Travelers and advocates say a rule at WestJet Airlines that bars some power wheelchairs from most of its planes discriminates against people living with a disability.
The Calgary-based airline states on its website that mobility aids are capped at 300 pounds for the vast majority of its aircraft, a limit that rules out many power wheelchairs.
After flying with WestJet for years, Manitoba resident and former MP Steven Fletcher says an airline agent told him they would not be able to carry his wheelchair on a flight from Winnipeg to Toronto last February due to its weight.
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He says he was forced to use a different wheelchair, causing pain and pressure sores that required medical attention.
In a response to a regulatory complaint filed by Fletcher, WestJet says it landed on the 300-pound limit last year after an engineering analysis and that accessibility regulations allow it to refuse transport of heavier mobility aids.
ARCH Disability Law Centre lawyer Devin Glim says the weight limit effectively denies access to air travel for most custom power wheelchair users, with advocates noting that no other major North American airline maintains such a low cap for jets.
© 2025 The Canadian Press