Children. Unaccompanied. On airplanes. It hasn’t gone so well recently. Rebekah Spicuglia, who lives in on one side of the country while her son lives full-time with his father on the other, knows a little something about children flying alone. I asked her for advice:
As a parent who has flown her son cross-country as an unaccompanied minor 12 times in his young life (he is now 11), I have some perspective to offer. First, this is obviously an egregious error. I can only imagine the concern and distress the parents must have felt and the confusion and worry experienced by the two girls. But as a parent ultimately concerned with my child’s safety, I just have to point out that both the girls (one 8 and one 10) who made headlines when Continental sent them to the wrong cities, are physically safe, were never unsupervised, and ultimately were flown to the correct destination the same day. In both situations, two different flights were boarding from the same gate, and the gate agents simply put them on the wrong plane. So, the issue is not whether safe travel is possible for unaccompanied minors – it is, thousands of children fly safely unaccompanied every year – but the airline policies and check-in processes.
As I have never experienced an incident like this, I am just learning that the Federal Aviation Administration, Transportation Security Administration, U.S. Department of Transportation and the National Transportation Safety Board do not have rules about the treatment of unaccompanied minors. The TSA has made it clear that this really isn’t their department, saying: “This is more of a customer service issue rather than a security issue.” According to the Houston Chronicle: “While the Transportation Department does collect data about consumer complaints related to unaccompanied minors, but that information is limited to a count of the complaints and rarely, if ever, leads to an investigation into the complaint.”
Whether that is the way it should be is open to debate. After all, the these agencies regulate just about everything else related to air travel as a security issue, isn’t it reasonable that – given that divorce rates and geographic family sprawl mean more unaccompanied minors — this become their responsibility. But until (and even after) that happens, parents must be vigilant, booking travel wisely and evaluating options carefully. Here are some things I always keep in mind.
All airlines are not equal. I have never entrusted my son to an economy airline, and even airlines with specific policies may be inconsistent. It is required that the adult picking my son up at the airport show ID, but do flight attendants always ask for ID? No. My son has mainly flown with JetBlue, Virgin American, American, and Delta, yet even among those carriers, I have found the level of security to vary. Sometimes airline staff asks for my ID when I am picking up my son, sometimes they don’t. When this happens to you, SAY SOMETHING. Remind them how much you value the safety of your child.
All itineraries are not equal. Unless absolutely necessary due to geography, avoid connecting flights, especially during winter. What you save in flight cost, you lose in worry. Rain and snowstorms can delay flights, possibly stranding your child in a strange city. There are also unpredictable moments. Last summer, I booked my son on a short flight to LAX that connected through to NYC, but upon pick-up he told me that the flight attendants told him he “wasn’t allowed to do that.” Apparently the airline call center was misinformed and had accidentally booked him on two different carriers; there was also a lengthy shuttle ride over to the other side of the airport. I was appalled at the airline’s error and furious that they had made my son feel responsible for it.
Take all expenses into account. Just two years ago, my son used to be able to fly with a $40 extra charge, but now that is almost unheard of. The service is still the same, but most airlines charge between $75 (Virgin, JetBlue) to $100 (Delta, American), each way. Some charge only one fee for multiple children (Delta). And, as we all know, airlines have also added extra fees for checked baggage, which a child certainly needs when going to visit mom for the whole summer! So, while overall plane fares remain low ($350 round-trip from LAX to JFK), the unaccompanied minor fees add almost 60% to the total cost. Except for JetBlue, whose first bag is still free! There is a comprehensive list of unaccompanied minor service and baggage fees available on my site, NonCustodial Parent Community.
One tip I can pass along to families who are struggling with visitation costs is that if you are informed about an airline’s policies, you can go ahead and purchase an adult ticket online, then call the reservation line to revise the reservation and add the unaccompanied service.
All experiences are not equal, especially when flying long-distance. In this economy, every penny counts, but while my bottom line may determine what my options are, if possible, I would like to fly him on the airline of his choice. I have found Delta to be the most consistent about asking me for my ID when delivering my son, but he has a lot of fun flying on Virgin America and JetBlue, which are also very safe and reliable. When my son is traveling such a long way to visit with me, I want to make sure that time is enjoyable for him.
As a parent who has flown her son cross-country as an unaccompanied minor 12 times in his young life (he is now 11), I have some perspective to offer. First, this is obviously an egregious error. I can only imagine the concern and distress the parents must have felt and the confusion and worry experienced by the two girls. But as a parent ultimately concerned with my child’s safety, I just have to point out that both the girls (one 8 and one 10) who made headlines when Continental sent them to the wrong cities, are physically safe, were never unsupervised, and ultimately were flown to the correct destination the same day. In both situations, two different flights were boarding from the same gate, and the gate agents simply put them on the wrong plane. So, the issue is not whether safe travel is possible for unaccompanied minors – it is, thousands of children fly safely unaccompanied every year – but the airline policies and check-in processes.
As I have never experienced an incident like this, I am just learning that the Federal Aviation Administration, Transportation Security Administration, U.S. Department of Transportation and the National Transportation Safety Board do not have rules about the treatment of unaccompanied minors. The TSA has made it clear that this really isn’t their department, saying: “This is more of a customer service issue rather than a security issue.” According to the Houston Chronicle: “While the Transportation Department does collect data about consumer complaints related to unaccompanied minors, but that information is limited to a count of the complaints and rarely, if ever, leads to an investigation into the complaint.”
Whether that is the way it should be is open to debate. After all, the these agencies regulate just about everything else related to air travel as a security issue, isn’t it reasonable that – given that divorce rates and geographic family sprawl mean more unaccompanied minors — this become their responsibility. But until (and even after) that happens, parents must be vigilant, booking travel wisely and evaluating options carefully. Here are some things I always keep in mind.
All airlines are not equal. I have never entrusted my son to an economy airline, and even airlines with specific policies may be inconsistent. It is required that the adult picking my son up at the airport show ID, but do flight attendants always ask for ID? No. My son has mainly flown with JetBlue, Virgin American, American, and Delta, yet even among those carriers, I have found the level of security to vary. Sometimes airline staff asks for my ID when I am picking up my son, sometimes they don’t. When this happens to you, SAY SOMETHING. Remind them how much you value the safety of your child.
All itineraries are not equal. Unless absolutely necessary due to geography, avoid connecting flights, especially during winter. What you save in flight cost, you lose in worry. Rain and snowstorms can delay flights, possibly stranding your child in a strange city. There are also unpredictable moments. Last summer, I booked my son on a short flight to LAX that connected through to NYC, but upon pick-up he told me that the flight attendants told him he “wasn’t allowed to do that.” Apparently the airline call center was misinformed and had accidentally booked him on two different carriers; there was also a lengthy shuttle ride over to the other side of the airport. I was appalled at the airline’s error and furious that they had made my son feel responsible for it.
Take all expenses into account. Just two years ago, my son used to be able to fly with a $40 extra charge, but now that is almost unheard of. The service is still the same, but most airlines charge between $75 (Virgin, JetBlue) to $100 (Delta, American), each way. Some charge only one fee for multiple children (Delta). And, as we all know, airlines have also added extra fees for checked baggage, which a child certainly needs when going to visit mom for the whole summer! So, while overall plane fares remain low ($350 round-trip from LAX to JFK), the unaccompanied minor fees add almost 60% to the total cost. Except for JetBlue, whose first bag is still free! There is a comprehensive list of unaccompanied minor service and baggage fees available on my site, NonCustodial Parent Community.
One tip I can pass along to families who are struggling with visitation costs is that if you are informed about an airline’s policies, you can go ahead and purchase an adult ticket online, then call the reservation line to revise the reservation and add the unaccompanied service.
All experiences are not equal, especially when flying long-distance. In this economy, every penny counts, but while my bottom line may determine what my options are, if possible, I would like to fly him on the airline of his choice. I have found Delta to be the most consistent about asking me for my ID when delivering my son, but he has a lot of fun flying on Virgin America and JetBlue, which are also very safe and reliable. When my son is traveling such a long way to visit with me, I want to make sure that time is enjoyable for him.
By Lisa Belkin/The New Jork Times
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