All airlines Asia Pacific
Cathay Pacific
Powered wheelchairs accepted · carried free · no watt-hour cap on an installed battery.
- Advance notice
- Not published
- Powered wheelchair
- Yes
- Lithium, battery installed
- No stated limit
- Cost to carry
- Free
Who to contact
Transcribed from the airline’s own pages, exactly as it labels them.
- PhoneHong Kong SAR — Customer Care general enquiries
- PhoneUnited States — Customer Care general enquiries
- PhoneCanada — Customer Care general enquiries
- PhoneUnited Kingdom — Customer Care general enquiries
- PhoneAustralia — Customer Care general enquiries
- EmailHong Kong International Airport Baggage Services (damaged/delayed baggage, incl. mobility aids) — tel +852 2747 7838
- Online form
- Online form
- Relay / text"Using a TTY/TDD device (for hearing impaired only): Dial 711 to be connected through the Relay Service." Published against the US and Canada Customer Care listings.USA & Canada — TTY/TDD
Cathay publishes no dedicated disability phone line; the mobility-assistance page routes every request to "Customer Care", whose numbers sit behind a country selector on contact-us.html (the numbers above are that page's own data). Disability-discrimination complaints go in writing to: Complaints Resolution Official, Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd, 5/F South Tower, Cathay City, 8 Scenic Road, Hong Kong International Airport, Lantau Island, Hong Kong, fax (852) 2596 0825 — or, for India, Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd, Unit 401-402, 4th floor, Piramal Towers, Peninsula Corporate Park, Lower Parel, Mumbai 400013.
Read it from the source
- Mobility assistance — wheelchair check-in, batteries, cabin stowage (opens in a new tab)
- Disability and mobility assistance (hub) (opens in a new tab)
- Lithium batteries — watt-hour rules and the mobility-aid exception (opens in a new tab)
- Complaints and regulatory reference (CRO, 14 CFR 382, EC 1107/2006, India CAR) (opens in a new tab)
Powered wheelchairs & batteries
The part that goes wrong. Battery chemistry and watt-hours decide whether your chair flies, and the rules differ depending on whether the battery can be removed.
"We accept all types of battery-powered wheelchairs in the cargo compartment e.g. wheelchairs with dry cell battery, wet cell battery, gel cell battery, or non-spillable electric storage batteries." Lithium-ion powered aids are carried as checked baggage provided the battery meets UN Manual of Tests and Criteria Part III Section 38.3.
Mobility assistance (opens in a new tab) · read 2026-07-29
Carried as checked baggage provided the battery meets UN 38.3. Lithium-ion mobility aids are named as the express exception to Cathay's ban on 160+ Wh lithium batteries in baggage: "Exceptions: Lithium-ion battery powered wheelchairs or similar mobility aids used by passengers with restricted mobility."
Mobility assistance (opens in a new tab) · read 2026-07-29 Lithium batteries (controlled and banned items) (opens in a new tab) · read 2026-07-29
Cathay states explicitly: "There is no maximum watt-hour limit if the lithium battery(ies) remains in the device" — provided the battery is protected against damage by the design of the aid, securely attached, and the electrical circuits are isolated per the manufacturer's instructions.
Mobility assistance (opens in a new tab) · read 2026-07-29
"The maximum removed battery size is 300Wh, or for devices fitted with two batteries, 160Wh each." Removal is required when the aid's design does not adequately protect the battery or it is not securely attached; removed batteries must be short-circuit protected, placed individually in a protective pouch and taken into the cabin.
Mobility assistance (opens in a new tab) · read 2026-07-29
"One spare lithium ion battery at a maximum of 300Wh; or two spare batteries at a maximum of 160Wh (in addition to the removed batteries, if applicable)."
Mobility assistance (opens in a new tab) · read 2026-07-29
One spare lithium-ion battery up to 300 Wh, or two spares up to 160 Wh each, carried in addition to any removed battery. Other chemistries: one spare non-spillable wet battery, two spare nickel-metal hydride, two spare dry batteries. Spillable batteries: "No spare battery(ies) is allowed".
Mobility assistance (opens in a new tab) · read 2026-07-29
"The batteries must be removed if the design of the mobility aid does not provide adequate protection and that the battery is not securely attached to the device (following the manufacturer's instructions)." Otherwise a lithium-ion battery may stay installed with no watt-hour limit.
Mobility assistance (opens in a new tab) · read 2026-07-29
Non-spillable wet batteries complying with Special Provision A67 (gel, sealed lead acid, AGM) may remain installed if securely attached, adequately protected by the design and with circuits isolated, or be removed, short-circuit protected and placed in strong rigid packaging secured in the hold. One spare non-spillable battery; two spare NiMH/NiCd (A199) or two spare dry batteries (SP123).
Mobility assistance (opens in a new tab) · read 2026-07-29
"The spillable battery(ies) must be securely attached to the wheelchair, scooter or mobility aid and the device can be stowed in the aircraft in an upright position, it must remain in the device. The power must be disconnected or isolated so that it cannot be inadvertently activated." No spare spillable battery is allowed.
Mobility assistance (opens in a new tab) · read 2026-07-29
"The removed batteries must be protected from short circuit (e.g. by covering or taping over exposed terminals). In order to protect them from damage, place batteries individually in a protective pouch and take them with you into the cabin." Installed batteries must have their electrical circuits isolated per the manufacturer's instructions.
Mobility assistance (opens in a new tab) · read 2026-07-29
Bring to check-in: "The user manual for your wheelchair and the batteries"; "specialised tools needed to disassemble and reassemble the wheelchair if needed"; and for lithium-ion aids "the United Nations (UN) test document for the lithium-ion batteries meeting the requirement as specified in the UN Manual of Tests and Criteria, Part III Section 38.3".
Mobility assistance (opens in a new tab) · read 2026-07-29
No maximum checked size or cargo-hold dimensions are published for powered wheelchairs.
No weight limit is published for powered wheelchairs; Cathay asks you to advise Customer Care of the weight and size of the chair.
Not published. Cathay allows a battery-powered wheelchair to be used to the departure gate and, when airport facilities permit, to the aircraft door, but does not state where it is returned on arrival.
Small lithium-ion vehicles (AirWheel, Solowheel, hoverboards, mini Segways and other self-balancing scooters) are banned from both checked and cabin baggage on all Cathay Pacific flights and will be refused at check-in.
Manual wheelchairs
"Passengers with a disability may use their own manual or battery-powered wheelchair to the departure gate, and when airport facilities permit, to the aircraft door." Bring the wheelchair user manual and any specialised tools needed to disassemble and reassemble it.
Mobility assistance (opens in a new tab) · read 2026-07-29
"Cathay Pacific may be able to store one collapsible manual wheelchair in the cabin, depending on aircraft type and available space. Note that storage priority is based on a first come, first serve basis." Sizes differ by aircraft (see cabin_stowage_dimensions).
Mobility assistance (opens in a new tab) · read 2026-07-29
Smallest in-cabin stowage size in Cathay's table: 9 in W x 26 in D x 30 in H (22.9 x 66.0 x 76.2 cm) on the 773P, A33E and A33K. Larger allowances: 13 x 36 x 42 in (33.0 x 91.4 x 106.7 cm) on 773A, 773K and A35G; 14.5 x 32 x 36.5 in (36.8 x 81.3 x 92.7 cm) on A33P. One collapsible manual chair only, first come first served.
Mobility assistance (opens in a new tab) · read 2026-07-29
Cathay publishes no maximum size for a CHECKED wheelchair and no cargo-hold or hold-door dimensions; only the in-cabin stowage sizes are given.
No weight limit is published; Cathay only asks you to tell Customer Care the weight and size of your wheelchair.
Not published. Cathay states you may use your own chair to the departure gate and, where facilities permit, to the aircraft door, but says nothing about where the chair is returned on arrival.
Walking canes, frames and crutches may be carried in the cabin if stowed to cabin safety requirements; a collapsible walking frame may be stowed in the cabin if crew can do so safely, but "non-collapsible walking frames are not permitted in the aircraft cabin" and get priority stowage in the hold instead. A safety assistant is required if you cannot physically assist in your own evacuation.
Booking & cost
No general advance-notice deadline in hours is published: "Please contact our Customer Care as far in advance of your flight as possible... different services may require different notice periods." The only stated deadlines are 48 hours for groups of ten or more passengers requiring wheelchairs, and 7 days for postural support equipment not on Cathay's approved list.
"Please contact Customer Care for assistance and advise them of the weight and size of your wheelchair, the type of battery used for your battery-powered wheelchair and the lithium-ion battery watt-hours if your wheelchair is powered by a lithium-ion battery."
Mobility assistance (opens in a new tab) · read 2026-07-29 Disability and mobility assistance (opens in a new tab) · read 2026-07-29
"For passengers with disabilities there is no charge for transporting wheelchairs." Passenger-supplied postural support equipment is also carried free of charge.
Mobility assistance (opens in a new tab) · read 2026-07-29
Cathay does not publish a number of mobility devices carried free per passenger, only that wheelchairs are carried at no charge.
No mobility-aid damage or valuation rule is published on Cathay's disability pages. What is published is the discrimination-complaints route: write to the Complaints Resolution Official at Cathay City, Hong Kong (fax (852) 2596 0825) or use the Online Feedback Form, under US 14 CFR Part 382, EC Regulation 1107/2006 and India's CAR Section 3 Series M.
On board
"Should you need assistance inside the cabin moving between your seat and the aircraft door or lavatory door, an inflight wheelchair and aisle seat with movable armrests are available." No aircraft exceptions are published.
Mobility assistance (opens in a new tab) · read 2026-07-29 Disability and mobility assistance (opens in a new tab) · read 2026-07-29
"A lavatory with a single panel door and additional grab bar is available on all our aircraft. Our cabin crew can provide you with assistance moving to and from the lavatory door, but will not be able to assist you inside the lavatory."
Seating and accessibility (opens in a new tab) · read 2026-07-29
"Our cabin crew are also trained to assist if you are unable to move by yourself from the inflight wheelchair to and from your seat." Staff will not help with personal care — eating and drinking, medication, or assistance beyond the lavatory door; a travel assistant is recommended for those needs.
Mobility assistance (opens in a new tab) · read 2026-07-29 Disability and mobility assistance (opens in a new tab) · read 2026-07-29
"We try to offer priority seating to passengers in need of assistance and we will do our best to allocate you a seat that is most suitable to your needs", including an aisle seat with movable armrests. Passengers whose mobility would hinder an evacuation are not seated at emergency exits (FAA and Hong Kong CAD requirements, CAD 800).
Mobility assistance (opens in a new tab) · read 2026-07-29 Seating and accessibility (opens in a new tab) · read 2026-07-29
Fleet detail. Cathay publishes no cargo-hold or hold-door dimensions. It does publish in-cabin stowage sizes for one collapsible manual wheelchair: 773P / A33E / A33K 9W x 26D x 30H in; 773A / 773K / A35G 13W x 36D x 42H in; A33P 14.5W x 32D x 36.5H in.
Worth knowing
Cathay's battery table is the clearest of the four airlines in this batch: it states outright that there is NO watt-hour limit for a lithium-ion battery left installed in the wheelchair, provided the aid's design protects the battery, the battery is securely attached and the circuits are isolated; the 300 Wh (or 2 x 160 Wh) cap only bites once the battery has to be removed. Lithium-ion mobility aids are also the named exception to Cathay's blanket ban on 160+ Wh lithium batteries in baggage. Cathay demands the UN 38.3 test document for lithium-ion wheelchair batteries at check-in — an unusually specific documentary requirement. Spillable (wet) batteries stay in the chair and the chair must be stowable upright; no spillable spare is carried. There is no dedicated disability phone line: everything routes to "Customer Care", whose per-country numbers load dynamically on contact-us.html (captured here from that page's own data feed). Cathay publishes no maximum checked-wheelchair size, no weight limit and no general advance-notice deadline, which is a real gap for a power-chair user.
Sources
Every figure above traces to one of these.
- s1 Mobility assistance (opens in a new tab) · official · read 2026-07-29
- s2 Disability and mobility assistance (opens in a new tab) · official · read 2026-07-29
- s3 Seating and accessibility (opens in a new tab) · official · read 2026-07-29
- s4 Complaints and regulatory reference (opens in a new tab) · official · read 2026-07-29
- s5 Lithium batteries (controlled and banned items) (opens in a new tab) · official · read 2026-07-29
- s6 Contact us and support (opens in a new tab) · official · read 2026-07-29
- s7 Country contact information (data behind the Contact us country selector) (opens in a new tab) · official · read 2026-07-29
- s8 Complaints and suggestions (Online Feedback Form) (opens in a new tab) · official · read 2026-07-29
Record quality
Record status researched · confidence high · 8 official sources · 9 contacts · 71% of the fields this reference tracks are answered. Newest source read 29 July 2026, the day before this page was built. What these mean.