Accessibility Plan and Feedback on Accessibility
This is the plain language version of the Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA) Accessibility Plan.
The Accessible Canada Act (ACA) is a law to make Canada accessible. Under the ACA, Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) needs to make a plan to be more accessible. SAS is a commercial airline which operates commercial flights mainly to and from Scandinavia. The airline has three hubs located in Oslo, Copenhagen, and Stockholm. From Copenhagen the airline operates a route to Toronto, Canada.
SAS' goal forward is to make sure that air travel is accessible. This plan is one step to being more accessible. We created our plan by:
Sending a survey to disability organizations.
Talking to employees that have disabilities
Talking to representatives in various disability organizations
Internal workshop to list known barriers
Made plans to reduce and/or remove known barriers.
We plan to make SAS more accessible by doing the following:
Set up a clear process on how to receive and collect feedback about our accessibility plan
Talking to disability organizations about potential barriers
Having a dedicated accessibility officer
Create an organizational awareness of disability
Training staff on accessibility
Update diversity, equity, and inclusion training to include disability
We welcome feedback on this plan. If you would like this plan in a different version (e.g., braille or audio), the instructions are linked here: Feedback.
Effective date June 1, 2023.
SAS is a Scandinavian airline which mainly operates commercial flights to and from Scandinavia. It is one of the largest airlines in Scandinavia and a founding member of the largest airline alliance, Star Alliance. SAS aims to reflect the diversity of society. The basis for all recruitment, skills development, promotion, and other cooperation is that all people are equal. All employees and applicants must be treated according to formal and objective criteria. SAS recruits based on competence. No one who works at SAS should be subject to discrimination or favoritism because of age, sex, ethnicity, nationality, religion, sexual orientation, disability, political beliefs, or social status. Neither do we accept physical, psychological, verbal, or sexual harassment.
SAS is committed to advancing accessibility and making it a priority in the delivery of our services. We will engage with persons with disabilities to better understand their experiences and meet their need when interacting with SAS.
All individuals have a right to benefit from our services equally. This accessibility plan represents our commitment to identifying barriers that our travelers may experience, and to taking meaningful action to reduce and/or remove them completely.
We have appointed a “SAS Accessibility Officer” (SAO) who is mandated to receive and act on general feedback on identified barriers on behalf of SAS. You can contact SAS and the SAO by sending a letter, sending an e-mail, making a phone call or submitting feedback through our simple feedback form.
General feedback on our plan or barriers may be sent to:
Postal Mail:
Scandinavian Airlines System
Att: SAS Accessibility Officer (STOKZ)
195 87 Stockholm
Sweden
E-mail: accessibility-officer@sas.se.
Phone: +1 8555936279 and +1 6474176390
Feedback form at our webpage
We will acknowledge all accessibility feedback we receive with contact information. Note that you are also entitled to submit anonymous feedback.
SAS will upon request provide the following alternative formats of this plan in:
Print
Large print (increased font size)
Braille (a system of raised dots that people who are blind or who have low vision can read with their fingers)
Audio (a recording of someone reading the text out loud)
Electronic formats that are compatible with adaptive technology
You can request alternative formats of this plan, and a description of our feedback process by contacting us at accessibility-officer@sas.se.
The following are important terms in the ACA. They are used throughout this plan. They are defined here in plainer language. For the full ACA definitions, visit: Summary of the Accessible Canada Act - Canada.ca.
Disability: Any impairment, or difference in physical, mental, intellectual, cognitive, learning, or communication ability. Disabilities can be permanent, temporary, or can change over time.
Barrier: Anything that might hinder people with disabilities’ full and equal participation. Barriers can be architectural, technological, attitudinal, based on information or communications, or can be the result of a policy or procedure.
Accessibility: The design of products, devices, services, environments, technologies, policies, and rules in a way that allows all people, including people with a variety of disabilities, to access them.
Information and communication technologies (ICT)
Actions to remove and prevent new barriers:
Starting in 2023, investigate the possibility of introducing a Safety Briefing Video to the A321LR used for Toronto.
By the end of 2024, investigate the possibility of improving the procedure for receiving information about PWD’s and assistance when a passenger books through a third party.
By the end of 2024, investigate the possibility of creating and establishing a procedure that enables the airport to conduct their assistance in the best manner by sharing information about the travelers’ needs.
By the end of 2024, develop a solution in the mobile app that enables PWD’s to request assistance.
Communication (other than ICT) related to below areas
Actions to remove and prevent new barriers:
Starting in 2023, investigate the possibility of introducing printed information and placards in Braille, such as Safety on Board Card and in-flight menu card.
Starting in 2024, investigate if we can have all information and placards readable for travelers with impaired or no vision.
Procurement of services and facilities
Actions to remove and prevent new barriers:
By the end of 2024, SAS Suppliers Code of Conduct shall contain accessibility requirements in detail.
Starting in 2024, add and include requirement on accessibility training and awareness in all vendor agreements.
Starting in 2023, enhance the current procedures regarding the follow up on suppliers and vendors in their accessibility training and work.
The delivery of services and products
Actions to remove and prevent new barriers:
By the end of 2024, set up a company policy that there are at least two alternative ways of requesting and purchasing all services and products on all markets.
By the end of 2024, develop and create an accessibility checklist to the product cycle.
Starting in 2023, initiate internal accessibility awareness campaigns to raise awareness throughout the company.
Transportation
Actions to remove and prevent new barriers:
By the end of 2023, update the internal policy for how to handle PWD’s when a flight diversion occurs in regards of alternative means of transportation and accommodation etc.
By the end of 2024, update the procedures for ground personnel and flight crew to clarify accessible In-Flight Entertainment System (IFE).
Starting in 2024, SAS will review the process of pre-seating arrangement to ensure that body paralyzed travelers get the proper seat assigned.
Starting in late 2023, ensure that employees who have direct contact with PWD’s have undergone sufficient training in understanding and handling various disabilities.
The built environment related to aircraft
Actions to remove and prevent new barriers and accessibility goals:
By the end of 2024, add to the cabin manual a specific instruction on how to ensure that the PWD’s privacy is preserved when using the forward lavatory on the A321LR.
The built environment related to passenger terminals
Actions to remove and prevent new barriers:
Starting in 2023, participate in a task force/working group directed by Avinor (the state-owned company that operates most the commercial airports in Norway) whose focus is accessibility and accessible travel.
The Canadian Transportation Agency has a mandate to decide in cases where an applicant has identified an accessibility barrier. If the applicant can demonstrate that they have a disability and that their mobility has been limited due to an accessibility barrier, it is up to the airline to either remove or reduce the barrier in general (by updating policies, terms, and conditions etc.) or take an individual measure that removes the barrier in the individual case. This applies unless it would be an undue hardship for the carrier to reduce or remove the barrier.
SAS continuously works to reduce barriers. As part of this job, we will do the following:
To guarantee that the passenger journey is entirely accessible, all functions and areas within SAS must have accessibility as an integrated part of their work. All staff will be trained in accessibility issues to meet this requirement by the end of 2025.
We will have a dedicated Accessibility Officer appointed that will have a mandate to receive feedback on this accessibility plan.
As a large foreign carrier SAS is subject to the following provisions:
During the preparation of this plan, we have been in contact with both Scandinavian PWD organizations and SAS employees to identify potential barriers when purchasing or using our services. The meetings and workshops were all structured in the same way, where we talked about potential issues during booking, at the airport, at the gate, during flight and in the aircraft and post travel.
Results of consultation with employees
We carried interviews with employees who themselves have disabilities and with employees who in their daily jobs assist traveling PWD’s. They identified the following:
Lack of knowledge of how to handle PWDs from the assistance staff at the airport. Especially on how to deal with different kinds of disabilities, and the service in general. On several occasions they had experienced that the staff was late when meeting them before boarding, hence they had little or no time to do planned shopping, buy food or even use the washrooms. They also noted that assistance staff on several occasions did not meet them at the arriving airport.
Queue-system at the airport with going “back and forth” in narrow “gates”.
That the “aisle-chair” at some airports don’t fit the aisle.
Not being able to use their own wheelchair all the way to the gate.
Not being able to put the armrest up on some seat rows.
The so-called throne in business class seat cannot be used, as they don’t get into the seat due to the big armrests on both sides.
Results of consultation with The Norwegian Association of Disabled (NAD)
An interview with a special advisor from the NAD, who in addition to his work in the organization has been a member of the Norwegian NEB Travel Complaint Handling Body, identified the following issues:
Difficulties to navigate and understand the specific rules and terms and conditions for PWD’s on the website. In general, this was not SAS specific.
Difficulties to navigate and book the same extra products and services and seat options as non-PWD travelers. Lacking information about which seats that are unavailable for PWD’s.
Lack of information about the airport (i.e., parking, distance to the terminal etc.) in the booking flow.
Lack of understanding and education at the airport from assistance staff, especially regarding using their own chair. Some of the chairs are custom made for the PWD and using “generic” chairs can cause discomfort
Lack of routines, focus and attention towards PWD’s at gate regarding pre-boarding.
Lack of understanding of the purpose of booking a seat on one side of the aisle (i.e., if the traveler is paralyzed on one side.).
Challenging when the traveler has a connecting flight, or if the flight diverts.
SAS' Accessibility Plan (PDF, 194KB) outlines how we're making our products and services in digital channels available and accessible to everyone, regardless of ability.