Contingency Plan for Lengthy Tarmac Delays

The UIA Contingency Plan for Lengthy Tarmac Delays is meant to comply with the regulations published by the U.S. Department of Transportation addressing airline services during conditions that result with long tarmac delays. This contingency plan is separate from and not a part of UIA «Passenger and Baggage Carriage Rules».

The UIA Contingency Plan for Lengthy Tarmac Delays is intended to provide the passengers with information regarding UIA policies and procedures for handling of their travel by UIA flights in the event of a lengthy ground delay, while the passengers are onboard UIA aircraft.

This UIA Contingency Plan for Lengthy Tarmac Delays is adopted for all scheduled and public charter flights operated with an aircraft equal to or greater than 30 passenger seats by UIA.

Limits of lengthy onboard ground delays

UIA assures its customers that it will not permit an aircraft to remain on the tarmac for more than four hours before allowing customers to deplane.

The following exceptions to the hard time limits apply to international flights:

• Safety or security reasons.
• Air Traffic Control (ATC) advises the pilot in command that returning to the terminal would disrupt airport operations.

Passenger services during a lengthy onboard ground delay

For all flights covered by this plan, UIA:

• will provide adequate food and potable water not later than 2 hours after the aircraft leaves the gate (in the case of a departure) or touches down (in the case of an arrival) unless the pilot-in-command determines that safety or security considerations preclude such service;
• will provide operable lavatory facilities, as well as adequate medical attention if needed, other customer comfort needs while the aircraft remains on the tarmac;
• will notify passengers on the delayed flight about the status of the delay beginning 30 minutes after scheduled departure time (including any revised departure time that passengers were notified about before boarding) and every 30 minutes thereafter (including the reason for the tarmac delay, if known);
• will notify passengers on the delayed flight that they have the opportunity to deplane from an aircraft that is at the gate or another disembarkation area with the door open if the opportunity to deplane actually exists every 30 minutes.

UIA has sufficient resources to implement this Contingency Plan.

UIA has coordinated this Contingency Plan with local airport authorities (including terminal facility operators where applicable) at each U.S. airport, used for UIA international flights, including diversion airports.

For all flights covered by this plan, UIA provides assurances that this plan has been coordinated with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) at each U.S. airport, used for UIA international flights, including diversion airports.

For all flights covered by this plan, UIA provides assurances that the plan has been coordinated with the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) at each U.S. airport, used for UIA international flights, including diversion airports.

Codeshare flights

In the event that you are on a flight operated by one of UIA codeshare partners, the tarmac delay contingency plan of the carrier operating your flight will apply in case of a tarmac delay.

Responsibility

The UIA Operations Control Center (OCC) is responsible for the overall coordination and compliance to the plan. They will work closely with airport customer service, flight operations and in flight service to carry out the plan at station and flight level.