Virgin Atlantic now allows CPAP onboard, if pre-cleared.

[backdoc]

Here is the email I just received from Virgin Atlantic inquiring about the use of cpap during flights. As many of you know I had a horrible experience in the past with Virgin Atlantic on this subject. I had to agree to fly sitting erect for the entire flight from Los Angeles to London, then London to Capetown, South Africa or I couldn't get on the plane. AND, I had to get my EENT to fax a letter to Virgin's Nurse that I was "fit to fly". I was also hassled at each boarding.

Dear Steve,

Thank you for your email regarding the use of personal medical equipment onboard.

Virgin Atlantic Airways can only permit the use of battery powered medical equipment onboard, any equipment that you wish to use must be cleared for use inflight by our engineering team. In order for the team to evaluate the equipment and issue a clearance we will require the following details:

 Make/Manufacturer of the unit
 Model Number
 Serial Number
 For Respiratory Assistance Devices (RAD's) such as Oxygen concentrators and Nebulisers etc we also require the "Watt-Hour" rating of any spare batteries that are being carried. These details can be obtained from the manufacturer.

The following is a list of CPAP machines cleared for previous passengers. If you intend to use one of these we know it will be safe to use onboard. However we will still need to know the make, model and serial number so we can advise the crew it has been pre-cleared.

AEIOMED AURA
AEIOMED EVEREST 2
EVEREST 3
Breas Isleep
BreatheX Journey, EVEREST -integrated
BreatheX Machine,
DeVilbiss Healthcare Intellipap DV54D
Devilbiss/Sunrise Medical 7340 Vacu-Aide 7340a
Kaerys KXS
Odstock
Puritan Bennett Goodnight 420
ResMed Auto Set Spirit S7
ResMed Auto Set Spirit S8
ResMed Escape S8 11
ResMed Sullivan
ResMed VPAP IV
ResMed Elite II
Respironics Remstar Auto M Series
Respironics Remstar Basic M Series
Respironics Remstar C-Flex
Respironics Remstar LX
Respironics Remstar Plus Domestic
Respironics Remstar Plus International
Respironics Remstar Plus LX
Respironics Remstar Plus M Series
Respironics Remstar Pro M Series
Sunrise Medical/Devilbiss Vacu-Aide 7340a
VIASYS BreatheX Journey


I hope the above information has been of use.

If we can be of any further assistance please do not hesitate in contacting us again.

Kind regards

Lynda Morris
Special Assistance
Tel 0844 412 4455 ext 33656

[harry33]

sounds good but what about the batterys, some can explode and some use ordinary car batterys

[Alsacienne]

Had a very positive reply from VS similar to that posted .... just wish KLM would get their fingers out and reply after two reminders and a wait of five months!!

Batteries will be the Lithium ones - like those for powering laptops.

Incidentally CPAPs are accepted (as long as you don't want the aircraft's power) by British Airways, Air Canada, Lufthansa Easyjet, Swiss and Air France but you need to have pre-clearance with all these companies.

[backdoc]

UPDATE: NOT GOOD

I got this email Virgin Atlantic Special Services and read it carefully. My highlights. My interpretation combined with my previous experience with them suggests that you can't use your machine during flight unless its life threatening not to use it. That means you will be grilled about your "condition" at the check-in counter and must PROVE with a faxed doctors note that you're safe to fly.

Dear Steven,

I’m sorry to hear that. We are happy for you to travel with sleep apnoea (as long as the condition is not life threatening) if the CPAP is not used. If the condition is life threatening then we do insist on a suitable CPAP machine being used. If you wish to take your CPAP I will be happy to put clear notes into the booking advising the check-in staff and crew of your condition and that you are medically cleared to travel with or without your CPAP, whichever the case may be.

Kind regards

Lynda
VAA Special Assistance Dept UK
Virgin Atlantic Airways Ltd, The Office (GNW),
Manor Royal, Crawley, RH10 9NU, UK
Tel: 0844 412 4455
Fax: 0844 209 7373
For passengers travelling from the US, please call:
1 - 888 - 747 - 7474 (Toll Free)
Lines are open Mon-Fri 3am-2pm EST
Email: Special_Assistance@fly.virgin.com
http://www.virginatlantic.com

Here is the email I just received from Virgin Atlantic inquiring about the use of cpap during flights. As many of you know I had a horrible experience in the past with Virgin Atlantic on this subject. I had to agree to fly sitting erect for the entire flight from Los Angeles to London, then London to Capetown, South Africa or I couldn't get on the plane. AND, I had to get my EENT to fax a letter to Virgin's Nurse that I was "fit to fly". I was also hassled at each boarding.

Dear Steve,

Thank you for your email regarding the use of personal medical equipment onboard.

Virgin Atlantic Airways can only permit the use of battery powered medical equipment onboard, any equipment that you wish to use must be cleared for use inflight by our engineering team. In order for the team to evaluate the equipment and issue a clearance we will require the following details:

 Make/Manufacturer of the unit
 Model Number
 Serial Number
 For Respiratory Assistance Devices (RAD's) such as Oxygen concentrators and Nebulisers etc we also require the "Watt-Hour" rating of any spare batteries that are being carried. These details can be obtained from the manufacturer.

The following is a list of CPAP machines cleared for previous passengers. If you intend to use one of these we know it will be safe to use onboard. However we will still need to know the make, model and serial number so we can advise the crew it has been pre-cleared.

AEIOMED AURA
AEIOMED EVEREST 2
EVEREST 3
Breas Isleep
BreatheX Journey, EVEREST -integrated
BreatheX Machine,
DeVilbiss Healthcare Intellipap DV54D
Devilbiss/Sunrise Medical 7340 Vacu-Aide 7340a
Kaerys KXS
Odstock
Puritan Bennett Goodnight 420
ResMed Auto Set Spirit S7
ResMed Auto Set Spirit S8
ResMed Escape S8 11
ResMed Sullivan
ResMed VPAP IV
ResMed Elite II
Respironics Remstar Auto M Series
Respironics Remstar Basic M Series
Respironics Remstar C-Flex
Respironics Remstar LX
Respironics Remstar Plus Domestic
Respironics Remstar Plus International
Respironics Remstar Plus LX
Respironics Remstar Plus M Series
Respironics Remstar Pro M Series
Sunrise Medical/Devilbiss Vacu-Aide 7340a
VIASYS BreatheX Journey


I hope the above information has been of use.

If we can be of any further assistance please do not hesitate in contacting us again.

Kind regards

Lynda Morris
Special Assistance
Tel 0844 412 4455 ext 33656

[M.D.Hosehead]

We are happy for you to travel with sleep apnoea (as long as the condition is not life threatening) if the CPAP is not used.

This is no gift; if they serve the US, the airline cannot refuse to transport people with handicaps, and must allow you to take your cpap (or any medical assistive device) into the passenger cabin; the carrier has no choice. The only exception is in the case carrying a handicapped person might make the flight unsafe, e.g., an acutely psychotic person.

Airlines are probably also required to allow the cpap to be used during flight. This quote is from the second link below:

The final rule also requires foreign carriers to permit individuals to use electronic respiratory assistive devices in the passenger cabin if certain conditions are met.

Requiring paperwork from your doctor may also be in violation of US laws/regs. It's complicated, though, and you may want to read the whole document.

Section 382.23 – Medical Certificates and Medical Clearances

1. Under what circumstances may a carrier determine that there is reasonable doubt that a passenger can complete the flight safely without requiring extraordinary medical assistance during the flight and thus require the passenger to obtain a medical clearance as a condition for providing air transportation? How is “extraordinary medical assistance” defined?

Answer: A carrier may determine that there is reasonable doubt that a passenger can complete the flight safely without requiring extraordinary medical assistance during the flight when the passenger’s condition does not appear to be medically stable (e.g., the passenger has apparent significant difficulty in breathing, appears to be in substantial pain, etc.). Extraordinary medical care is care that may require the use of onboard emergency medical equipment (e.g., automated external defibrillator or enhanced emergency medical kit (EEMK)) or voluntary assistance from another medically trained passenger, or a delay/diversion to obtain the medical assistance necessary to stabilize that passenger. Extraordinary medical assistance may also be needed when a passenger is unable to self-administer medication or routine medical care necessary to maintain the stability of his/her condition during a flight (e.g., insulin injection). In instances where the carrier reasonably concludes that extraordinary medical assistance may be necessary, it may require a medical certificate.

http://library.findlaw.com/1999/Mar/17/130800.html

You can also download a more extensive explication as a pdf here:

http://airconsumer.ost.dot.gov/rules/rules.htm

[PST]

Incidentally CPAPs are accepted (as long as you don't want the aircraft's power) by British Airways, Air Canada, Lufthansa Easyjet, Swiss and Air France but you need to have pre-clearance with all these companies.

I don't want to make too much out of this, because I may very well just have been lucky, and the British Airways crew failed to enforce a rule. However, I used my ResMed Elite II all night using the aircraft's power on a recent BA flight. I didn't ask anyone, I just did it. I didn't seek advance clearance or even know what the BA rules were because my day flight on another airline was canceled and I was on the BA night flight unexpectedly.

[Alsacienne]

BA do have inseat power from World Traveller Plus classes upwards. Their greatest fear is that your appliance will draw too much from the onboard circuit. If that is the case, the power outlet immediately cuts out for the rest of the flight!! You will probably need a special inverter if the aircraft still uses the EMPOWER onboard electricity system.

I am glad that you were able to use your CPAP especially in the circumstances of a changed flight and aircraft. Don't have any concerns that you didn't get advance clearance from Cabin Crew, and I'm glad that your machine didn't draw more than their maximum!

Incidentally out of courtesy I do tend to tell my row partners tactfully about my CPAP before I use it so they don't panic when they see me mask up.

[billbolton]

You will probably need a special inverter if the aircraft still uses the EMPOWER onboard electricity system.

EMPOWER is limited to delivering ~70W or so of power, and it is not difficult to exceed that with many xPAP machines on higher titration settings (especially when altitude sensing in the xPAP automatically increases the blower speed to accommodate the ~2400m equivalent alititude of cabin pressure).

Newer aircraft with at seat mains power outlets generally have a higher power rating, which is usually approximately double that of an EMPOWER outlet, and will run most recent xPAP machines satisfactorily at any titration setting.

Cheers,

Bill

[PST]

Newer aircraft with at seat mains power outlets generally have a higher power rating, which is usually approximately double that of an EMPOWER outlet, and will run most recent xPAP machines satisfactorily at any titration setting.

I spent part of the delay trying to figure out if I would be able to run my CPAP machine. I found that the plane did have "mains power," although that term isn't used much in the states and I didn't know for sure what it meant. I searched through old CPAPtalk posts and found the information I needed: that the S9's automatic altitude adjustment worked as high as normal cruising altitude and the unit probably wouid not draw too much power. I recall some or all that was in old Bill Bolton posts, so thank you, Bill, and everyone else whose knowledge helped me.

[Hose_Head]

UPDATE: NOT GOOD

I got this email Virgin Atlantic Special Services and read it carefully. My highlights. My interpretation combined with my previous experience with them suggests that you can't use your machine during flight unless its life threatening not to use it. That means you will be grilled about your "condition" at the check-in counter and must PROVE with a faxed doctors note that you're safe to fly.

Dear Steven,

I’m sorry to hear that. We are happy for you to travel with sleep apnoea (as long as the condition is not life threatening) if the CPAP is not used. If the condition is life threatening then we do insist on a suitable CPAP machine being used. If you wish to take your CPAP I will be happy to put clear notes into the booking advising the check-in staff and crew of your condition and that you are medically cleared to travel with or without your CPAP, whichever the case may be.

Kind regards

Lynda
VAA Special Assistance Dept UK
Virgin Atlantic Airways Ltd, The Office (GNW),
Manor Royal, Crawley, RH10 9NU, UK
Tel: 0844 412 4455
Fax: 0844 209 7373
For passengers travelling from the US, please call:
1 - 888 - 747 - 7474 (Toll Free)
Lines are open Mon-Fri 3am-2pm EST
Email: Special_Assistance@fly.virgin.com
http://www.virginatlantic.com

Based on the letter that you've received from VAA, it looks to me as though they have no idea what sleep apnea is, nor what is a cpap. Appear to be too lazy to try to find out, too! Unforgiveable for a purported "Special Assistance Dept".

[Alsacienne]

I have found http://www.seatguru.com to be helpful in giving a general indication of what power is available on any given aircraft of most major airlines. Happy Landings to all CPAP users in the air!

[backdoc]

Great Customer Service Air New Zealand RE: CPAP
I put a request via email yesterday to Special Services @ Air New Zealand for a flight Tuesday from LAX-LHR requesting to use my machine on board with a photo of the model/serial number of my machine.

A very polite woman called me yesterday from Air New Zealand to follow-up and asked if there were any other medical issues that they should know about and "I said no, I just snore." She said great and that my machine was approved to be used on both the LAX-LHR and return.

I then got a follow-up email from them a few minutes later:

Hi Dr.,

Further to our conversation today, as you have advised that you have no medical conditions that we need to be aware of, Medical clearance is not required for this journey and you are welcome to bring your REMstar Auto M Series battery powered CPAP on board.

Please ensure you provide enough batteries to operate the machine for the period of intended use as we are unable to offer recharging facility on board and cannot use aircraft power.

I hope you enjoy your flight with Air New Zealand,

Kind Regards,

Kylie Hansen


I'll report back with the actual on plane usage with a few pics.. I leave 3/22/11