WASHINGTON – Brian Ryks, Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Metropolitan Airports Commission, today testified before the House of Representatives Subcommittee on Aviation as part of a hearing aimed at enhancing accessibility in air travel.  During “Accessible Air Travel: Addressing Challenges for Passengers with Disabilities,” Ryks provided insights on the steps airports are taking better serve all air passengers.

Key excerpts from Ryks’s testimony include:

“Accessibility for all covers a wide spectrum of passenger needs. It is about working collaboratively with our traveling public, our airlines and our business partners to ensure everyone has equal access to the benefits of air travel.”

“The airport industry recognizes that travel hurdles can have a magnified impact when experienced by passengers with disabilities, and we are committed to fostering an inclusive air travel experience.”

“We strive as an industry to create a welcoming and accessible travel experience, and airport accessibility is a primary pillar of the overall customer service we provide. Airports have a great story to tell about the advancements we are making on these issues with our limited resources. MSP especially has been at the forefront of creating an accessible passenger experience through investing in technology, infrastructure, training and service.”

“As an industry, airports recognize the importance of filling service gaps throughout the passenger experience, especially for passengers with disabilities. As a result, we are going above and beyond our compliance standards and achieving increased levels of accessibility by deploying new technologies, setting ambitious customer service standards, providing enhanced training to airport workers, and making important infrastructure investments to meet long-term goals.”

See Ryks’s full written testimony here.