Joanne

stressed mom,
I just want to say that I admire your restraint and dignity in the face of all these yahoos who have been posting trash talk.

I would expect that maintenance and staffing at AA will be under a microscope in the near future, and meeting higher standards than usual.

Dave

Send her. It is a sponsored trip. I went to the Bahamas at 17 and we had a ball. If you can't trust your kid at 16, then by all means don't send her.

As far as travel goes, your odds are still better than driving to the airport.

With respect for asking for advice on a public message board... why not? It's not like you are going to base oyu decision soley on these responses. You are just getting the travel perspective of people who travel a lot. Maybe they will bring up issues you never considered. That's the beauty of these boards... you get perspective. Anyone who is stupid enough to believe you will base your entire decision on what is posted here doesn't live in reality. But sometimes a different perspective is needed. It prevents you from being myopic.

Duane

Stressed Mom,

You are obviously a good and caring mother. However, you need to put this risk into perspective:

At any given time (from early a.m. to late night), over the U.S. alone, there are 5,000+ flights. Tens of thousands of flights per day. Security is tighter than ever. Your daughter is much more at risk driving 60 miles on an interstate, than she is flying 6 hours on a jet.

Chris

I always believe it is best to error on the side of caution. We need Congress to pass that airline bill before we see any real improvement. As we've seen with all the breeches of security since 9/11, the National Guard patrolling our nation's airports is just not enough to keep us safe. Whatever you and your daughter decide, I'm sure it will be the right decision for you and your family.

Another stressed Mom

Please do not feel you owe an explanation to fools who cannot follow rules of etiquette or simple courtesy.

My problem is switched...I had a once- in-a-life-time trip planned to Paris this week which I cancelled in light of potential terrorist activities on tourists abroad. I try to live by faith not fear, but my eleven year old son was very apprehensive to see me go under the circumstances, particularly since his Dad recently passed away. My mother insisted I not go...and I'm 48 years old!

I certainly respect and understand their uneasy feelings. I usually trust my instincts, but when there is doubt...don't; however, I also believe where there's a will, there's a way. Perhaps you should check out other travel options to reduce these vulnerable feelings. Or better yet, join the group as a chaperone if possible.

I helped chaperone my son's 4th/5th grade class on a bus trip to Harbor Marine Insitute in FL Keys last year. What a wonderful experience! Those parents were pretty trusting to allow 4th graders to snorkel a coral reef and swim with a few sharks. We held to a tight schedule and never lost one.

Let your daughter read ALL the responses...she will come to understand your position and concerns, insure her good intentions, and respect your decision. Good luck.

Lori

Let her go.

It is the best thing to do. I am a strong believer in facing your fears--whether they're hers or yours. (recognizing that she has a better chance of getting hurt going somewhere in a car than a plane and she's not going on a stunt plance or something)

You obviously have the confidence in her to allow her to go in the first place. So it's only the question of getting on an AA plane---how dangerous is that really?

Tragedies can happen anywhere.

All that being said I understand your stress ---good luck.

Lori

freedomto

I agree, let her go. Life is way too short to worry about if and when tragedy will strike. If you believe in a particular God, like you say, and that destiny is in that God's hands, then just go with your faith. For the record, I don't think there is a being up above weighing the pros and cons of who shall live and who shall die. It's just life, simple as that. Sounds like a great trip, and the other poster who said that she has more chance of dying in a car wreck than a jet ride is right. Take a breath and realize that your fear is somewhat irrational. Warrented maybe, but still irrational when you look at the situation logically. Death strikes everyday in the most unlikely of places, 5,000 people die one day, 260 die a few months later, that's the way it will always be, and we may as well get on with it and live as if there is no tomorrow. Because sometimes there isn't.

Another Mom

Dear Stressed, you have a big decision on your hands. after reading everyones opinions, I think you really need to view this as your daughter seeking your advice without really asking you. YOu know teenagers don't really want to admit they want their parents advice, but it sounds like she's really looking for some validation from you. If the fear is so great for you or your daughter, it's not the biggest loss in the world not to go. It sounds like a great adventure, but not going under these circumstances is not giving in to normal fears that you need to conquer. The last two months have been a bit extraordinary. A short story to help. I thank my grandmother (of blessed memory) all the time for being brave and taking a ship from Russia to the US in approximately 1914. Her sister wouldn't go because she didn't want to leave her boyfriend, and my gram came instead. It was supposed to be a visit, but Grandma got stuck in the US when WWI broke out and never went back to Russia. Had she not made the trip, my family would probably not be here today. Good luck whatever decision you make

stressed mom

I wasn't going to take another peek at this forum today but curiosity got the better of me.The last few people that were kind enough to add their thoughts-I thank you!(Did you come over from the european fodors board?)Anyway,I am starting to get last minute things for her trip and keep an ear out on the news.I still feel as though there is some type of cover up on this recent crash as the tail ripping off seems VERY unusual.That, and also feeling that the government doesn't always want us to know things right away?
Its kinda funny when I think about it as I have always told my kids to enjoy life as it is later than they think(and that you only get one day at a time-I learned this very early as my family was in a car crash when I was 5 months old and my dad was killed!).I had told them that after graduating from college,I realized that the airlines and traveling were what I wanted to do. I have always said that I don't want them to be 40 years old and saying"Gee,I wish that I had......".So perhaps(especially after reading the previous writer's grandmother trip) that you have to take chances and have faith!Thanks for taking me into your homes for some dialogue-a fellow traveler is always a good fiend!

stressed mom

That was supposed to be written as a fellow traveler is a good FRIEND! Sorry-

xxx

XXX-I agree. Who would post this "worry" about sending her kid off on a plane in the first place? She doesn't need advice from a bunch of strangers about that!If everyone on here said DON'T DO IT!!! would stressed mom listen? I doubt it.People who work for the airlines industry have a totally different outlook on travel and would never pose a question like this-I think this is really a STRESSED TROLL.

ForemerFA

I agree with both xxx's. I am a former Flight Attendant married to a pilot and we would not hesitate to put our child on a flight on any airline. Air travel is safer than travel by automobiles and more people will die from the flu, diabetes, heart attacks etc than airline crashes this year.

As to the crash of AA587, they are still investigating and until the nvestigation is complete, I would not jump to conclusions.

Christina

I supposed she's going, so it doesn't matter what anyone says now. I'm not sure if you said where you are flying from, but I also am flying next week on AA to the Caribbean and this last crash kind of made even me pause a second, even though I haven't let most of these things change my travel plans (ie, I've flown several times since 9/11 already). I was looking forward to it, until this. However, I did check my plane and was glad to know it's not the kind that crashed, and I'm not flying out of JFK. I could be totally wrong, but for some reason things seem more dangerous up there and I do wonder if there's something going on with JFK. I suppose you don't want to hear this, but if it were me, I would worry a lot more about sending a 16 yr old kid off with a bunch of other teens to Jamaica than the flight. There have been a lot of serious crime reports in Jamaica, it seems to me, including disappearances of tourists. As far as the plane, I am also wondering about maintenance, etc of American, what else can you think? To think planes randomly blow up for no reason (TWA800 never made sense to me) is not a good thought, either. The only thing I am trying to feel confident about is that I am not flying out of JFK, am not on that type of aircraft (although Airbus has not had a lot of problems), and AA does have a good record overall, so such things are really rare. I'm not going to Jamaica but a much safer area.