Airlines and Unaccompanied Minors

[One4yu2c]

Anyone have any experience with using an airline's unaccompanied minor service? I'll be sending my son out to visit his grandmother for a couple of weeks and his flight will have one layover. He's flown before, but never alone, and while he's not nervous in the least, I'll be breathing a sigh of relief once I get a phone call letting me know he arrived.

[screwballl]

wasn't there a movie about this recently? oh yeah... unaccompanied minors!

seriously my brother used it about 8 years ago at age 13 and had no problems... but not recently since 9/11

[drew and not u]

I would make sure he knows how to make sense of the flight schedule boards. Once he's got that he'll be all set. He's a smart kid!

[NoctisReitop]

I know they let the minors board first. Doesn't the terminal give them an escort to their next gate?

[One4yu2c]

Yup, they're supposed to get them where they need to go, and the instructions say to make sure your child knows not to leave the plane by him/herself.

[drew and not u]

He's totally going to go on the run, hitching flights, and making his way to the Big Island, where he'll surely have an awful time.

[polobunny]

Originally Posted by One4yu2c

Anyone have any experience with using an airline's unaccompanied minor service? I'll be sending my son out to visit his grandmother for a couple of weeks and his flight will have one layover. He's flown before, but never alone, and while he's not nervous in the least, I'll be breathing a sigh of relief once I get a phone call letting me know he arrived.

Yep, my dad used them a few times for myself. Half the time they would lose me when it was time for a transfer.
I'm glad I knew where to go and wasn't too impressed by airports or I guess it could have been easy to get lost and miss my flights.

I hope things changed.

[Boy'nBlack]

Originally Posted by One4yu2c

Anyone have any experience with using an airline's unaccompanied minor service? I'll be sending my son out to visit his grandmother for a couple of weeks and his flight will have one layover. He's flown before, but never alone, and while he's not nervous in the least, I'll be breathing a sigh of relief once I get a phone call letting me know he arrived.

Jamie has to do that with Leigha, so let her talk over my shoulder. I just buy the tickets, she sets it up.

Southwest is the only one that does it. Delta, AA, and US Airways don't shoulder the risk and just don't do it. 4-10yo they can only do non-stop, older than that they can have stops...not sure about plane switching at all. Probably not. But that's the only company that allows us...should be nation wide I'd think.

You have to check-in 40minutes in advance, they're the first to board, you stay until the flight takes off and can't leave the terminal. You have to have two people on the other side to pick him up, and obviously have ID's that support the names you give them. The folks picking him up go to the check-in counter and get a special pass to go to the terminal. And again, make sure they arrive early enough to get through the screening and detectors...they wait in line too.

Southwest does VERY well with them though, which is really great for the 4-10 age group, and especially if they're doing this for the first time. Grumpy's daughter loves it.

[One4yu2c]

I'm familiar with the rules and requirements, including the additional fees (he'll be flighting United), but wondered what the actual experience was like. That's good to know about Southwest for future reference. Here's hoping United ends up being comparable.

[Hitman]

I actually just had experience with this yesterday. Both of my kids, 11yo son and 13yo daughter flew from Denver Co to OKC OK unaccompanied. Their Mother was able to get a pass and take them all the way to the gate in Denver and watch them get on the plane. She handed them over to an Airline Rep and with the paperwork of who would be picking them up in OKC. They tagged the children and their bags with special tags. They sat them in the front with other kids flying alone, and no other adult passengers were allowed near them, only flight crew. In OKC I had to go to the ticket counter of the Airline and received a pass so I could meet them at the gate. I had to present an ID to prove I was the person to pick them up. At the gate I had to wait at the counter until they were escorted to the counter and I again had to present my ID and it had to match the paperwork. Once it was verified the children were released to me and I took them down to baggage claim. The whole experience was very safe and very controlled. The fee ($40 per kid each way) was a little much IMO, but the safety of my children has no price, and I thought the Frontier Airlines did a top rate job of keeping my children safe. I can't speak for Delta, but if they do it the same way you won't have any issues. My kids have been flying this way for the past couple of years, so they are used to it.