Disability access at airports getting better

One of Scotland’s busiest airports has made “significant progress” in improving access for disabled travellers, according to a new report.

The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) had previously ranked Edinburgh Airport as being “poor” for access, but it said changes mean it is now classed as “good”.

Aberdeen Airport and Sumburgh Airport on Shetland also received a “good” ranking, while Glasgow, Glasgow Prestwick and Inverness were among the six airports described as “very good”.

More than three million people with disabilities requested extra assistance while travelling through UK airports in 2016, up from 2.7 million the previous year, with this increase outstripping the general rise in air travel.

The CAA said: “The increase in numbers is good news and something the UK aviation industry should be rightly proud of. We believe that the higher number of people using assistance is often a direct result of the high-quality service generally found at UK airports and on board UK originating aircraft.”