLIA S.p.A. is responsible for providing these services at the airports of Bari, Brindisi, and Foggia.

Compliance with this policy is monitored through surveys, objective checks, and internal audits. Aeroporti di Puglia relies on specialised personnel, who apply suitable assistance methods and procedures to ensure the following:

  • Efficient ground handling assistance measured through indicators regarding waiting times and service provision;
  • Personal safety in every ground handling service, ensured by the competence of the personnel and the suitability of the equipment used to assist the passengers, as well as by the application of suitable organisational procedures concerning the safety of disabled passengers and passengers with reduced mobility;
  • Complete and accessible information about flights, delays, baggage claim, available assistance services, and other services provided in the airport. This information is available in designated points of departure and arrival;
  • Communication with passengers ensured by the relative communication, information request, and complaint function.
HOW TO REQUEST THE SERVICE

Under the new Regulation, passengers can request assistance from the airline operating the flight with a prior notice of at least 48 hours from the published time of departure. The carrier must book the service by contacting the managing body (AEROPORTI DI PUGLIA) within 36 hours from departure.

The airline is the sole responsible for booking this service.

Passengers travelling with different airlines should request assistance from the carrier with which they start the journey to ensure assistance throughout their journey and during transits. It is essential to make sure that the entity of the passenger’s disability is indicated for all transits.

The Regulation establishes that the airline (its agents, or tour operators) must verify the PRM’s booking and embark them at an EU airport, provided that the passenger has a valid ticket and reservation.

Refusal of reservation and/or boarding may occur only for security reasons, or if the size of the aircraft or its doors makes the embarkation or carriage physically impossible. In this case, the airline shall immediately inform the passenger about the reasons for the refusal. Upon request, the airline must communicate these reasons in writing within five working days.

A disabled person or a person with reduced mobility who has been denied embarkation and any person accompanying this person will be offered the right to reimbursement or re-routing by the airline.

In case of assistance to children with disabilities, the airport staff will follow the same procedures as for adults.

 

IN CASE OF ASSISTANCE TO CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES, THE AIRPORT STAFF WILL FOLLOW THE SAME PROCEDURES AS FOR ADULTS.
  • all flights (scheduled and non-scheduled) departing from or in transit through EU airports;
  • all flights (scheduled and non-scheduled) departing from an airport located in a third-party Country, directed to EU airports, if the airline operating the flight is European.
INFORMATION ABOUT RECOMMENDED TIME OF ARRIVAL AT THE AIRPORT

PRMs must present themselves for check-in:

  • at the scheduled time as published by the air carrier or its agent, tour operator or airport managing body;
  • if no time is stipulated, no later than one hour before the published departure time, in compliance with EC Regulation 1107/2006.
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