ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Saturday, March 1, 1997 TAG: 9703030084
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-1 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: NEW YORK
SOURCE: KAREN SCHWARTZ THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
CONCERNS are being raised about children who fly alone, and airlines' role in protecting them.
With visions of Happy Meals and caring flight attendants, millions of parents each year entrust their unescorted children to the airlines.
And while most children arrive none the worse for wear, concerns have been raised by a 6-year-old's recent allegation that he was sexually assaulted by a 14-year-old boy when Northwest Airlines put them up in the same hotel room after they missed connecting flights during a snowstorm.
Northwest refused to comment on the claim, which is being reviewed by prosecutors in Minneapolis.
But a Northwest official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the airline will review its policies and may even stop accepting unaccompanied children altogether.
Some observers accuse the airline of trying to save money by putting both boys - who didn't know each other - in the same room. Others say it made sense to put an older child with the younger one.
Each airline sets its own rules for unaccompanied minors. Some won't take 5-to 7-year-old children on flights that require a change of planes, although Northwest has no such restriction. No airline will accept a child under 5 traveling alone.
In cases like the January blizzard that stranded the 6-year-old and several other young travelers overnight outside Minneapolis, Northwest has a policy of putting a child up in a hotel after talking with his parents. A guard of the same sex is posted outside the room and told not to enter unless an imminent threat of danger exists.
John Rabun, vice president of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, said Northwest's policy seemed prudent. He said most people assume it would be safe to put two children of the same sex together.
But, Rabun said, ``There are some times we have to say, `As adults, you just can't think through everything.'''
Children frequently fly alone to visit far-flung relatives. Up to 20,000 youngsters 11 or younger fly unescorted each day, an average of one per flight.
``I know people think, `You're sending a kid on a flight by himself, what an unthinking family,''' said Joel Goldentyer of Tampa, Fla., whose 11-year-old son has taken four solo trips in the past three years to visit relatives. ``If you want to keep in touch, you have to be willing to do this.''
The airlines do what they can to make them comfortable. Continental has special club rooms for kids at some airports, and United can provide McDonald's Happy Meals.
As a safety precaution, the airlines need to know in advance who will be picking up the child, and require that person to show identification.
A review of news articles shows only a few reported incidents involving young solo travelers in the 1990s. In one case, a 9-year-old girl flying with her 7-year-old sister was molested by the man sitting next to her.
Airlines are not required to report such incidents to the government, but 46 consumers lodged complaints involving unaccompanied minors last year, none for criminal activity, said Transportation Department spokesman Bill Mosely.
To reduce the chance of an unaccompanied child getting stranded at an airport, many airlines won't allow them to connect to the last flight of the day, or to board if inclement weather threatens.
But those precautions are not fail-safe.
British Airways spokesman John Lampl said he's known of situations where young children have been taken home to be with an employee's family, although most children are put up at hotels.
Rabun said it is almost never appropriate for a child to go home with a stranger. But he also balked at the other extreme: Southwest Airlines turns stranded children over to child welfare authorities or police until other travel arrangements can be made.
So what is a parent to do?
Rabun said parents should teach their children how to protect themselves and to tell a responsible adult if anyone makes them feel uncomfortable or touches them in an unacceptable place.
Tips on children flying alone
* Tell the reservation and ticketing agents that your child will be traveling unaccompanied.
* Try to make a reservation on a nonstop flight or a flight that does not require changing planes.
* If your child has never flown before, take a trip to the airport and familiarize your child with airport personnel and the areas where he can get assistance and ask questions.
* Be certain that your child carries identification and cash for emergencies. Have change for telephone calls. Remember, flights can be delayed, missed or rerouted.
* Tell your child never to leave the airport alone or with a stranger. If immediate assistance is needed, an unaccompanied child should go to uniformed personnel or to the front of the airline ticket counter. Tell your child not to wait in line in an emergency.
Source: Department of Transportation and National Child Safety Council
LENGTH: Medium: 97 linesby CNB