Whats the airline industrys definition of a child?
What’s the airline industry’s definition of a child? That depends. There’s no set rule about how old a passenger has to be before they can travel on their own, but British Airways is fairly typical of traditional airlines: anyone 12 or older, who anyway has to pay the adult fare, may fly solo. No-frills airlines – and the Government, when it’s taxing passengers – deem anyone over two years old be an adult, but they usually impose a minimum age for solo travellers; for easyJet it is 14, for Ryanair 12. Below this age, children can often be sent as “unaccompanied minors”, a service for which British Airways is renowned – but for which it is also increasing fees from 1 August. A nominated adult delivers the child to the airport. The child is looked after by the airline to the final destination, when he or she is collected by another nominated adult. If you try this system in America – where tens of thousands of children fly each weekend from one estranged parent to another – make sure the
