u.s. Department 

of Transportation 

Office of the Secretory 

of Transportation 

GENERAL COUNSEL 

April 18, 2012 · 1200 New Jer,se¥ ;w~n~. ~E 

2C\ \1 ;~~hl~~n. @6'20690 ,·:. · 

Registered Mail~ Return Receipt Requested 

Mr. Paolo Drago 

Piazza Almerico da Schio 

Palazzina RPU 

00054 Fiumicio (RM) 

Italia 

Dear Mr. Drago: 

Re: Equivalent Alternative Determination 

Request Concerning 14 CFR 382.61 

This letter concerns the November 21, 2011, request of Alitalia-Compagnia Aerea Italiana 

S.p.A.. (Alitalia) for an equivalent alternative determination concerning the movable aisle 

armrest requirement contained in 14 CFR 382.61 of the Department's Air Carrier Access 

Act (ACAA) regulation for the business class seats in its Boeing 777 aircraft. The 

Department has already responded to Alitalia's request for an equivalent alternative 

determination concerning movable aisle armrests on its Airbus A330-200 aircraft, and is 

continuing to review the carrier's requests concernmg various other provisions of Part 382. 

We are granting Alitalia's request subject to the conditions discussed below. 

Section 382.6l(a) requires carriers to ensure that "aircraft with 30 or more passenger seats 1 

on which passenger aisle seats have armrests are equipped with movable aisle armrests on at 

least one-half of the aisle seats in rows in which passengers with mobility impairments are 

permitted to sit under FAA or applicable foreign government safety rules." Section 

382.6l(c) notes that movable aisle armrests must be "provided proportionately in all classes 

of service in the cabin. "

2 Furthermore, the Enforcement Office has interpreted movable aisle 

armrest as meaning an armrest on an aisle seat that completely moves or folds out of the way 

1 The Department's Office of Aviation Enforcement and Proceedings (Enforcement Office) has long held that 

the passenger seating capacity of an aircraft is the manufacturer's maximum designed seating capacity of a 

given aircraft type. Therefore, a carrier may not avoid compliance with the aircraft accessibility requirement 

of Part 382 by reducing the number of seats on an aircraft or ordering an aircraft with fewer seats than its 

designed seating capacity. For example, if a manufacturer designs an aircraft type to hold a maximum of 110 

passenger seats, the Enforcement Office would treat the aircraft as an aircraft with a passenger seating capacity 

of 110 even if a carrier stipulates that the aircraft is to be delivered with 99 seats or takes delivery of an aircraft 

with ll 0 seats and then removes 11 seats. 

2 For example, if 80 percent of the aisle seats in which passengers with mobility impairments may sit are in 

coach, and 20 percent are in first class, then 80 percent of the movable aisle armrests must be in coach, with 20 

percent in first class. 
while the seatback remains in an upright position to permit a passenger with a mobility 

impairment to safely make an unobstructed transfer (with assistance from carrier personnel 

if the passenger's physical ability necessitates such assistance) from an aisle wheelchair to 

his or her aircraft seat. 

In its equivalent alternative determination request, Alitalia states that it plans to modify its 

B777 fleet aircraft by installing new business class seats. These seats do not have movable 

aisle armrests as required by section 382.61. However, Alitalia asserts that the seat pitch 

and amount of entrance space for these business class seats provide passengers with a 

mobility impairment sufficient space to easily transfer horizontally to and from those seats 

without having to be lifted over the fixed aisle armrest. 

The Department has reviewed Alitalia's business class seat schematics and aircraft 

configuration diagrams. The Department also reviewed Alitalia's video, which demonstrates 

both a carrier-assisted and a self-assisted horizontal transfer of a person with a mobility 

impairment from an aisle or boarding wheelchair to Alitalia's business class seats. This 

material shows that the passenger does not have to be lifted over the aisle armrest. Based on 

the information submitted by Alitalia, the Department is granting Alitalia's equivalent 

alternative determination request for section 382.61 for its business class seats in its Boeing 

777 aircraft with the following conditions: 

(1) This approval is limited to the business class seats in Alitalia's Boeing 777 aircraft 

with the configuration and dimensions provided in the carrier's November 21, 2011, 

equivalent alternative determination request. Alitalia must obtain the Department's 

prior approval for any seat configuration changes and/or seat dimension changes to 

be made on any aircraft that is subject to this approval. If Alitalia implements seat 

configuration and/or seat dimension changes without prior approval of the 

Department, they risk being in violation of section 382.61; 

(2) Alitalia must provide, or ensure the provision of, specialized training to its 

employees aJ1d contractors, as well as the employees and contractors of any other 

entity that will be transferring persons with a mobility impairment to or from the 

business class seats in its Boeing 777 aircraft. The specialized training must ensure 

training to proficiency in how to properly transfer a passenger to and from Alitalia's 

business class seats. Such training must also cover, at a minimum: (A) the proper 

use of all items needed to transfer a passenger to and from the business class seats 

(e.g., transfer board and sling/harness); (B) the number of persons needed to perform 

the transfer; (C) how to properly operate the business class seats (e.g., location and 

use of control buttons); and (D) how to transfer a passenger to and from the business 

class seats in a safe and dignified manner; and 

(3) Alitalia must also: (A) provide, or ensure the provision of, annual refresher training; 

(B) retain for three years individuals' training records demonstrating that all persons 

required to receive initial and refresher training have done so; and (C) within 30 days 

after each calendar quarter, for a period of three years, provide the Enforcement 

2 
Office with copies of all complaints, if any, regarding passenger transfers to and 

from their business class seats in the covered aircraft. 

If you have any questions about this matter, please contact Michael Hallock or Kimberly 

Graber of my staff, or me, at (202) 366-9342. You may also reach us by FAX at (202) 366-

7152. 

Sincerely, 

~ Assistant General Counsel for 

Aviation Enforcement and Proceedings 

3