Is this a safe flight for a child?
My daughter is 15, and I am wondering if it is safe for her to fly from Pittsburgh then to France and then finally to Hanover, Germany? (There are not any non-stop flights to Hanover from Pittsburgh, at least to my knowledge). Also, she would be traveling alone. Does this sound safe to you?
Air Travel - 5 Answers
Random Answers, Critics, Comments, Opinions :
1 :
no not to me im 14 and personally would be scared all the time incase something happened
2 :
Of course!
3 :
Hello Mimi, If you have troubles with your daughter flying alone, be sure to acknowledge the Airline before booking the tickets. She will have an Airline hostess looking after her, helping you daughter true every step once you brought her to the airport. Traveling alone in airplanes is safe, but make your daughter aware she should stick to "her guardian" and don't talk or go with strangers. Most international Airlines offer this service.
4 :
they have people who can make sure she gets to her planes and gets to were she is going safetly and on time for people under age. i have been flying alone bak and forth from mexico since i was 15 i am now 18. but i never had someone to help me around the airport and make sure i was safe.
5 :
It's safe. I'm a former international Flight Attendant and I've lived in both France and Germany. I "handled" a lot of unaccompanied minors in my career. Technically, I don't think it's required that she fly as an unaccompanied minor but it's optional. If she hasn't flown this route a lot recently, I would take advantage of it, especially since she has a connection. She will not have a Flight Attendant *with* her but there will be an escort in the airport and she will not have to fuss with figuring out her connection. They also usually take the "UM"s (as we call them) through the fast lanes at immigration and customs. The Flight Attendants on the plane will make sure her paperwork is correctly filled in and will probably do it for her. On the return, since she has to clear customs, she'll appreciate the help with her bags. If something drastic happens, like a cancellation, check but most UM's are put up in a hotel and an escort stays nearby. A 15 year old may not be allowed to reserve a room and if she doesn't fly as a UM, she could be stuck in the airport overnight. Yes, there is a fee for this service but with an international connection, I think it's money well spent. If you haven't booked yet, look at the UM fees and factor this into the cost of the ticket. This information will be on the airline's website. You can't book over the net either. You'll have to go through an agent or call the airline. If there is a difference in price, ask but they usually match it if it's less on the net. The UM fees too, can vary from airline to airline. The person on the other end will have to be named and show I.D. before she will be released to them. Ideally, if she's American, I would recommend a U.S. company, just so there are fewer language and cultural differences. Also, just for your information, if you're flying Air France, the Flight Attendants speak English but not as well as those on Lufthansa. I also find Frankfurt airport less confusing than Charles de Gualle. If you do send her through CDG in Paris, make sure she does NOT have to change terminals. Many U.S. companies fly into Terminal 1 and Air France flies out of Terminal 2. There is a train between the two. Go ahead and order her a special meal if she has any eating restrictions or is a fussy eater. Make sure all her electronical products are fully changed before leaving and have her bring her recharger *with an adapter* so that she can recharge it again while waiting for her connection. They sell them in travel shops and both France and Germany have the standard European two-pronged plug. She'll also have the recharger in case of a delay. I'm a mom of three kids and so far, the occasion has not come to where I had to send any as UM's but I would not hesitate to do so. It's safe and sure. The airline takes this very seriously and the only incident I ever heard of was when a child intentionally ran away as a joke. He was never in danger since he was still in the secure area of the airport. That wasn't on my flight, for the record (not all UM's are happy about making the trip but I think that's not your headache!) So hope she has a good trip and don't worry about her!
