By Barry Bateman, Latoya Newman and sapa

SAA has been branded a human rights violator for failing to provide adequate boarding equipment for disabled passengers at airports.

The SA Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) revealed that disabled passengers were transported to and from SAA aircraft in adapted catering vehicles and manually loaded on to and off planes.

On Sunday, a group of disabled people were forced to crawl out of the plane or be carried out at OR Tambo International Airport.

Dorothy-Ann Howitson, one of the group and a member of the National Council for Persons with Physical Disabilities, said at least five of them suffered "a great deal of abuse".

She said: "At one point, a driver drove up to us, looked at us and just drove off. It was degrading and inhumane."

Monica Gerhard said she had to be carried off the plane.

Petra Burger said she had to crawl out of the plane on her behind. "A guy rudely said I had to get off the way I got on. He said it wasn't his problem. So I went down on the floor and went down the stairs on my buttocks. I was very humiliated."

Part of the problem is a shortage of passenger aid units (PAUs) - a mechanical hoist used to lift wheelchair-bound passengers into a plane.

On February 1, SAA handed over its ground-handling services to new service provider Swissport, but the previous ground-handling service provider, Equity, has not released its PAUs.

The SAHRC, Airports Company SA, disabled people's organisations and several carriers met at OR Tambo International Airport on Tuesday to discuss the problem.

The SAHRC said: "These passengers' lives have been compromised due to delays in accessing PAUs. Some have been turned away completely or advised to use other carriers. Rights to equality, dignity, independent living, mobility and transport have been violated."

The SAHRC slammed the use of adapted catering trucks to transport disabled passengers. "This is completely unacceptable as a makeshift arrangement for human beings. This is blatant discrimination against people with disabilities."

The Pretoria News reported last month how a disabled city man was forced to wait on an SAA aircraft for more than two hours while he waited for a PAU.

SAHRC disability special programme co-ordinator Simmi Pillay said there needed to be further negotiations with Equity, which has PAUs locked away.

Staff also required training to handle passengers with disabilities.

"Major issues of attitude and behaviour towards disabled passengers need to be addressed through training."

SAA operations general manager Chris Smyth said the airline was working hard to resolve the issue. Two new PAUs would be operational from the end of March. Swissport was also trying to secure additional PAUs from other handlers.

"SAA respects the rights of every one of our passengers and would never intentionally undermine their rights.

"It has certainly not been our intention to delay or cause embarrassment to disabled passengers as a result of the PAU shortage.

"For this we apologise and stress that everything possible is being done to rectify the situation in the shortest possible time."