Heathrow Airport has announced the launch of the Aira app that will benefit
nearly 6,000 visually impaired passengers that travel
<http://www.travel-news.co.uk/category/travel-2/> through Heathrow each
year.
Starting December 3, visually impaired passengers at Heathrow will have
access to on-demand, personalised assistance via the Aira app. The launch of
the app coincides with International Day of Persons with Disabilities,
observed by the United Nations since 1992 to empower the one billion people
in the world that have some form of hidden or visible disability.
Available free of charge, the app will connect passengers directly to a
trained professional agent for advice on navigating through Heathrow and
assist with finding specific locations including gates, special assistance
facilities, retail outlets and restaurants. It will also provide live
information on news affecting their journeys.
The move comes as the number of passengers requesting special assistance at
Heathrow is rising by approximately 8% each year, with over one million
requests in 2017 alone. Heathrow has been taking proactive steps to
transform the service it provides for these passengers, supported by a £23
million investment in an upgraded contract with its special assistance
partner, OmniServ. Last year, the airport launched the use of the SignLive
app, which connects passengers to trained British Sign Language translators
on demand, before and after their travel
<http://www.travel-news.co.uk/tag/travel/> through Heathrow.
Jonathan Coen, Director of Customer Relations and Service at Heathrow, said:
We are transforming the assistance service we provide to our passengers and
empowering them to be as independent as possible when they are travelling
through Heathrow. We have already invested GBP23 million in an upgraded
contract with our special assistance partner, OmniServ, and introducing new
equipment, training and technology to help improve our service. Aira takes
us one step further and will deliver a better travel experience for the
6,000 passengers each year that would otherwise feel less independent and
less prepared when they begin their journey via Heathrow.
The Aira app can be accessed by pre-loading it on mobile phones and an agent
will be available to provide guided assistance on demand upon arrival at
Heathrow. Alternatively, passengers can also pre-book special assistance
through their airline and seek information on the app simultaneously,
Heathrow said in a release.
BY Lee Fletcher - December 3, 2018
Website:
www.travel-news.co.uk/11260/2018/12/london-heathrow-launches-new-aira-app-fo
r-visually-impaired-passengers
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