As the busy summer travel season continues, US Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg has announced actions taken by the Department of Transportation (USDOT) warning airlines to seat young children next to a parent at no additional cost.
USDOT’s Office of Aviation Consumer Protection (OACP) issued a notice urging US airlines to ensure that children age 13 or younger are seated next to an accompanying adult with no additional charge.
“Although the Department receives a lower number of complaints from consumers about family seating than some other flight issues, there continue to be complaints of instances where young children, including a child as young as 11 months, are not seated next to an accompanying adult,” the Department said in a release.
“Later this year, OACP will initiate a review of airline policies and consumer complaints filed with the Department. If airlines’ seating policies and practices are found to be barriers to a child sitting next to an adult family member or other accompanying adult family member, the Department will be prepared for potential actions consistent with its authorities.”
DOT Issues Disabilities ‘Bill of Rights’
USDOT also published the first-ever Airline Passengers with Disabilities Bill of Rights, a summary of existing law governing the rights of air travelers with disabilities under the Air Carrier Access Act.
The “bill of rights” helps air travelers with disabilities to understand and assert their rights.
The document is also intended to help ensure that US and foreign air carriers and their contractors uphold those rights.
It was developed using feedback from the Air Carrier Access Act Advisory Committee, which includes representatives of passengers with disabilities, national disability organizations, air carriers, airport operators, contractor service providers, aircraft manufacturers, wheelchair manufactures, and a national veterans organization representing disabled veterans.
“Whether you’re a parent expecting to sit together with your young children on a flight, a traveler with a disability navigating air travel, or a consumer traveling by air for the first time in a while, you deserve safe, accessible, affordable, and reliable airline service,” Buttigieg said.
The latest Air Travel Consumer Report, released last month, shows consumer complaints against airlines are up more than 300% above pre-pandemic levels.
