If you want to travel as a person with a disability or reduced mobility, you should be given the same travel opportunities as other people. Air carriers, tour operators and airports are therefore obliged to assist you in preparing and carrying out your flight.

• Airlines and travel companies may not refuse to accept your booking on the grounds of your disability or reduced mobility, nor may they deny you boarding on these grounds. Exceptions apply if restrictions result from applicable safety requirements or if the size of the aircraft and its doors make it impossible to take you on board.
• At airports in the EU, airport operators must provide you with assistance free of charge. You must notify them of your need for assistance at least 48 hours before the scheduled departure time.
• Airlines are obliged to provide you with certain assistance on board free of charge. This applies to all flights departing from the EU and to flights from non-European countries to the EU if the operating air carrier is from the EU. You must also notify the airline of your need for assistance at least 48 hours before departure.

If you feel that your above-mentioned rights have been violated, you should first submit a complaint to the relevant airport, travel or airline company. If you are unable to reach a satisfactory solution, you can file a complaint with the Federal Aviation Authority (LBA) as the complaints and enforcement body. Please provide all the necessary details in the complaint form.

Uploading additional documents is not mandatory. However, booking documents or correspondence with the airline, travel company or airport, for example, will make it easier to process your complaint and avoid additional inquiries. The Luftfahrt-Bundesamt will check the facts of the case and request information from you if necessary.

In the event of proven violations of the regulation, the Federal Aviation Office can impose sanctions in the form of fines on the companies concerned. This is intended to prevent future infringements from being repeated.

The Luftfahrt-Bundesamt is neither authorized to support you in enforcing any civil claims against the companies nor to advise you in this regard. You must claim individual entitlements from the company in a free arbitration procedure or, if necessary, in court.