Miss_Maple

We just flew back from Alaska via Las Vegas and I noticed that on our 2 flights -- a child was flying alone.

The first flight from Anchorage to Vegas started at 4pm and landed in Vegas at 10:30pm. The child was seated in the middle seat next to my husband (he had a window seat, and I sat in the window seat in front of him -- so we both can view the incredible scenary on the trip). Just before takeoff, the flight attendant came back and took the young boy (maybe 12) and moved him up to first class since there was an available seat there. My DH was happy to now have an empty seat next to him.

We arrived at Vegas and our connection is tight -- as we were flying America West and Vegas is a major hub. The terminal was packed -- and our plane was also. The plane was loaded and then the flight attendant brought another young girl (maybe 10) on and seated her across the row from us -- moved another passenger who had taken her seat next to the window. The plane is a little rowdy as it is now nearly 11 pm and some folks have been partying it up. The attendant is in the aisle - showing the little girl who is clutching her stuffed animal tightly how to put on the emergency oxygen mask in case of de-pressurization.

My question is this: After seeing this, I would never let my child fly alone -- especially at night -- especially via the connections at Vegas. I seriously doubt that little girl would be able to secure her oxygen mask if it was needed. Or escape to the appropriate exit if required. I think the boy who was moved to first class had more supervision -- but I am not sure I would be comfortable having the airline responsible for him in a crazy terminal that Vegas is. As for the little girl, or any child -- If you have to have them travel alone (how frightening) then do this --

schedule your flights for daytime only -- night flights while cheaper -- it can be scary and a tired child cannot absorb the necessary instructions required by the FAA

buy a first class ticket -- your child will have much better supervision especially during a long flight and the flight attendant can be more ready to help in case of an emergency

think twice about the cities your child is flying in/out of. Vegas is known as a party city -- and some folks can easily have a few too many -- there were some types (of men or women) I would not have felt comfortable with sitting next to -- and sleeping next to on the long red-eye flight back east

Buy an extra-ticket and fly with your child to/from their destination. It is worth the peace of mind -- maybe cheaper than first class and that you as the parent are your child's protector and responsible for their safety -- not the airlines.

The little girl -- I saw her family pick her up at the airport -- she was still clutching her stuffed animal but looked scared and exhausted.

islandmom

I flew alone as a child- times were different. I would never, ever do it now. What if a child was alone on a 9/11 flight?? Can you imagine. Or some perv sitting nearby. I understand it can be a money or custody issue. Still, parents should make other plans. I've seen them lost or mixed up during layovers too.

bgans

Unfortunately, this is the time of year you see this happening the most. Children who have spent the summer with one parent are flying home to spend the school year with their other parent. (I was one of those kids, many years ago.)

Finances play an enormous part in these decisions and no parent makes them lightly. First class is often not an option, ever, for single parents (not to mention the horror that so many Fodorites experience at the very thought of a child in first class). Additionally, for many parents, they cannot take the time off of work to travel with their child without losing badly needed pay or risking their job.

Many airlines have tightened the restrictions on unaccompanied minors in the last few years. This normally means that the child cannot be on the last flight of the day to any destination. Depending on the age of the child, they may only be allowed to fly non-stop to their destination.

I hope never to be in the position where I have to allow my daughter to fly by herself, until she is old enough to manage it without supervision. Other families are just not that fortunate.

nytraveler

Agree that younger or naive children should not fly by themselves. While some flight attendants do pay attention to the kids - many are too busy - or not really interested.

And if a child must fly alone - do only non-stops - or direct flights - early in the day - so the child won't get caught unexpectedly overnight by bad weather or mechanical problems.

(I was on a flight with a serious problem - and the flight attendants ignored the children on board - it was up to other passengers to care for and comfort them when it appeared we would crash - and for the rest of the flight.)

karens

USAir recently announced that minors will not longer be able to fly unsupervised on flights with a connection. I think this is a good idea.

gail

In last 2 weeks flew 4 flights on UA. Three of 4 were delayed over an hour, making one connection really tight. Several of these delays involved gate change. One flight had terrifying (to me, at least) turbulence and lightening visible thru windows.

Glad I was not a kid - because any of these flight issues would have been very difficult.

ladynole35

My son, who is 11 yrs. old has flown two times by himself. The first time was from Atlanta and it was a direct flight. The second time was a connection and I wasn't real happy about but there was not a direct flight. They make you fill out a paper about who is picking him up and they check their id and a flight attendent takes him off the plane. I cried the first time I put him on because I knew he was nervous and I wouldn't be there to comfort him. The second time I didn't cry because he knew the ropes by this time but I was a little concerned about the changing of planes but he is responsible and I told him not to leave the flight attendants side.
He is going again in Sept. and he loves going to see his cousins, so he doesn't mind. He thinks he's a BIG boy. I would not let him fly at night or have to go to a place that I wouldn't want him to be at by himself.

gail

Does anyone know what happens if a young solo traveler misses a connection for whatever reason. As adults we complain, try to get the airline to help us and if all else fails pull out a credit card and make things better - none of these are options for kids.

And for a connection that results in an overnight stay - even if airline facilitates it, I doubt anyone wants their kid staying in a hotel alone or sleeping in the airport.

nytraveler

Theorectically any child missisng a connection will be watched by an airline employee and put on the next flight whenever that may be.

However - I would not send a child alone without a credit card, a cell phone, experience in using them, and some confidence that they would not panic in this situtation - but call home so that the parent/guardian could confirm every step of the way with the airline staff.

(On the flight I was one was one little boy no more than 7 - and his family had sent him with only $5, no toys/games/snacks - completely ill-prepared for even the normal airport delays - never mind a difficult situation.)

GoTravel

Since you don't know the circumstances of the child flying alone, don't pass judgement on the parents.

What you are or are not comfortable with is not relevant to what the parents of the child are comfortable with.

karens

This thread was probably a bad idea from that start, knowing how these things deteriorate. I guess we will never all agree on what is the "proper circumstance" is for children to fly alone. Is it to visit family? Is it because a divorced parent moved halfway across the country? Is it to go to a summer sleepaway camp when they are 7? (I know someone who put their 3rd grader on a plane to Maine, by herself, to go to sleepaway camp - for 8 weeks! Yes, I will fully admit, I am judgemental about that decision.)

We wrestled with this issue. My mother in law wanted my 12 y.o. son to come down and visit her for a week in Florida this summer. My son was THRILLED with the idea of flying alone. I, on the other hand, get nervous when he walks 3 blocks to the grocery store by himself to pick up some milk or whatever for me. (I had no problems going with him, in fact I would have loved to sit on Siesta Beach all week, but my husband refused to chase my younger son around all week while we were relaxing in Florida. I can't say I blame him). We put all thoughts of this aside when my mother in law watched my boys last May when I accompanied my husband on a business trip to Florida. Let's just say she wasn't the most responsible babysitter.

Best laid plans can go astray. My sister in law & her family got on a nightmare flight from Atlanta to PHL. Thunderstorms intermittenly closed the PHL airport throughout the day. They were on an afternoon direct flight (there are a TON of flights b/w ATL & PHL), that left late, circled PHL for an hour, then finally diverted to Norfolk. Once on the ground, they were told the some ship was in town and there were no hotel rooms available for miles around. By this time, the crew was going over their alloted flying time allowance. They got back in the air, circled PHL for a while more, and were finally cleared to land - at 2am. Ther were large blocks of time that even the airline had no idea where this plane would end up. Can you imagine planning on meeting someone in PHL to find they are in Norfolk? That's 7 hour highway drive.

We know of divorced folks in NC who, as a part of their divorce agreement, are not allowed to move out of state. The wife remarried - someone in a different state. This is not a traditional marriage, and they spend a lot of time on planes. At the risk of (OH MY GOSH) sounding like Dr. Laura, who I loathe, I do think it's a good idea that the parents are putting up with the delayed and cancelled flights (in their small hometown airport) than the kids, who are only 4 & 6.

While I agree we should all be sympathetic to individual family situations, I don't think a blanket statement saying that whatever a parent feels comfortable with is necessarily OK.

Do you remember the parents who felt comfortable leaving their 6 & 8 year old daughters home alone while they went to Jamaica for a WEEK? Those parents obviously felt comfortable with that decision. I disagreed with that decision, and so did child services.

GoTravel

karens, the parents who left their children at home alone are sort of a bad example at parenting as a whole don't you think?

Incognito

and now we all know karens' life story.

Fodorite018

Our children have flown by themselves several times. I do think that each case needs to be looked at individually though. Our children have flown countless times with us, and so are very comfortable with how things work. We do have them fly direct and in the morning. They take their cell phones with them, and we abide by the airlines rules that we do not leave the gate until the plan is in the air. Like I said, our children are comfortable with it, so I think that makes a world of difference.

beentheretwice

Any pilots or flight attendants out there willing to weigh in on this topic? Those would be interesting thoughts.

nytraveler

While only the parents know the specific circumstances of each case - it is obvious that not all parents are capable of making rationale, responsible decisions. And in that case it is more important to try to ensure the safety/comfort of the child - than worry that the parents - or others - might consider you judgemental. (Some people need to be judged - literally.)

I would never say children shouldn;t fly alone - but it needs to be done with proper care and preparation - and consideration of the capabilities of the child.

In the case of the 7 year old - those parents were clerly either neglectful or out to lunch - or both. He was seated next to one of my colleagues on the flight - and she - and we waited at the airport with the child - and a staff member- until the airline managed to contact the person supposd to pick him up and get them to come to the airport. (He ws the father and claimed he was told the child was flying in the NEXT day - who knows.)

But if CNN knew the plane was in trouble - and had a camera crew there to interview us and the crew - wouldn't you think that whoever put the child on the flight would have noticed - and contacted the father?

Orcas

I'm with Gotravel on this and others who say this is a matter for individual parental determination, within the rules of the airlines. Not every parent has the luxury of accompanying their child on a plane trip nor the money to fly them first class. Parents have to weigh their options when making these decisions, and it doesn't seem fair to judge without knowing the facts. I will add that being a parent is a humbling experience.

karens

Orcas - I do generally agree with you. All those "I would never do...." seem to go out the window once you have your own kids. And flying first class seems an unlikely solution - those seats are extremely expensive, and truly, it is not the job of the flight attendant to keep an eye on unattended minors.

I am sure that USAir has banned unaccompanied minors on non-direct flights for a reason. When I was in Salt Lake City a few weeks ago, I saw how easy it would be to get in the wrong line for a plane. Our gate was at the end of the terminal, surrounded by other actively loading gates. From the displays, each flight was tightly timed within minutes of each other, 10:55, 11:00, 11:05, etc. I couldnt' even figure out which line was which. Amid such chaos, it's easy to see how mistakes could get made.

Did any of you see the episode of Airline where the divorced mother was pitching a fit b/c security restrictions prevented her from accompanying her 2 kids to the gate? She would not take No for an answer, and while I understand her discomfort, her arguments were really weak and she was not handling herself well. Finally, she agreed to have a Southwest Supervisor escort her kids onto the plane. Then, the cameras filmed the SUPERVISOR PUTTING THE KIDS ON THE WRONG PLANE! Thankfully, the older kid, who was only about 9 or 10, realized once on board that they were mentioning a different destination than where he was headed, and they corrected the problem.

I'm sort of surprised that Southwest allowed that segment to air.

GoTravel

Mr.GoTravel and I have gotten on the wrong plane before. Luckily, kids are smarter than we are

I do remember flying solo as a kid. Direct flights to relatives houses when I was as young as 7.

Would I do that to a child today? Hard to say.

shaya

Many years ago, when I was sixteen, my parents let me fly cross country to California to see my cousin and friends. I got into SFO at 11:30pm, waited for 2 hours and realized they had forgotten to pick me up. I called everyone I knew in the Bay Area, they were all at the same get-together on the campus of Stanford and completely unreachable.

I delayed and delayed calling home because I didn't want my parents to worry. I tried to rent a car but obviously wasn't old enough. By this time even I , as a responsible 16 year old, was a little freaked out being in the airport by myself at 2am. I finally called home and my parents, thank God, called a friend who lived an 1 1/2 away to pick me up.

It has definitely made me much more leary of kids flying alone.