What is it going to take?

The Department of Transportation, the Federal Aviation Administration and airlines continue to place children at risk and there is no indication whatsoever that anyone cares. It’s simply business as usual.

Throughout the summer travel season as many as a million children will fly as “unaccompanied minors.” The children. Ranging in age from 5 years to 14 years of age are flying alone and are in the complete care of the airline. However there are no limits as to how many children can fly on any given flight and that represents a huge issue of safety, in my opinion.

We limit the number of pets in a cabin, yet we do nothing to limit the number of children who are flying by themselves on a commercial flight. There have been flights which had as many as 40 to 50 children (again, ages 5-14) flying unaccompanied on a flight. If there was ever an emergency and the passengers were forced to evacuate the aircraft (which is normally done in less than 70 seconds) the few flight attendants would be charged with the responsibility of helping to evacuate the entire flight while also individually caring for the safety of each unaccompanied minor aboard the aircraft. It’s simply an unacceptable scenario, yet no one seems to care.

The reason is simple; money. The hundreds of thousands of children who are flying alone represent a substantial amount of revenue and airlines will not reduce their revenue potential. Limit the number of children who are allowed to fly? Absurd, they would say, especially during the safest era of commercial jet aviation.

Over the years I have contacted the Subcommittee on Aviation asking that they review the policy on unaccompanied minors. No reply.

I recently contacted Speaker John Boehner’s office asking for help and was told I would hear something in two weeks. That was five weeks ago.

Airline executives who are contacted refuse to address the situation as well, because for them it remains business as usual. It’s not broken, creates a significant sum of money for their airline and is something they do not wish to change. No need to do so, I am told.

We need to place a limit on the number of unaccompanied minors per flight. The number would be determined by how many children could be safely cared for by an airline flight crew, perhaps 10 or as many as 20. Whatever the number, to not have a limit is unacceptable and irresponsible.

When Continental 3407 crashed in Buffalo, NY we lost fifty lives. The subsequent investigation revealed serious flaws in the way airlines schedule their crew members and change was demanded. Aviation was made safer, but at the cost of 50 previous lives.

Unfortunately the FAA’s past reveals that it takes an accident and a loss of life before change takes place. An emergency aboard a flight with dozens of screaming and hysterical children running about, while passengers try to evacuate an aircraft, is a scene I hope we never are forced to witness. Yet, when that situation takes place, one of the first questions the public will demand to have answered is why nothing was done to limit the number of kids allowed to fly on the same flight.

It’s time someone finds the courage to address this situation, before it is too late. This change needs to come without the precious loss of life and it needs to be addressed now.