Originally Posted by
mysterym
solution would've been simple: 1 y/o becomes lap child, 2/yo in third seat, plane takes off, family makes it home.
Correct. But family wanted 1yo to be in their own seat, DL refused (and provided horribly wrong information), both sides dug in.
By the time family agreed to take 1yo in lap, DL had decided to not transport family at all.
Originally Posted by
HonoraryOrange
This whole thread is hilarious.
The 2 year old did not have a purchased seat. The 18 year old did, and the 18 year old was a no show.
Don't check in? You don't keep the seat.
If they wanted to use it for the 2 year old they would need to hope the airline would allow a change fee of some sort. But the seat is gone if the person it is assigned to does not show. This is how the industry works, this is how safety works (accounting for all seats and people in plane).
Yawn. More manufactured butthurt.
Mostly accurate, except once digging into the details I believe it was the 1yo who did not have a purchased seat (but was listed as infant in arms).
Dad had a seat and was in it.
Mom had a seat and was in it.
2yo had a seat and was in it.
18yo had a seat but didn't show up for it.
Parents wanted 1yo to occupy it.
DL said no and wanted to put a standby in it.
Probably lots of miscommunication and misunderstanding, and poorly handled by individual DL agents working the flight.
And yes, I place a higher standard on airline agents vs. pax when it comes to properly understanding and communicating the various airline policies and FAA regulations at play, as well as providing positive customer service even (and especially) when things are going sideways.