Will airlines seat minors with parents?

A parent who purchases airline tickets for a family should receive a guarantee from the airline that it will seat the parent and child together without fees or a last-minute scramble at the gate or having to ask other passengers to give up their seat to allow the parent and child to sit together.



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Can an airline sit a child away from a parent? They can. Often, the cheapest ticket options for an airline don't include seat selection at time of purchase. Seats can be selected at check-in, and it's very possible that those seats are not together.

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Family Seating Policy
Delta strives to seat family members together upon request. If you are unable to obtain seat assignments together for your family using delta.com or the Fly Delta mobile app, please contact Reservations to review available seating options.

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United Airlines United is also among the few airlines committed to helping families sit together on flights. United's family seating policy guarantees families with children under age 12 in certain cabins can sit together for free, regardless of fare type.

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United Airlines Is Making It Easier for Families to Sit Together — Here's How. The airline has introduced a new seat map and updated their policy for families traveling with kids. Alison Fox is a Travel + Leisure contributor. She has also written for Parents.com, The Wall Street Journal, and amNewYork.

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Some parents assume they will automatically be seated with their kids. Others may end up separated from their families if they are rebooked due to a cancellation. Regardless of the reason, airlines are not legally required to seat families together.

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If you want a window seat, then suppose you choose from left to right (looking toward plane's nose): kid, kid, parent (aisle), parent (aisle). if in the middle then it's parent, kiddo, kiddo, parent. Mirror image it if you want the other side of the plane.

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Tammy Nelson was flying on Delta Airlines from Cincinnati, Ohio, to San Jose, California, when she was asked to swap seats with a woman who wanted to sit next to her two children.

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An adult must take the child to the departure gate and stay until the flight is airborne. When you get to the gate, tell the gate agent you have an unaccompanied minor traveling on the flight. We'll board your child early so they can meet the flight crew and learn about the plane's safety features.

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U.S. Customs and Border Protection recommends that any child under the age of 16 traveling without both legal guardians should have a notarized Child Travel Consent signed by both legal guardians. Having your Child Travel Consent notarized decreases the chance of travel authorities questioning its validity.

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Seat selection: Seats are automatically assigned prior to boarding and can't be changed. Customers traveling together, including families, will not be able to sit together. Advance seat assignments may be available for purchase during booking and up until check-in opens.

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In fact, most regular airlines now charge for seat selection anyways. It's often around $10-$30 per seat per flight segment, so if you cave in and pay for that, it can add up quickly. You shouldn't do it. No matter which airline you're flying on, don't ever pay to select a seat.

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If I am traveling with a child, can we sit together on the aircraft? If you are traveling with a child age six years old or younger: Up to two adults traveling with a child six years old or younger may board during Family Boarding, which occurs after the “A” group has boarded and before the “B” group begins boarding.

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Depending on their ages and which airline you have chosen, some airlines invite families to board in front of everybody else, while others allow those with kids to slide in somewhere between elite passengers and regular coach-flying folk.

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Unless a member of the flight crew instructs you to move, you are never required to give up your seat or exchange your seat with another passenger. Whether you agree to exchange your seat for another on the plane if asked by a fellow passenger is entirely up to you.

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Once your child is 2 years old, you'll need to purchase a seat for them. The FAA recommends that children under 40 pounds continue to use a car seat and that children over 40 pounds use the seat belt on the airplane seat.

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