SASW@MIT-MC (02/25/83)
From: Steven A. Swernofsky <SASW @ MIT-MC>
From: Patrick Olmstead
"My sister wants to know the exact requirements governing the
passenger carriers in the area of non-smoking sections and the
expansion thereof. Is this in the FAR's? If so, what part?"
No, this can be found instead in CAB regulations. "Subchapter A --
Economic Regulations" includes Part 252, which regulates smoking aboard
commercial aircraft. Here is the regulation in full, as found in volume
14 of the Code of Federal Regulations, 14 C.F.R. Part 252 (1982).
----------------
PART 252 -- SMOKING ABOARD AIRCRAFT
Authority: Secs. 204, 404, 407, and 416 of Pub. L. 85-726, as amended,
72 Stat. [U.S. Statutes] 743, 760, 766, 771, 49 U.S.C. [U.S. Code] 1324,
1374, 1377, 1386. [This refers to the C.A.B.'s rulemaking authority.]
Source: ER-1245, 46 FR [Federal Register] 45939, Sept. 16, 1981, unless
otherwise noted. [This refers to where the regulation was announced.]
sec. 252.1 Applicability.
This part establishes rules for the smoking of tobacco aboard
aircraft. It applies to all operations of direct air carriers, except
on-demand services of air taxi operators, with aircraft designed to have
a passenger capacity of more than 30 seats. Nothing in this regulation
shall be deemed to require carriers to permit the smoking of tobacco
aboard aircraft.
sec. 252.2 No-smoking sections.
(a) Except as provided in paragraph (b) of this section, air carriers
shall upon request give each passenger a no-smoking seat and to that end
shall provide at a minimum:
(1) A no-smoking area for each class of service and for charter
service;
(2) A sufficient number of seats in the no-smoking sections of the
aircraft for all persons who wish to be seated there; and
(3) Expansion of no-smoking sections to meet passenger demand.
(b) On flights for which passengers may make confirmed reservations
and on which seats are assigned before boarding, an air carrier need not
provide a seat in a no-smoking section to a passenger who has not met
the carrier's requirements as to time and method of obtaining a seat on
the flight, or who does not have a confirmed reservation. If a seat is
available in the established no-smoking section, however, a carrier
shall seat there any enplaning passenger who so requests, regardless of
boarding time or reservation status.
sec. 252.3 Enforcement
Each air carrier shall take such action as is necessary to ensure that
smoking is not permitted in no-smoking sections and to enforce its rules
with respect to the separation of passengers in smoking and no-smoking
areas.
sec. 252.4 Waivers
Air carriers may file with the Board's [C.A.B.'s] Docket Section
applications for waivers of one or more of the requirements of this
part, in order to experiment with other methods of achieving the public
policy objectives of this part.
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I read this as saying that a carrier MUST assign you a no-smoking seat
if you so demand, UNLESS they assign seats ahead of time. Even if they
do, they must give you a no-smoking seat if there is one available when
you board the airplane. I admit, I don't know how this is enforced.
-- Steve