Mdthbs

I'm disabled and am restricted to an electric wheelchair. I cannot walk at all, and cannot sit in any other chair. I use a ramp van to get around town. It's just a regular van with several seats replaced by floor tie-down points. I simply drive my chair in, then it gets tied down and I can start my journey.

Does something like this exist for air travel? I have found sources stating some airlines will put my chair in with the luggage, and some stating I could bring a manual chair in the cabin, but not an electric chair. And one source stating that I could bring the electric chair in the cabin, but I would still have to use a standard seat. None of these options are satisfactory.

Does anyone know of a service that would suit my needs? If not, what is the limiting factor?

At this stage, no. To my knowledge the only option currently is to be moved into a standard seat.

The main obstacle has been the so called "crashworthiness" requirements, where an aircraft seat carrying a person must be able to withstand a crash force of up to 16G without shifting or collapsing.

However, the organisation www.allwheelsup.org has developed a prototype solution to allow some wheelchair users to remain in their chairs, and is in the process of lobbying safety regulators and airlines.

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  Air Canada - "Wheelchairs and Mobility Aids"

  
  
  
  
  
  • Special handling requirements apply to battery-powered mobility aids.
    
     
  
  
  
  

  There is no discrimination against you, but you should expect a large wheelchair to go into cargo; rather than becoming a projectile or having larger batteries leak during a crash. See also the second link above regarding "Cargo Door Size Restrictions" and (free) "Disassembly and Reassembly" (which can mean come early and leave late).

  
  
  
  
  
  • Special Seating Needs
  
  
  
  

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  one Japanese airline - ANA - "Customers with Walking Disabilities"

  
  
  

  You check-in all wheelchair types and they provide you with the airport's wheelchair (and push you if preferred/needed). Upon your request, you can also use your own wheelchair close to the door of the aircraft. However, please understand that some airport facilities are not allowed to use your own wheelchair due to set conditions. Use of a stretcher is available for customers who are unable to sit upright in an aircraft seat.

  
  

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  U.S Dept. of Transportation - "Wheelchair and Guided Assistance"

  
  
  

  There's a lot to read on that webpage but some of the most relevant details seem to be:

  
  
  
  
  

  • If you travel with a battery-powered wheelchair, you must arrive at the airport 1 hour prior to the normal check-in time.

  
  

  • You are entitled to stay in your own wheelchair until you get to the gate. At the gate, your wheelchair will be taken from you. If you cannot walk, you will be transported to your aircraft seat in an aisle chair. Your wheelchair will be returned to you at the gate once you reach your destination.

  
  

  • If you need wheelchair assistance to get off of the aircraft, you should know that airlines generally provide this assistance after all other passengers have deplaned.

  
  
  
  

The website WheelchairTraveling.com provides some additional information about traveling, such as rugs can be more difficult to traverse as can some of the ramps. Also interesting is that your wheels can roll through something, and then when you get swabbed during screening you may not clear.

The simple answer is: everywhere is different and you need to phone each airline you plan to fly on and contact the airport for additional information about their procedures. Arrive early and expect to stay late.

... what is the limiting factor?

Every possible size of wheelchair can't be inspected and certified for flight and an interface made available to secure it. Even Unit Load Devices (aircraft luggage containers) have a fixed number of standard sizes.

Sleeper seats are surely more expensive than cramped economy class but some airlines do offer them. While you say you cannot sit on any other chair, I assume probably you can fly lying down. Some companies like Alitalia will allow you to travel in a stretcher.

Looks like you need a friend or two with you to help with moving between the seat and your wheel chair, and the best it would be if you can spend a short time in a normal seat while taking off and landing. If not, so some rules may exist to work around the requirement of sitting properly if there are medical reasons. May be worth asking.

Other possible considerations beyond crashworthiness as outlined in Ben's answer:

Doors are made only as large as necessary; larger doors bring structural issues, the solutions to which almost inevitably add weight to the aircraft. Passenger doors typically have rounded corners (again, for structural reasons), which means the flat portion of the threshold may end up rather narrow, likely becoming a barrier for some wheelchairs.

There may be issues with the way jetways meet up with the doorway; it may just be due to the way the operator positioned it on a specific flight or intrinsic to the jetway's design. Regardless, there can be a step and/or narrow gap between jetway and cabin door threshold; I've seen it as a tripping hazard, I imaging such a situation might be problematic for a wheelchair to navigate safely.

Economics and profit motives drive airlines to fit as many passengers as possible into the available cabin volume and floor space of a given aircraft at the expense of passenger comfort and room to move around. Most aircraft therefore have very little floor space that isn't occupied by seating, lavatories, galleys, etc.. To offer better accessibility would require an airline to forgo the revenue equivalent of perhaps one or two seats per aircraft, a reversal of recent trends.