Jetstar’s decision to charge people for using a human to check-in to flights has been widely condemned, with a group representing the vision-impaired leading the protests.
Vision Australia general manager Maryanne Diamond said the proposal to charge up to $10 extra for people who may need face-to-face assistance was discriminatory.
“Airports are complex environments and navigating touch screens, check-in booths, security gates, locating departure gates, negotiating through to the air bridge and finding your seat can be difficult for people with disabilities, including those who may have vision loss,’†Diamond told the Brisbane Courier Mail.
“The self-service kiosks used by airlines are inaccessible as they utilise touch-screen technology and have no text to speech output.
“If airlines do not allow people to access their ticket and travel independently then it is hard to see how they can justify charging $10 for passengers that need assistance.”
Jetstar has announced a “small fee’†would apply for people who sought staff assistance to check-in as the budget airline moves towards a completely “self-service check-inâ€.
The fee for getting a staff member to assist, will take effect on November 1. Jetstar says people with special needs would be looked after, but has yet to formulate a policy on the issue.
