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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Parents who refuse to pay for seat assignments who then expect other people to switch seats that they DID pay for suck.[/quote]

[b]The airlines create this problem. A parent should not have to pay for an upgraded seat assignment in order to sit next to a minor child. [/b]That's like arguing that when disabled people fly with a caretaker, they should be required to pay extra for seat assignment so their caretaker can assist them. Small kids are essentially disabled on airplanes -- they can't reach their tray table or their personal items under the seat in front of them, often they cannot go to the bathroom alone, they can't communicate their needs to the flight attendant, etc. Suggesting that someone in that condition should have to pay an upgrade in order to have the person who will do all that for them nearby is psychotic. Parents aren't trying to sit next to kids so they can gossip about the latest episode of Love Island. It's a necessary set up for everyone involved.

If airlines can find a way to accommodate disabled people flying to ensure they are seated with caretakers, they can do this for families who have kids under a certain age. No one should have to pay an extra $100 per leg so they can provide an infant with a bottle, keep their 2 year old entertained, hold their 5 yr olds hand when they get nervous during landing, help their 4 year old to the bathroom, etc.

But it should be on the airline to figure it out, not on passengers. If you are traveling with young kids and get seated apart, I would go to the flight crew and ask them to assist in figuring it out. Usually it can be done without moving a passengers who paid for assigned seating, because on any plane only about half of flyers do that anyway. But if someone who paid for assignment has to move, the airline can also offer to refund them the cost of that assignment and I think people should be flexible in that situation because we are talking about a basic accommodation that is really beneficial for all involved (the child, the parents, the flight crew, and other passengers).

It's like people forgot how to be human.[/quote]

You are looking at this backwards.  Everyone has to pay (via a specific fare class) if they want to select their seats - whether because they want to sit next to someone, they want an aisle seat, they want extra room, they want to be in the front of the plane wherever.  This isn't an instance of an extra fare being levied on parents - it's that parents want a fee that everyone pays waived simply because they are traveling with kids.  That is, frankly, selfish and nonsensical.

In the parlance of American Airlines, you are asking that parents and their kids get to pay for a basic economy fare class while getting the benefits of a higher fare class.   That's BS, and that should be obvious.  [/quote]

Well it's either this or deal with unavoidable caretaking that a 3-year old needs.  I mean is the flight attendant going to take them to the bathroom every time they want to go, or are they going to let them make a mess on their seat? Do they want to deal with the child eating messily or crying or screaming? Do the passengers stuck sitting next to them do?[/quote]

Simple solution to this - make it a law. If you are traveling with a child under the age of 12 then you MUST have them seated next to you. If that means paying extra to select seats in order to do so, then so be it. [/quote]
Not sure how this works in a last minute flight cancellation and rebooking scenario when there are no seats left together.[/quote]

NP. I am fine with making the airlines figure it out, like by requiring them to offer incentives to other passengers on the flight to get them to “voluntarily” switch seats so the family can be accommodated. Kind of like how they can’t start boarding an overbooked flight until they have bribed enough people to get rebooked. The airlines can absolutely afford it.[/quote]

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