Q&A | Airline passengers with disabilities

Q: My mother, who needs assistance getting around, wants go to Las Vegas. Which airlines/planes have the largest seating areas and are disabled friendly? Are any seat locations better than others?

A: The Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) ensures that all airlines and airports accommodate disabled travelers. However, for extra care, you'll need to be proactive.

To make the flight as comfortable as possible, start working the phone. When booking, inform the airline agent of your mother's disabilities and needs — if she has low mobility, hip problems, heart ailments, etc. Jani Nayar, executive coordinator of the Society for Accessible Travel and Hospitality, a New York non-profit, says there are different degrees of needs, and the agent will find her a seat based on her condition. In addition, if she requires wheelchair assistance at the airport, remember to request the service for both the departing and arriving destinations. An employee will meet her at the ticket counter and accompany her to the gate, and vice versa.

Forty-eight hours before each flight's departure, call the airline to confirm the special requests.

Plane size and configuration greatly vary, but for a primer, check out SeatGuru.com (www.seatguru.com), which lists more than 25 airlines and displays seating plans of the aircrafts' interiors. It also offers helpful tips, such as "Underseat space at all A, J, D and F seats is limited due to entertainment system box." Bulkhead seats are the most spacious, but many are in exit rows, and only fit passengers are allowed to sit there. However, seats in the first row of coach have more space (no crushing reclining seats or tray tables), plus your mother won't have to walk far to her seat.

Finally, if a problem arises, request the airline's complaint resolution officer, who is required to be on hand at all times, either in person or on the phone. For additional assistance, see SATH's Web site, www.sath.org, and the ADA site, www.usdoj.gov/crt/ada/

Q: We're traveling to Hong Kong but don't have enough frequent-flier miles to exchange them for seats in business class. We'd like to purchase coach seats, then use our miles to upgrade, but the airline's Web site says no upgrades are permitted. Can you explain?

A: As a general rule, the cheaper your ticket, the less likely you'll be permitted to use miles to upgrade your seat. If you bought directly from the airline, you can probably upgrade with no problem. But if you purchased seats at a discount price through a consolidator, you're probably stuck in coach. (A consolidator is an agency that buys excess airline inventory below the published price, then resells it.)

Next time, call the airline before you buy a discounted ticket and ask if it's the type that can be upgraded.