Our accessibility services

You are required to provide a medical certificate before travelling if:

• You have an infectious or contagious disease, e.g. coronavirus, tuberculosis, or chickenpox, that could pose a direct threat to the health or safety of others on your flight.
• There is medical reasonable doubt that you can complete the flight safely without requiring extraordinary assistance during the flight.

Alternatively, we recommend that you ask your treating physician to complete Section 4 of the Fitness-for-Travel form.

You are required to provide the Fitness-for-Travel form completed by your treating physician before travelling if any of the medical conditions below apply to you.

Medical conditions:

• You have an infectious or contagious disease, e.g. coronavirus, tuberculosis, or chickenpox, that could pose a direct threat to the health or safety of others on your flight
• There is medical reasonable doubt that you can complete the flight safely without requiring extraordinary assistance during the flight
• You have severe anaemia, e.g. hemoglobin level below 90 g/L
• You have recently suffered a major fracture, or a cast was placed on a part of your body within 48 hours of your scheduled flight
• You have a cognitive impairment, e.g. Down syndrome, Alzheimer's disease
• You've had a seizure within 4 weeks of your scheduled flight
• You have chronic obstructive lung disease, e.g. emphysema, or a chronic heart condition
• You're travelling with an infant aged 7 days or less, a premature infant, or an infant less than 12 months old with a significant medical condition, who has recently undergone medical treatment
• You have suffered from a recent major medical incident, e.g. stroke, respiratory failure
• You've had an incident on board a previous flight or at the airport and may require medical attention
• You've undergone surgery within 2 weeks of your scheduled flight
• You have had thrombophlebitis, e.g. blood clots in your veins, in the 2 weeks preceding your scheduled flight

You can request medical approval by following the steps below at least 48 hours before departure:

• Print a copy of the Air Canada Fitness-for-travel form and:
  1. Complete 'Section A' by entering your name, contact information and flight details
  2. Have your treating physician complete all other sections that apply to your medical condition
• Email us your completed form or your medical certificate at acmedical@aircanada.ca or fax it to 1-888-334-7717 or 514-828-0027:
  1. Make sure the subject line of your email contains your date of travel (day/month/year), family and first name, and Booking Reference, e.g. 26/SEPT/2020, Jones, Mary, N3EI4E
  2. Provide a telephone number where we can reach you should we need more information
• The Air Canada Medical Assistance Desk will review your request and confirm if you are deemed fit for travel.
• We will offer to keep your completed form on file for 3 years.

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Disassembly, packaging, and reassembly

When required, we will disassemble your battery-powered mobility aid, package it and reassemble it upon arrival. For this:

• We ask that you bring along any instructions or special handling requirements that could help us with the disassembly and reassembly of your mobility aid. This information needs to be included in the Powered mobility aid information form.
• Bring along any specialized tools normally used to disassemble/reassemble your mobility aid.
• We may need to remove and pack batteries separately if the battery is not secured. Spillable batteries will also have to be removed if we need to tilt the mobility aid during the loading or stowing process. Note that policies for spillable batteries vary from one carrier to another. If you are making a connection to another airline, please contact the operating carrier for information on their policy.

Size restrictions

We will make every effort to accommodate you and your mobility aid, and if necessary, we will remove any cargo or baggage in order to make room for the storage of your mobility aid.

That said, when travelling with your own mobility aid, you need to make sure it fits through the cargo door of the aircraft.

The Air Canada Medical Assistance Desk is available to help you assess this to ensure your mobility aid can be accommodated. This may include working with you to change your booking so that you are travelling on an aircraft with a cargo door large enough for your mobility aid.

To ensure your mobility aid can be accommodated, check the table below for the maximum cargo door dimensions before booking your travel.

*Note that battery-powered wheelchairs are always loaded and stowed in an upright position.

Upon request, our airport agents will provide the following assistance at the airport:

• Provide wheelchair assistance to and from the door of the aircraft.
• Assist in transferring you between your wheelchair, other mobility aids, and the aircraft seat.
• Bring you to the airport washroom entrance with the use of a wheelchair, however, no assistance will be provided within the washroom. If you need assistance past the entrance of the washroom, you may need to be accompanied by your support person.
• Allow for the use of your own wheelchair or other mobility aid until it becomes necessary to store it and deliver it to you at the gate upon arrival.
• Bring you to a designated boarding waiting area close to the gate and periodically check on you.
• For smaller aircraft, passenger access ramps or lifts are made available at airports to allow you to safely board the aircraft.
• Allow boarding in advance of other customers to help you locate your seat and store your carry-on baggage. For this, you are advised to arrive at least 30 minutes prior to the recommended boarding times. Otherwise, we may request that you board after the other customers, especially in cases where you may require assistance from our airport agents.

Upon request, our cabin crew will provide the following assistance on board:

• Assist you in storing and retrieving your carry-on baggage.
• Assist you in moving to and from the aircraft washroom entrance with the use of the on-board wheelchair, however, no assistance will be provided within the washroom. If you need assistance past the entrance of the washroom, you may need to be accompanied by your support person.

Most of Air Canada's aircraft have facilities that are accessible to customers with disabilities. Door handles and locks, grab bars, soap dispensers, faucets, flush controls, and call buttons are designed to be operable with minimal single effort.

Check the list below for aircraft with accessible facilities before booking your travel to ensure your needs can be accommodated:

Aircraft type	On-board wheelchair	Wheelchair-accessible washroom
Air Canada
Boeing 777-300ER (77W)
Boeing 777-200LR (77L)
Airbus A330-300 (333)
Boeing 787-9 (789)
Boeing 787-8 (788)
Airbus A321-200 (321)
Boeing 737 MAX 8 (7M8)
Airbus A220-300 (223)
Airbus A320-200 (320)
Airbus A319-100 (319)
Air Canada Express
Embraer E175 (E75)
Mitsubishi CRJ900 (CR9)
Mitsubishi CRJ200 (CRJ)
De Havilland Dash 8-400 (DH4)
Air Canada Rouge
Rouge Airbus A321-200 (321)
Rouge Airbus A320-200 (320)
Rouge Airbus A319-100 (319)

We take great care in accommodating customers with mobility aids. However, despite our best efforts, mobility aids may sometimes be damaged, delayed or lost.

If you notice damage to your wheelchair or mobility aid upon arriving at your destination, we ask that you report it by following the steps below:

• File a report at the Baggage Claim area, immediately upon arrival. If you are unable to file a report upon arrival, please contact Air Canada Baggage Claims without delay.
• Provide the supporting documentation outlined in the above Baggage Claims form in order for us to process the claim.
• Note: Cases are assessed individually, and a written claim must be submitted within 7 days of receiving your mobility aid.

How to file a report

Visit Air Canada Baggage Claims within seven days of receiving your mobility aid.

1. Select Baggage Issues
2. Select Mobility Aid in the first dropdown menu
3. Select Damaged in the second dropdown menu

If your wheelchair or other mobility aid is delayed or damaged, we will provide you with a temporary replacement until your mobility aid is returned, promptly repair your mobility aid, and reimburse you for the expenses incurred as a result of the delay or damage.

In the rare event that your mobility aid is destroyed or lost, despite our best care and efforts, we will replace it with a comparable model. Please note that we do not enforce the maximum liability amounts set out in the Montreal Convention, or its predecessor, the Warsaw Convention, as stated in Air Canada's Conditions of Carriage and Tariffs.

If you need to use your approved portable battery-powered medical device during flight, you must:

• Contact the Air Canada Medical Assistance Desk at least 48 hours before departure and obtain medical approval before travel. We will, however, make a reasonable effort to accommodate requests made within 48 hours.
• If travelling with a Portable Oxygen Concentrator (POC), make sure it is an approved model.
• Familiarize yourself with how to use your device.
• Store your device under the seat in front of you at all times.

NOTE: Canned oxygen (also known as recreational or flavoured oxygen) is not accepted in checked or carry-on baggage.

Make sure to review our restricted and prohibited items for more details on what you can and cannot bring in your carry-on and checked baggage, types of batteries and their allowance, and battery safety best practices.

If you cannot bring your own Portable Oxygen Concentrator (POC), you have the option to purchase Air Canada's Medipak oxygen service. For this, simply contact the Air Canada Medical Assistance Desk at least 48 hours before departure and obtain medical approval before travel.

*Fees are based on approved flow rate and the flight duration of each Air Canada-operated flight segment in your itinerary.

If you require a Portable Oxygen Concentrator (POC) during your flight, you must contact the Air Canada Medical Assistance Desk at least 48 hours before departure and obtain medical approval.

Don’t see your model listed? Contact the Air Canada Medical Assistance Desk.

Approved models

• AirSep Focus
• AirSep FreeStyle / AirSep Freestyle 5
• AirSep LifeStyle* (If equipped with sticker: "RTCA/DO-160" Section 21 Category M Compliant)
• ARYA Portable Oxygen Concentrator (5 lbs Batteries: 8-Cell Battery (Single) 16-Cell Battery (Double)* ‡
• Belluscura X-PLOR
• Caire Freestyle
• Delphi RS-00400 (EVO Central Air)
• iGo (DeVilbiss) / iGo2 (Drive/DeVilbiss)
• Hi-Sanso Portable
• Inogen One OxyGo† / Inogen One G2† / Inogen One G3† / Inogen One G4† / Inogen One G5†
• Inova Labs LifeChoice / LifeChoice Activox / International Biophysics LifeChoice
• Invacare Platinum Mobile / Invacare Solo 2* / Invacare XPO2
• Nidek Nano ††
• Oxlife Freedom‡** / Oxlife Independence‡‡ / Oxlife Liberty
• Oxus RS-00400
• OxyGo FIT‡ / OxyGo NEXT‡
• Precision Medical Live Active Five POC / Precision Medical EasyPulse
• Respironics EverGo / Respironics SimplyGo
• SeQual Eclipse* (all models) / SeQual eQuinox (model 4000)* / Oxywell (model 4000)* / SeQual SAROS*
• Simply Go Mini
• Varon NT-1 / Varon NT-2
• VBOX Trooper*
• Zen-O / Zen-O Lite
• RHYTHYM P2-E6

Exceptions:

• Inogen BA-316 and BA 516 double battery packs are accepted.
  
  You may have an issue with acceptance of the double battery pack by airport security.
  
  Enforcement may vary from one country to another, therfore we cannot guarantee their acceptance by airport security.

• Due to limited stowage space, models marked by an asterisk cannot be accommodated in our Air Canada Signature Class cabin.
• † BA-316 and BA 516 double battery packs are accepted.
• * Due to limited stowage space, models marked by an asterisk (*) cannot be accommodated in our Air Canada Signature Class cabin.
• ‡ You may have an issue with acceptance of the double battery pack by airport security.
  
  Enforcement may vary from one country to another, therefore we cannot guarantee their acceptance by airport security.
• ** The double battery pack is permitted.
• ‡‡ Battery packs are 95 Watt Hours each. The unit can accommodate 2 battery packs installed

For flights within Canada only, Air Canada will reimburse certain customers for the concentrated oxygen they require and purchase from a service provider for the on-the-ground portion of their itinerary. The portion eligible for a refund includes three hours of oxygen and the time between connections.

Eligibility:

To be eligible for a refund, your oxygen supply:

• Must have been used prior to, upon disembarkation, or while connecting to a flight originating and terminating within Canada
• Must have been contracted and paid to a service provider
• Must not be covered by an insurance carrier, an employer, or a provincial health plan
• Must have been indicated as necessary on the Air Canada Fitness-for-travel form by your physician and verified by Air Canada's Occupational Health Department

We cannot be responsible for customers who may bring peanuts on board, have dog or cat dander on their clothing, or for any residue that may remain on or between seat cushions despite our aircraft grooming policies. However, we will ensure that a buffer zone is set up as a form of accommodation to customers with severe allergies to help minimize the risk of exposure.

Note the following buffer zone seating general conditions:

• We do not create full aircraft buffer zones or make general announcements. However, customers seated within the buffer zone will be briefed on board by the flight attendant prior to departure and advised to refrain from consuming any products containing the allergen.
• The size of the buffer zone varies depending on the aircraft type, size, and configuration.
• You may request to board in advance of other customers to clean your seat of any potential allergens. For this, you are advised to arrive at the gate at least 30 minutes prior to the check-in and boarding time. Otherwise, we may request that you board after the other customers.
• We do not allow children (8-11 years) who have severe allergies to travel as unaccompanied minors. Children (12-18 years) are required to travel with a support person if suffering from severe allergies unless they are capable of self-administering their medication.

If you have a severe allergy to cats or dogs, it is your responsibility to always carry your asthma inhaler, as well as hand sanitizer, and take precautions such as bringing wet wipes to clean surrounding areas.

To request a buffer zone, please note the following:

• Contact the Air Canada Medical Assistance Desk at least 48 hours before departure and obtain medical approval for travel. We will, however, make a reasonable effort to accommodate requests made within 48 hours.
• We have designated seating areas in each aircraft and cabin type, as follows:

Economy cabin	All other cabins
The last five rows	The first row

Boeing 777-300ER (77W) aircraft shown above. Other aircraft may vary.

We do our best to assist and protect customers travelling with us who have severe food or environmental allergies. However, we cannot control the aircraft environment or what other customers may bring on board.

Despite our best efforts, products we serve and offer for sale do contain various ingredients that may be allergens for some customers.

If you're allergic or sensitive to products that may be found in an aircraft cabin, it is your responsibility to always carry the proper medication, e.g. epinephrine auto-injectors or inhalers, and other protection such as bringing wet wipes to clean surrounding areas, using hand sanitizer and packing your own snacks.

To request a buffer zone, please note the following:

• Contact the Air Canada Medical Assistance Desk at least 48 hours before departure. We will, however, make a reasonable effort to accommodate requests made within 48 hours.
• The buffer zone will be created on board the aircraft.
• In our Air Canada Signature Class cabin, the buffer zone consists of the suite occupied by the customer with severe allergies.

Sometimes, due to the nature of your disability, you may require a special seating arrangement such as seats with liftable or removable armrests, proximity to the washrooms and exits, or a seatbelt extender.

You can request special seating simply by following these steps:

• Contact the Air Canada Medical Assistance Desk at least 48 hours before departure. We will, however, make a reasonable effort to accommodate requests made within 48 hours.
• If you require extra space due to the nature of your disability, in addition to the advance notice mentioned above, you will need to obtain medical approval before travel.
• To ensure your needs can be accommodated, check the list below for aircraft that include our accessible special seating before booking your travel.

In situations where you may require additional seating space due to the nature of your disability, extra seating is available as follows:

When requesting an extra seat, note the following:

• You are required to contact the Air Canada Medical Assistance Desk at least 48 hours before departure. We will, however, make a reasonable effort to accommodate requests made within 48 hours.
• Adjacent seats are assigned in advance by the Medical Assistance Desk with the purpose of accommodating your disability.
• A single reservation and ticket are required in the name of the person travelling. Duplicate bookings under the same name are not permitted, nor are identical bookings made under different names or pseudonyms.
• Due to the cabin configuration, extra seating is not available in the Air Canada Signature Class cabin.

When travelling together, you and your support person must meet the following criteria:

• The customer requiring a support person must be 8 years of age or older.
• You need to contact the Air Canada Medical Assistance Desk at least 48 hours before your departure. We will, however, make a reasonable effort to accommodate requests made within 48 hours.
• You're allowed to travel with only one support person.
• Your support person must be 16 years of age or older.
• Your support person should not require any personal assistance from Air Canada or others, such as a service dog.
• Neither you nor your support person may be responsible for a child under 8 years of age during the flight.
• For safety reasons, you cannot be seated in an exit row.
• You and your support person must travel in the same cabin and be seated in adjacent seats or across the aisle, based on the cabin you're travelling in.
• Seats are assigned in advance of your flight by the Medical Assistance Desk with the purpose of accommodating your special needs.

Here's what you need to know to book travel for yourself and your support person.

Should your choice of support person change prior to travel, we will accommodate this change free of charge when you contact the Air Canada Medical Assistance Desk at least 48 hours before departure. We will, however, make a reasonable effort to accommodate requests made within 48 hours.

We're committed to providing the highest quality of service to all our customers. However, if despite our best efforts, you have a complaint or concern about discrimination, accommodations or services with respect to customers with a disability that has not been resolved to your satisfaction, we have multiple resources readily available to you.

During travel:

Should you have a complaint or concern during your travel, please contact the Air Canada Medical Assistance Desk. Alternatively, you may ask one of our airport agents to contact a Complaint Resolution Official (CRO).

Post travel:

If you're interested in providing a more general comment or complaint on a past travel experience, our Customer Relations team is also happy to assist you with any post travel inquiries you may have.

How to submit a comment or complaint

Visit Air Canada Customer Relations.

1. Select General Request
2. Select your topic from the dropdown menu

Find additional important information regarding the transportation of persons with disabilities on Air Canada operated flights below.

Written confirmation of services

Upon completion of your reservation, we will indicate the services that will be provided to you in your booking confirmation. Should you request services at the airport, one of our agents will be able to assist you and provide you with a written confirmation of these services.

Group bookings

If you are travelling as part of a group of 10 or more individuals with disabilities, you are required to provide Air Canada with advance notice by contacting the Air Canada Medical Assistance Desk at least 48 hours before departure. We will, however, make a reasonable effort to accommodate requests made within 48 hours.

Refusal of transportation

Air Canada will make every effort to accommodate your special needs. In the rare event that you are refused transportation, we will advise you of the reason for the refusal and provide you with written notice no later than 10 days after the day of the refusal. Where possible, we will work with you on alternate transportation.

Retention of documents

To better assist you in future service requests, we will offer to keep an electronic copy of all personal health information or documentation provided for at least three years.

In the case of conditions that may evolve or deteriorate over time, we may need to ask for new or updated documentation to ensure safe travel.

Air Canada is committed to protecting your personal information and your right to privacy. All your personal information will be handled in accordance with our Privacy Policy.