Before the Office of the Secretary U.S. Department
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BEFORE THE OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY U.S. DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION WASHINGTON, DC ____________________________________ ) In the Matter of ) Docket Management Facility ) Department of Transportation ) 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE TRAVELLING BY AIR WITH ) West Building, Ground Floor SERVICE ANIMALS ) Room W12-140 ) Washington, DC 20590 ) NOTICE OF PROPOSED ) 14 CFR Part 382 RULEMAKING ) DOT-OST-2018-0068 ____________________________________ ) COMMENTS OF THE ASSOCIATION OF ASIA PACIFIC AIRLINES Communications with respect to this document should be sent to: Mr. Subhas Menon Ms. Beatrice Lim Director General Director-Industry & Regulatory Association of Asia Pacific Airlines Affairs Level 27-1, Menara Prestige Association of Asia Pacific Airlines 1 Jalan Pinang Level 27-1, Menara Prestige 50450 Kuala Lumpur, 1 Jalan Pinang Malaysia. 50450 Kuala Lumpur, Tel: +(60) 3 – 2162 1888 Malaysia. Fax: +(60) 3 – 2162 6888 Tel: +(60) 3 – 2162 1888 Fax: +(60) 3 – 2162 6888 Mr. Steve Martin Association of Asia Pacific Airlines 1150 Connecticut Avenue NW, Suite 601 Washington, D.C. 20036 Tel: (202) 688-2220 Fax: (202) 688-2225 Dated: 6 April 2020 BEFORE THE OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY U.S. DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION WASHINGTON, DC ____________________________________ ) In the Matter of ) Docket Management Facility ) Department of Transportation ) 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE TRAVELLING BY AIR WITH ) West Building, Ground Floor SERVICE ANIMALS ) Room W-12-140 ) Washington, DC 20590 ) NOTICE OF PROPOSED ) 14 CFR Part 382 RULEMAKING ) DOT-OST-2018-0068 ____________________________________ ) COMMENTS OF THE ASSOCIATION OF ASIA PACIFIC AIRLINES The Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA) files these comments in response to the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on Travelling by Air with Service Animals. THE ASSOCIATION OF ASIA PACIFIC AIRLINES The AAPA is the trade association of major international airlines based in the Asia Pacific region. Its members include Air Astana, All Nippon Airways, Asiana Airlines, Bangkok Airways, Cathay Pacific Airways, China Airlines, EVA Air, Garuda Indonesia, Japan Airlines, Korean Air, Malaysia Airlines, Philippine Airlines, Royal Brunei Airlines, Singapore Airlines and Thai Airways International. AAPA member airlines operate multiple passenger and cargo flights to various points in the United States. i) General Comments The Association of Asia Pacific Airlines appreciates the opportunity to provide comments on the Department of Transportation’s (DOT) Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) on Travelling by Air with Service Animals (14 CFR Part 382; Docket No. DOT-OST-2018-0068). AAPA and its member airlines are renowned airline leaders in standards of service and have always maintained a high level of customer service, often setting industry benchmarks, shown in the many awards and accolades garnered by AAPA member airlines over the years. The presence of service animals in the cabin of an aircraft poses numerous operational and health-related issues for AAPA member airlines. Flights to the U.S. operated by our member carriers are long-haul or ultra-long haul in nature, between 10 hours to 18 hours in duration. DOT regulations require foreign carriers to transport only service dogs, to the extent that this does not conflict with the laws a foreign carrier is subjected to in its home jurisdiction or the destination point. We welcome DOT’s efforts in clarifying some of the definitions and rules surrounding the carriage of service animals and encourage the DOT to take in account the impact of long-haul and ultra- long haul travel on travelling with service animals. AAPA would like to highlight some additional concerns on the NPRM and respond to some of DOT’s specific requests for comments. ii) Service Animal Species We support DOT’s proposal to limit the definition of a service animal to a dog that is individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of a qualified individual with a disability. This will bring the regulation in line with the Department of Justice’s definition of a service animal under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). iii) Breed or Type Restrictions We are concerned with the Department’s proposal to prohibit airlines from restricting service animals based solely on the breed or generalised type of dog. Foreign air carriers are subject to the regulations of their home markets as well as those markets in which they operate to. A number of jurisdictions have in place strict laws against the importation of certain breed of dogs, including Singapore, Hong Kong and Australia. Prohibiting airlines from restricting service animals based on breed or type could place airlines in conflict with other national laws in their home jurisdictions. We strongly recommend that against applying such a prohibition to international air carriage so that foreign air carriers are able to comply with the laws of the jurisdictions they operate to. iv) Emotional Support Animals We reaffirm our support for DOT to maintain its stance to define a service animal as a dog that is individually trained to do work or perform task for the benefit of a qualified individual with a disability, and to exclude emotional support animals from the definition of a service animal. As mentioned earlier, this will bring the regulation in line with the Department of Justice’s definition of a service animal under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). We support the proposal to allow airlines to treat emotional support animals, comfort animals, companionship animals and service animals in training as pets rather than service animals, leaving the discretion to airlines to recognise and handle these categories of animals as appropriate, in line with internationally-accepted practice. v) Large Service Animals We welcome DOT’s proposal to allow airlines to place size limitations on service animals, to the extent that the animal could be accommodated on the passenger’s lap or in the foot space immediately in front of the passenger’s seat. We support DOT’s view that this accommodation should be made within the safety requirements set by relevant government authorities, including the U.S. FAA, and without encroaching into another passenger’s space. We support DOT’s recognition that, while airlines strive to accommodate service animals to their best of their abilities within the regulations, there would be situations where this would be difficult to achieve without causing substantial discomfort to other passengers, or without encroaching onto other passengers’ space and privacy. Airlines stand ready to accommodate the service animal within the cargo belly space on the same flight or another available flight, and that such accommodation should be done with mutual agreement with the passenger concerned. vi) Number of Service Animals per Passenger and per Flight We commend DOT’s efforts in limiting the number of service animals per passenger. Nevertheless, we urge the DOT to carefully consider limiting the number of service animals to one animal per passenger instead of two animals, and work together with the FAA to provide appropriate guidance on the maximum number of service animals allowed per flight without compromising the overall safety of all passengers on board. Without specifying the limit on the number of animals per flight, the ability for the passengers and crew to react and evacuate safely and in a timely manner in an emergency situation may be compromised. vii) Service Animal Restraints We support DOT’s proposal to allow airlines to require service animals to be harnessed, leashed or tethered as effective means of control under the service animal user. While properly trained and certified service animals could reasonably be expected to perform their tasks well, air travel may pose other situational challenges for a service animal unfamiliar with a cabin environment. In such cases, being harnessed, leashed or tethered would minimise the risk of lapses in trained behaviour as well as afford some assurance to fellow passengers. We further support DOT’s proposal to allow airlines to determine that an animal is not a service animal if it is not under the control of its handler, as this is one of the clearest indications in determining whether a given animal has undergone the required service animal training. We also support DOT’s proposal to limit the definition of a service animal handler to a qualified individual with a disability or a safety assistant travelling with them, who will be responsible for keeping the animal under control at all times, and caring for and supervising the service animal, including toileting and feeding. viii) Service Animal Documentation We welcome DOT’s effort to introduce standardised documentation for acceptance of service animals. The following are some specific comments on each of the forms: Air Transportation Service Animal Behaviour and Attestation Form We support the introduction of written certified assurances such as the proposed Air Transportation Service Animal Behaviour and Attestation Form, which reduces the ambiguity that could arise with verbal assurances. Nevertheless, we would caution that such a form cannot guarantee how an animal would behave in a given situation. The form should only constitute a part of the airline’s overall evaluation on whether to accept a service animal for travel. Air Transportation Service Animal Health Form We support the standardised Air Transportation Service Animal Health Form, which would give certain assurances to safeguard the health and safety