Australia's new Aviation Disability Standards
The Australian Government has opened public consultation on proposed options for the aviation disability standards. The Government wants to make sure air travel is accessible for people with disability.
In 2024 the Government released the Aviation White Paper (Aviation White Paper‑towards 2050) with a commitment to ensure the aviation sector protects the rights of people with disability. It includes creating new aviation-specific disability standards.
These standards would be an addition to the existing Transport Standards (Disability Standards for Accessible Public Transport 2002). With responsibility of enforcement coming under the Disability Discrimination Act 1992.
These new Aviation Disability Standards build on reforms to the Transport Standards and introduce new requirements in areas such as:
- Staff training
- Wayfinding
- Giving people accessible information
They'll strengthen the rights of passengers with disability and clarify the responsibilities of airlines and airports.
It'll improve coordination between airlines and airports, introduce passenger assistance profiles, address limits on travellers requiring support and clarify legal rights and responsibilities.
Co-design workshop outcomes
Three co-design workshops with people with disability have already been held in July and August 2025.
Topics were based on different stages of the aviation passenger journey, and identified four guiding principles to inform the development of more accessible practices across the aviation industry.
- Include people with disability in the design of any policy, process or infrastructure
- Passengers know what services and requirements they can expect at each airport and from each airline, every time they travel.
- Staff training is critical for all staff, including contractors and passenger screening personnel.
- Ensure policies, procedures and other information impacting a passenger's travel journey is readily available and provided in a range of accessible formats.
From the first workshop several digital centric themes emerged:
Airline improvements
- Improvements to consistency of information
- Easy read content across all aspects of travel
- Accessible content across all web and booking platforms.
- Similar accessibility standards across all airlines
- A consistent location on the website to find accessibility features
- More simplified ticket booking page
- Changing booking timeouts on websites
Airport improvements
- Interactive maps with dynamic filters to help navigate the airport
- Clear indication of low traffic or low sensory areas within airports
The Government is now seeking views on whether the proposed options developed in the workshops strike the right balance and meet expectations, or whether further action or considerations are needed.
Consultation on options for the new standards are open until 2nd October 2026 with the community encouraged to make a submission at www.infrastructure.gov.au/Aviation-Disability-Standards.