APPEALS COURT DENIES FLYERS RIGHTS MANDAMUS PETITION; RULES THAT CONGRESS DID NOT COMMAND FAA TO SET MINIMUM SEAT SIZE STANDARDS

Airline passenger group's lawsuit sought to compel the FAA to enact the seat size minimums required by the 2018 FAA Reauthorization Act

WASHINGTON, March 9, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- On Friday, a three judge panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit denied FlyersRights.org's mandamus petition seeking to compel the FAA to enact the minimum seat size provision of the 2018 FAA Reauthorization Act. Section 577 of the 2018 FAA Reauthorization Act states that the FAA "shall issue regulations that establish minimum dimensions for passenger seats…including minimums for seat pitch, width, and length, and that are necessary for the safety of passengers."

FlyersRights.org filed this mandamus petition to compel the rulemaking after more than two years had passed since Congress' 2019 deadline for this rulemaking. The appeals court agreed with the FAA's contention that the statute is optional if it believes that seat standards are not currently necessary to ensure passenger safety.

Paul Hudson, President of FlyersRights.org, explained, "The decision is unfortunate and disappointing. The court substituted the word 'if' for the word 'and' in the statute requiring minimum seat size standards by October 2019. The law does not say that the FAA can ignore the statutory command if the FAA feels current seats do not pose a health or safety threat. Now, less than half of people can fit in economy seats without encroaching on their neighbor or suffering serious health risks."

Hudson continued, "Congress made it clear that minimum seat standards are needed now. The FAA used a narrow definition of safety that included emergency evacuations but excluded passenger health, crash safety, and personal privacy."

FlyersRights.org filed the mandamus petition in January 2022, requesting the court to set a deadline for the FAA's minimum seat size rulemaking. The FAA previously denied a 2015 FlyersRights.org rulemaking twice, in 2016 and 2018, claiming that seat size did not affect emergency evacuation times. In 2017, the D.C. Circuit reprimanded the FAA for relying on secret data to reach its conclusion that seat size does not and would not matter for emergency evacuations. In 2021, the DOT Inspector General found that the FAA had used inaccurate information in its 2018 denial of FlyersRights.org's rulemaking petition on remand, falsely claiming that the secret evacuation tests conducted by airplane manufacturers had tested for shrunken seats, when in fact, only one test was conducted at 28 inches or lower.

On October 5 2022, FlyersRights submitted an updated rulemaking petition calling for seat standards that allow 90% of the public to safely fit in airline seats rather than the current 50%. The FAA's request for comments on the effect of seat sizes on emergency evacuations garnered more than 26,000 comments within three months.

To view FlyersRights.org's minimum seat standards rulemaking petition, visit https://flyersrights.org/f/flyersrights-files-minimum-seat-rulemaking-with-the-faa 

To view the DOT Office of Inspector General Report, visit https://www.oig.dot.gov/sites/default/files/FAA%20Oversight%20of%20Aircraft%20Evacuations%20Final%20Report%20-%2009-16-20.pdf 

To view the FAA's request for comments on the effect of seat size on emergency evacuation, visit https://www.regulations.gov/document/FAA-2022-1001-0001 

FlyersRights.org maintains up to date passenger rights information at www.flyersrights.org/know-your-rights/ and also provides passengers with legal information and appropriate contacts by phone, 877-FLYERS-6 and by email, [email protected].

FlyersRights.org, established in 2007, is the largest airline passenger organization. It publishes a bi-weekly newsletter, operates a free hotline for airline passengers 877- FLYERS6, advocates for passenger rights and interests, represents passengers on the FAA Aviation Rulemaking Advisory Committee dealing with air safety and maintains a staffed office in Washington, D.C. See: FlyersRights.org or https://twitter.com/FlyersRights. Media line 800- 662-1859. FlyersRights.org, 4411 Bee Ridge Road, 274, Sarasota, FL 34233

SOURCE FlyersRights.org