Special Needs

If you have special needs, please let us know what we can do to accommodate them. Whether you have difficulty with hearing, are a senior citizen, have special dietary requirements or have a physical or mental disability, we hope to make your flight safe and comfortable.

Just Let Us Know

If you need special assistance due to age, health, a disability or other reasons, we recommend you contact our local Reservation office 72 hours before departure so that we can make any special arrangements for your flight and any assistance with connecting flights. We strive to make your travel with China Eastern Airlines to be as smooth and comfortable as possible.

Some passengers who have significant disabilities may need to travel with an escort for their own comfort, convenience and safety. Also, we strongly advise that you travel with an escort if you need in-flight assistance with eating, medical assistance (such as with medications, medical devices or medical attention) and other personal bodily functions, as we cannot assist you in these areas. The escort must travel in the same class with you.

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Passengers with Disabilities

Many people with disabilities can safely and comfortably travel with China Eastern Airlines without making special arrangements. We require advance notice through our Reservation office or your travel agent for some disabilities and we recommend 72 hours advance notice before departure so that we can better accommodate any special needs you may have.

Wheelchairs

Use your Own Wheelchair (collapsible or non-collapsible)
Passengers with a disability may use their own wheelchair. The type of wheelchair can be collapsible or non-collapsible. You can use your wheelchair to the departure gate, and if airport facilities permit, to the aircraft door.

We may be able to stow your collapsible wheelchair in the aircraft cabin so long as space permits. If this is not possible, your wheelchair will be checked at the gate, stowed in the cargo compartment and returned to you as soon as the aircraft arrives at your destination. If you need to use a wheelchair in the cabin, we will be happy to provide one.

If your wheelchair is non-collapsible, we will check it in along with your baggage and carry it to your destination free of charge. We accept all types of battery powered wheelchairs such as dry cell battery, wet cell battery, gel cell battery or non-spillable electric storage batteries. Certain safety procedures must be followed in order to comply with international air transport safety regulations and we will advise you of these at the time of booking.

China Eastern wheelchair services
We would be more than happy to provide a wheelchair for you and should you require this service, please contact our Reservations office 72 hours before departure. In order to ensure the service meets your needs our Reservations staff will ask you whether you are able to walk without assistance, how far you are able to walk, and whether you can ascend and descend stairs without assistance.

China Eastern wheelchair service is provided, with an attendant, at no additional charge to you. The attendant will assist in transporting you within the airport area and to the gate or aircraft door (depending on the airport facilities). During peak travel periods, there can be a high demand for our wheelchair service, and we appreciate your patience in the event that it is necessary for you to wait a few minutes for this service. Please contact our Reservations office should you have any questions about our wheelchair service and our staff will be happy to assist you.

Blind or Visually Impaired

Passengers who are blind or visually impaired may bring a cane or other assistive/supportive device with them into the cabin and these items are not subject to the limit on cabin baggage. Passengers who are not blind or visually impaired may also bring a cane or other assistive/supportive device with them into the cabin at no additional charge. The cane will need to be stowed prior to takeoff and landing and stowage can be under your seat or in the overhead compartment. The cane needs to lie flat on the floor and should not block the emergency exit or protrude into the aisle. You may ask our cabin crew for assistance in loading and retrieving your cane in case it is not a collapsible or if it cannot be stowed under your seat.

Deaf or Hearing Impaired

Please inform us if you are deaf or hearing impaired so that we can provide assistance to you in the event that your flight is delayed or if the departure gate is changed after you have checked in. An individual safety briefing can be arranged upon request.

Service Animal

You may also bring an eligible service animal with you into the cabin at no additional charge. At this time, the only eligible service animal is a dog, which can be any guide dog, signal dog, or other dog individually trained to provide assistance to an individual with a disability. Your service dog needs to be properly harnessed and muzzled and should curl up under seats in order to prevent any obstruction. The leash of the service dog must be secured to the owner’s seatbelt at all times during flight. We allow one service dog per passenger and ask that you contact our Reservation office at least 72 hours prior to departure so that we can make necessary arrangements. There may be quarantine regulations imposed by the country of import and our Reservation staff will be happy to provide with details of any such requirements.

Oxygen

Oxygen for therapeutic or medical purposes is available on China Eastern flights in cylinders provided by us. We levy a service charge, payable prior to departure, for the provision of oxygen, which is a non-refundable charge even if the oxygen remains unused. For safety reasons, we cannot accept oxygen cylinders brought on by passengers themselves. Since oxygen for therapeutic or medical reasons is considered a medical product, we require that you provide us with a copy of a medical certificate signed by your physician (called a MEDIF form and it must reach our Medical Office through Reservations at least 48 hours prior to flight time). We ask that you retain the original with you during your flight(s). We may transport your empty personal oxygen equipment at no additional charge to you so long as it is packed and labeled in accordance with our regulations. For oxygen equipment filled with gas, it must be packed in accordance with "Dangerous Goods" regulations. It is to be shipped as "cargo" with appropriate air cargo tariff applied. For further information on the packing and labeling requirements and details on arranging the carriage of your oxygen, please contact our Reservations office.

Cognitive and Development Disabilities

China Eastern will be happy to provide assistance to passengers who require guidance within the airport areas and arrangements should be made for such services with our Reservations office 72 hours prior to departure. Whilst our airport customer service representatives are able to provide a meet and assist service, it is not possible for us to arrange for passengers to be attended to at all times. Passengers in need of continuous assistance or personal care should arrange their own escort.

Speech Impaired Passengers

Passengers with speech impairment may wish to identify themselves to us whilst making their travel plans. We do not require any special documentation for travel with us or notification prior to departure. However, should assistance be required at check-in or with boarding, please notify our Reservations office 72 hours prior to departure so that arrangements can be made.

Passengers Needing Escorts

For safety reasons, China Eastern may require a passenger to travel with an escort or attendant if the passenger:

• Will travel in a stretcher or incubator or require medical attention during the flight. (The attendant must be capable of attending to their medical needs in the cabin)
• Is unable to comprehend or respond properly to safety instructions due to a mental disability.
• Has mobility impairment, which is so severe that the passenger is unable to assist in his or her own evacuation of the aircraft.
• Has severe hearing and vision impairments and cannot establish some means of communication with airline employees.

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Mothers-to-Be

It is generally safe for pregnant passengers to travel, though caution should be exercised about excessive amounts of flying during the early weeks because of hypoxia. Heavy lifting during pregnancy should be avoided, so extra care should be taken with baggage. Please consult your gynecologist or obstetrician before planning your trip.

We will accept passengers with single pregnancies up to 36 weeks and multiple pregnancies up to 32 weeks. A medical certificate is required at check-in.

A complicated pregnancy would require medical approval from our medical team whereby a MEDA form is to be completed by both the passenger and her treating doctor, and submitted no later than 48 hours prior to departure.

Pregnant passengers should make certain that the facilities at the destination country are adequate to cope with any problems with the pregnancy happened during the visit. It is wise to avoid travel to remote locations whilst pregnant.

If you require medications during your pregnancy, please ensure that you have an adequate supply for the journey. Please remember that certain medications, such as some types of malarial prophylaxes and vaccinations, cannot be used in pregnancy. If the destination country requires such prophylaxis, it is better to postpone the journey until after your pregnancy. You can obtain further details from your gynecologist or obstetrician, or from the website of the US Government Center For Disease Control.\

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Babies

All our aircraft are equipped with special baby bassinets and packs, as well as a wide range of baby food. Each has at least two toilets with special fold-down tables for changing diapers.

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Unaccompanied Children and Minors

We will look after children, aged between 6 and 12 years, who are traveling alone -- both in-flight and in transit. If more than six children are scheduled to travel alone, we will arrange a trained and fully qualified "Flying Guardian" to accompany them.

Airfares for children on Unaccompanied Minor Service might differ from those traveling with adult companions. Please contact our Ticketing Office or your travel agent for more details.

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Special Order

If you'd like to have a special meal, please contact our local reservations office at least 24 hours before departure. You can view the complete list from our Special Meals page.

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Dogs and Cats in Transit

You need to apply for an Import Permit for your pet if you fly to Hong Kong(??? Other cities), even for transit. For more details on application procedures as well as import requirements, please visit the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department's website (is this site specific to Hong Kong SAR???).

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Pets in Cabin

With the exclusion of service dogs, no pet or animal of any description will be permitted in our passenger cabin. Pets such as dogs, cats and birds will be crated and transported in the cargo compartment. Please check with the local government office for all documentation required (i.e. health certificates and travel permits) if you plan to fly with your pet.

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