In the near future, airlines will be required to seat children (ages 13 and under) next to an accompanying adult (with s

[Anonymous]

After reading the thread about asking people to move their airline seat, I decided to start this new thread.
https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/1250241.page

Some of the people in the prior thread were misinformed, and so I wanted to clarify a few things. I am an airline employee who works on the topic of family seating, and so I perhaps have some information that may be useful to others.

1. In 2024, Congress directed DOT to promulgate a new rulemaking to address family seating, for children ages 13 and under. (See Section 516 of the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024, Pub. L. No. 118-63 (May 16, 2024).

SEC. 516. FAMILY SEATING.

“(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary [of the U.S. Department of Transportation] shall issue a notice of proposed rulemaking to establish a policy directing air carriers that assign seats, or allow individuals to select seats in advance of the date of departure of a flight, to sit each young child adjacent to an accompanying adult, to the greatest extent practicable, if adjacent seat assignments are available at any time after the ticket is issued for each young child and before the first passenger boards the flight.

“(b) PROHIBITION ON FEES.—The notice of proposed rulemaking described in subsection (a) shall include a provision that prohibits an air carrier from charging a fee, or imposing an additional cost beyond the ticket price of the additional seat, to seat each young child adjacent to an accompanying adult within the same class of service.”
https://www.congress.gov/118/bills/hr3935/BILLS-118hr3935enr.pdf


2. On August 9, 2024, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) issued a proposed rule “to ensure that U.S. and foreign air carriers allow young children to be seated adjacent to an accompanying adult on a flight at no additional cost.” This would apply to children ages 13 and under. DOT solicited comments on the proposed rule. Comments were due on November 7, 2024.
file:///C:/Users/e109884/Downloads/DOT-OST-2024-0091-0204_content.pdf


3. In the near future, DOT plans to finalize some version of its proposed rule. With the change in administrations on January 20, 2025, this rule may be delayed. But it has bi-partisan support from Congress, and so will likely be finalized in some form in 2025/2026.


4. Once the rule is finalized, the airlines will require the airlines to seat a 13-and-under next to an accompanying adult 14-and-over. This should help to avoid situations where families do not book seats together because they do not want to pay the seat fees.


5. Families will still be able to choose to pay seat fees if they would like certain better seating (perhaps closer to the front of the plane) for their family.


6. When there are no adjacent seats available on a particular flight, the airline will suggest that the family consider a later flight where adjacent seats are available. At least under the proposed rule, airlines are not required to move people who already have a seat assignment.


7. It’s possible that, due to irregular operations (such as weather), some families who were previously seated together may now be seated apart. They may have chosen to take that particular flight in hopes that some people will be willing to move. The family should ask the flight attendants for assistance in trying to get seated together (especially if the child is really young, like 8-and-under.) I have found that there are usually enough kind people who are nice enough to move.


8. It’s not fair for pax to assume that a family with separate seats has not planned ahead. It’s possible that the family had to book last-minute due to a family emergency, for example.


9. I have found that most people are pretty nice about switching seats to allow a young child to sit with an adult. Of course, you are not required to move. However, if you do so, you might feel as if you’ve done something nice for another person, which feels good. Also, you should ask the airline to refund any seat fee that you have paid. In my experience, that fee gets refunded quite quickly (and at most in 7 business days.) You could even tack on a request for 1000 miles/points (for example). 😊


10. Some airlines have already improved their family seating policies, in anticipation of the DOT Final Rule. Check with your airline, even if you have to call. Some will give you adjacent seats for 13-and-unders with an accompanying adult (14-and-over).


11. Please be nice to the flight attendants, as they have a challenging job. It makes the world a better place when we are all good to each other.

[Anonymous]

Seems like a no-brainer, honestly. I would bend over backwards to help a family that wasn't seated together, because I would want my family to be together. Golden rule, and all that. We've had to book emergency flights for my FIL and BIL's funerals and people were lovely and helpful.

[Anonymous]

6. When there are no adjacent seats available on a particular flight, the airline will suggest that the family consider a later flight where adjacent seats are available. At least under the proposed rule, airlines are not required to move people who already have a seat assignment.

So will the software inform families of this prior to booking? Ie: Don't book this flight - we can't seat you with your child?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

6. When there are no adjacent seats available on a particular flight, the airline will suggest that the family consider a later flight where adjacent seats are available. At least under the proposed rule, airlines are not required to move people who already have a seat assignment.

So will the software inform families of this prior to booking? Ie: Don't book this flight - we can't seat you with your child?

It is the view of the airlines that families (with children ages 13 and under) are taking a risk when they book a flight that does not have adjacent seats available. Having said that, the airline still will make an effort to help the family. Sometimes passengers will even proactively offer to move to help a family even without the flight attendant asking. Per Southwest flight attendants that I know (an airline that has open seating now but is switching to assigned seating in 2026), it almost always works out that some pax are willing to help out a family by moving.

[Anonymous]

Good.

This is already the law in civilized countries.

[Anonymous]

I don’t want to be the “responsible” adult seated next to a random 7 year old who may have bathroom accident, motion sickness, or feel responsible in case of an emergency. Who wants that?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don’t want to be the “responsible” adult seated next to a random 7 year old who may have bathroom accident, motion sickness, or feel responsible in case of an emergency. Who wants that?

Agreed but for some reason people have lost all reason on this issue and there are people who are downright *gleeful* about the idea of a family being forced to sit separately from their kids.

https://www.newsweek.com/passenger-refusing-give-seat-dad-child-viral-2012179

That story is especially infuriating because it's based on the Reddit post of the guy who refused to switch seats and no one spoke to the family. Much is made of the idea that the family should have booked their seats together ahead of time, and the Redditor who posted the story says there are several ways to book your seats without paying. But since no one knows the family in question, we have no idea what their situation was -- as the OP and other posters have noted, sometimes families get bumped to another flight at the last minute, or a family has to fly for an emergency reason and by the time they book, there are no seats together. But everyone in this article just assumes the family was too lazy to just book seats together like everyone else did. Likely there were extenuating circumstances.

[Anonymous]

When you book basic economy and don't pay to pick seats are you automatically assigned seats at the time of booking or do they not assign seats until check in?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:When you book basic economy and don't pay to pick seats are you automatically assigned seats at the time of booking or do they not assign seats until check in?

You don't get them until check in. You can pay extra at booking but if you don't they're not assigned until check in.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

6. When there are no adjacent seats available on a particular flight, the airline will suggest that the family consider a later flight where adjacent seats are available. At least under the proposed rule, airlines are not required to move people who already have a seat assignment.

So will the software inform families of this prior to booking? Ie: Don't book this flight - we can't seat you with your child?

It is the view of the airlines that families (with children ages 13 and under) are taking a risk when they book a flight that does not have adjacent seats available. Having said that, the airline still will make an effort to help the family. Sometimes passengers will even proactively offer to move to help a family even without the flight attendant asking. Per Southwest flight attendants that I know (an airline that has open seating now but is switching to assigned seating in 2026), it almost always works out that some pax are willing to help out a family by moving.

But how is this any different from what is happening now? It doesn’t seem like this is anything new.

[Anonymous]

That is great. I always book my seats together but *things happen* and I would NOT want my kid(s) to be seated without either me or my husband nearby.

[Anonymous]

LOL poorly written "require the airlines to seat a 13-and-under next to an accompanying adult 14-and-over."

[Anonymous]

hello from regular economy, the job of paying customers is not to subsidize the ones that choose basic economy.

I believe they will probably get rid of basic economy options with bookings under the age of 14 and then everyone will have to pay regular economy prices.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:That is great. I always book my seats together but *things happen* and I would NOT want my kid(s) to be seated without either me or my husband nearby.

Did you actually read it? It doesn't sound any different than things are now. They will do it IF THEY CAN. They don't have to move anyone or go out of their way.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:That is great. I always book my seats together but *things happen* and I would NOT want my kid(s) to be seated without either me or my husband nearby.

Did you actually read it? It doesn't sound any different than things are now. They will do it IF THEY CAN. They don't have to move anyone or go out of their way.

"to sit each young child adjacent to an accompanying adult, to the greatest extent practicable, if adjacent seat assignments are available at any time after the ticket is issued for each young child and before the first passenger boards the flight."

That means assigning seats at booking, it also means that if a kid is not automatically seated next to a parent, the system would have to automatically move them if another passenger moves their flight. The at any time sounds like a pain in the a**