I've flown with my young children multiple times on both
domestic and international flights. We've flown on Alaska, Delta, American, and
Qantas. None of them have been smooth and not because of the baby.
Most airlines let you have a child on your lap, without a
booked seat, if the child is under the age of 2 during the flight. When flying
within the United States this is free, but you still have to add your child’s
name to your ticket. When flying international, the above listed carriers
require the child have a ticket, which costs 10% of the published fare, but
comes with no seat. I don't know the intricacies of this policy; I just know that
nobody seems to care about this 10% until you're about to get on the airplane.
Applause to Alaska, the only carrier I’ve flown that lets
you add your infant to your ticket via their web site. All the others require
you call in and speak to an agent. As a software developer, waiting on hold for
45 minutes, being told by an automated message that I “really should use the
website” is especially frustrating. I would LOVE to use the website. Please let
me add my infant right on the booking screen instead of as a manual addendum
after the fact!
Add in award travel and things get worse. My wife and I
recently booked an international flight with Alaska miles, where the second leg
was on American Airlines. Our infant was listed on our itinerary from the
beginning. At our layover airport, at the gate, 20 minutes before departure, with
two squirming babies in our arms, we're told we never paid the 10% infant
ticket fee. We could pay it then, plus an additional $45 “airport fee” since
we're buying a last minute ticket from a gate agent, or not get on the
airplane. Ever since airlines started charging for checked bags I often feel
like I'm being nickel and dimed, but this was full out extortion.
Even on a fairly recent domestic Alaska flight, where I was
pleasantly surprised I could add my infant to my ticket on their mobile app,
while checking in, on my way to the airport, it didn't actually work. I checked
the whole family in with the app. Then we checked our bags with an agent, went
through security, boarded the plane, and in our seats right before the airplane
door closed were asked, "Who's this baby?" Our child was not on the
flight manifest and apparently not recorded anywhere in their system. We somehow
snuck a baby on an airplane with no questions through 4 checkpoints.
From a process perspective infants flying seems to be common
enough that most airline staff have heard of it, but not everyone knows how it
works. From a software perspective it is a special case, lower priority, less
tested, execution path. And even from the parents perspective the kids are only
under 2 for a few flights and then it's normal full fare tickets. So I somewhat
understand why ticketing my child never quite works. But still, the hardest
part about flying with an infant shouldn't be buying them a ticket.
