CAA reveals the best and worst UK airports to use if you have a disability

Today the UK’s Civil Aviation Authority has published a report showing a list of 30 of the country’s biggest and busiest airports, classing them according to how well they cater to the need of travellers who have a disability.

The most shocking piece of data in the report is the revelation that Manchester Airport has been classed as “Poor”, the lowest possible grade, for the second year running. It is the only airport in the report to fall in this category.

What does “poor” mean?

Manchester’s low grade is due to concerns regarding long waiting times for assistance and consistent problems with recording and reporting accurate data. The report also indicates however that Manchester Airport is now taking urgent steps to address the concerns raised by the CAA including hiring more staff at peak hours and setting up a ‘Disability Engagement Forum’ to help guide their policies on accessibility and disability and put in the necessary changes to improve their service.

The best places to fly from

16 UK airports made the cut to be ranked as “Very Good”. Scotland does well with 4 major airports on this list including Edinburgh Airport which gets a special mention in the report for its close work with local disability groups.

Another Airport that gets a notable mention is Liverpool which 88% of passengers with a disability have rated as good or excellent in the past year.

You can see below a table with the grades of all the airports but to achieve the distinction of being graded “Very Good” airports have to meet criteria that include:

The airport consistently exceeds, meets, or is very close to meeting, monthly ‘waiting time’ performance targets.
The airport scores a rating of ‘good’ or better in the satisfaction survey of users.
The airport engages very effectively with disability groups.

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CAA reveals the best and worst UK airports to use if you have a disability

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