United Airlines announces fleet-wide plans for Braille placards on its planes

United Airlines started rolling out Braille placards for seat numbers and lavatories in the past few weeks. The airlines expects the accessibility features to be available across its mainline fleet by 2026. The updates are part of its United Next plan to overhaul all of its aircraft. United’s Chief Customer Officer Linda Jojo said they also help the carrier be more inclusive and welcoming for all travelers. “It’s out on 12 planes right now and it’s pretty simple right now. The Braille is right above the seat, we also have it outside and inside of the lavs,” she told USA TODAY. “We did this from feedback from our own customers, feedback from third parties we’ve worked with.” According to Jojo, United is trying to be deliberate in how it rolls out the new features, which is why the timeline to do so is so long. “Every time we make a change this has to go through an FAA approval because it’s an aircraft part,” she said. “We’re going to stick with what we have, see how it works, see what our customers say, see what our employees say and make sure we get it right before we decide to speed it up or not.” For now, customers won’t have any way of knowing when they book if the aircraft they’re scheduled to fly on will be equipped with Braille signage, but Jojo said that once United’s fleet reaches a “critical mass” of fitted-out planes, they may be able to note those features on the apps and website. The airline said it will "continue to evaluate opportunities to keep customers informed" about the accessibility features as they continue to roll out.<br/>