Delta Flight Products, along with Air4All presented some updates to their accessibility products which I covered in depth last year. This year, they have continued to push forward, refining its First Class Seat, but also an Economy Class product.
The products allow a wheelchair passenger to remain in their seat for the entire journey.
They have been developed by Delta Flight Products and UK-based consortium AirforAll, which includes PriestmanGoode, Flying Disabled, SWS Certification and Sunrise Medical – to bring these concepts to reality.
The First Class Product has been through a few upgrades, as it looks and feels like the current First Class product that is rolled out on Delta narrowbody aircraft.
In a “normal” configuration, it maintains the seat count and business class comfort. This is then folded into itself, to provide a space for a wheelchair, with the anchor points underneath
Finally, the wheelchair can be positioned and secured using the hooks embedded into the floor module. They are rated for above the 16G rating that the US FAA requires to keep restrained.
Of course, the magic is when the seat needs to be converted – a process that too around a minute in total to execute in a ground demonstration environment, and allows the seat to be anchored down.
Building on the First Class Product, the Delta Flight Products have worked on an Economy Class version of the seat. In this configuration, a standard three-across seat can be configured into a wheelchair position, with the seat next door available for sale.
Again, this is designed to be installed in Row 1 of an aircraft, providing a space for the passenger wheelchair to park and be anchored down.
The principle remains the same – in its normal operating mode, it’s a three-across seat. When a wheelchair is placed in the space, two seats are taken up. In this configuration, one seat is “lost” due to the width of a chair taking two equivalent economy seats.
Finally, Delta Flight Products showed off an accessibility toilet. The lavatory includes a unique door opening which is located near the boarding door and incorporates a fixed panel that can be unlatched to accommodate entry of an onboard wheelchair with maximum privacy from the aircraft cabins.
This lavatory includes touchless features, and the design allows a passenger with a disability to easily access additional functions, such as the sink, directly from the toilet before transferring back to the wheelchair.
Lighting in the lavatory supports persons of low vision or colour sensitivity and DFP is exploring future options such as a “smart mirror” that could close caption PA announcements for the deaf/hard of hearing and include tactile symbols to assist the blind /low vision community.
In Quotes
Daniel MacInnes, Director of PriestmanGoode said in the run-up to AIX.
“Since AIX last year it’s been an exciting few months of collaboration and refinement of the design – and constant engagement with the wheelchair user community. We’ve listened and this year we’re leading the way with a family of seat products and other solutions, all part of a holistic view of the journey and an experience that’s inclusive for all.”
Rick Salanitri, President of Delta Flight Products added:
“DFP’s involvement with these seats and accessible lavatory is fundamental to our goal of always working towards improving the passenger experience and making travel more accessible for all,”
“We look forward to seeing these products through their testing and certification phases, which will prepare them for aircraft identification & installation, resulting in a more seamless travel journey for the disability community.”
Travel has to be inclusive
We’ve all seen the stories of damaged wheelchairs (and the cost and reputational damage that’s gone with it. In the past few years, the industry has started to move forward in addressing the needs of passengers who need accessible products beyond subtitles on an IFE System.
With a mixture of passenger demand, the possibilities to reduce costs (because powered wheelchairs in themselves are not cheap items, with them being hard to replace, given they are very customised to the person’s needs), as well as possible regulatory action to ensure there is a valid accessibility option for passengers of reduced mobility.
We’ve seen this with railways, as they adjust to such requirements – and air travel must follow.
The approach here allows for wheelchair passengers and their helpers (if they are travelling with one) to sit together and offer assistance.
I am still excited about this – and its possibilities for commercialisation into a real product that can help more people travel.
Economy Class and Beyond was a guest of Delta Flight Products for access to the stand (and demonstration), as well as Christoper Wood of the Air4All consortium (representing PriestmanGoode, Flying Disabled, SWS Certification and Sunrise Medical) at Aircraft Interiors Expo 2024
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