In September 2024, Tracy Pearce, an outreach teacher with Sight Scotland at the Royal Blind School in Edinburgh, approached Emirates with a request for eye shades. These are typically used by passengers on overnight flights to simulate visual impairment during training activities. The goal of these trainings is to help teachers and support staff understand the challenges faced by visually impaired individuals.
Emirates’ PR and CSR team responded positively, encouraging Tracy to reach out to her network across the UK. This led to requests from over 80 teachers who wanted to use the eye shades in their training sessions. By November, Emirates had distributed 12,250 First Class eye shades to various schools and centers like Guide Dogs for the Blind Associations and Learning and Inclusion Centres.
Tracy Pearce expressed gratitude for the donation: “These eye shades provide invaluable insight into the realities of living with a visual impairment… We’re grateful to Emirates for their generous donation.”
In addition to this initiative, Emirates is enhancing its services for blind and low vision customers. The airline has partnered with the Be My Eyes app, becoming the first airline globally to offer this service. The app provides video support through volunteers who assist blind or low vision users.
Onboard Emirates’ Airbus A350 aircraft, there is a new user interface designed for visually impaired customers featuring audio-cue navigation assistance and audio-descriptive content. Moreover, Emirates is committed to making its digital experiences accessible via its website using Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 Level AA Success Criteria.
At airports like Dubai International Airport (DXB), John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK), and Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), accessible self-service kiosks have been introduced. These kiosks feature improved typography and text-to-speech capabilities for easier navigation by visually impaired customers.
Emirates also offers meet-and-assist services at all airports and can arrange individual safety briefings onboard flights. Additionally, guide dogs can travel free of charge on certain routes when arrangements are made in advance.
