cri.cn
Three passengers have sued China’s Spring Airlines for denying them flights because they have HIV/AIDS, according to media reports.
The three passengers were to take a Spring Airlines flight from Shenyang, northeast China’s Liaoning province to Shijiazhuang, north China’s Hebei province o July 28. Two of them informed the airlines’ staff at the airport they are infected with the HIV/AIDS virus before boarding and the three were not allowed on board.
The passenger among the three who was not infected asked for a certificate to take the flight. Doctors at the airport’s medical center said even when carrying the HIV/AIDS virus, they did not need a certificate to fly.
All three passengers missed the flight after their ticket information was removed. They are demanding an apology and compensations.
Spring Airlines has responded that according to regulations on passengers and luggage issued by China’s Civil Aviation Administration, they reserve the rights not to carry « passengers with infectious diseases ».
Liu Wei, the attorney representing the passengers, says the regulations stipulate that airlines can deny such passengers « only if their conditions pose potential threats to other passengers on board ».
A member of staff from the Civil Aviation Administration says the regulations are not specific about the kinds of infectious diseases, and airline companies can decide for themselves whether to take passengers on board.
Nine airline companies in China have said they do not discriminate against passengers with HIV/AIDS.