You want to look at Article 440, Air Conditioning equipment. Specifically, 440.14.
The disconnect - which CAN be a plug - has to be within sight of the equipment. Now, some might quibble, but to me, this means that the disconnect for the equipment you're working on has to be within sight of that equipment. In other words, if the system has components in more than one location, each location needs another disconnect.
BTW, a point of vocabulary: the part we are discussing is called the 'evaporator.' An 'air handler' is another piece of gear completely. The part outside is called the 'condenser,' and contains the compressor.
