Re: Increasing Awareness of the Transportation Department's Toll-Free Hotline
for Air Travelers with Disabilities

Dear Disability Rights Advocates:

As you may know, in August 2002, my office, the Office of the Assistant
General Counsel for Aviation Enforcement and Proceedings (Enforcement Office),
established a toll free number that consumers who experience disability Related
air travel problems may use to obtain information and assistance. The office is
staffed from 7 am to 11 pm local time in Washington, D.C., seven days a week
and provides general information to consumers about the rights of air travelers
with disabilities and assists air travelers in resolving time-sensitive
disability-related issues that need to be addressed in real time. Unfortunately,
many members of the public are still not aware of the existence of the
 hotline and as a result the hotline is not being sufficiently used.

At this time, the Enforcement Office asks that you advise members of your
respective organizations about the existence of an aviation consumer Disability
toll-free hotline and encourage them to call the hotline if they should
experience disability-related air service problems. The toll-free number for the
hotline is 1-800-778-4838 (voice) or
 1-800-455-9880 (TTY).

The Enforcement Office is committed to improving the quality of air
transportation for People with disabilities and believes that with your help the
toll-free hotline Can be a major step towards accomplishing this goal.

Sincerely,



Samuel Podberesky
 Assistant General Counsel for
 Aviation Enforcement and Proceedings

- - - - - - - - - -

Olegario D. Cantos VII
 Special Assistant to the Acting Assistant Attorney General
 Civil Rights Division
 U.S. Department of Justice
 950 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Room 5529
 Washington, DC 20530
 Voice: (202) 616-7920
 TDD: (202) 514-0617
 Fax: (202) 307-2839
 Email: [log in to unmask]