Southwest didn't tell the family of an unaccompanied 8-year-old that her flight was diverted

Sam Tabahriti
Updated ·2 min read
146
Southwest Airlines.
A Southwest plane.Jonathan Weiss/Shutterstock

  • Southwest diverted a flight with an unaccompanied eight-year-old but didn't tell her family.

  • Ara Zoser said her niece was "scared and hungry" when she finally managed to get her on the phone.

  • The airline offered a $150 voucher but Zoser said it didn't take responsibility for the diversion.

Southwest diverted a flight that had an unaccompanied minor aged eight on board – but failed to let her family know.

On August 22, Ara Zoser's niece boarded a direct flight from Hartsfield-Jackson, Atlanta bound for LaGuardia, New York. The flight was due to land at 5:40 p.m.

An hour after that time, her mother Regine called Zoser in a panic after the flight had been diverted to Baltimore-Washington airport in Maryland.

She told Insider that Regine received no notice of this flight change and another family member had been waiting for the child's arrival at the airport. "Regine could not get in contact with Southwest, as they were receiving an unusually high call volume causing long than normal wait times."

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"I then called Southwest as well as tweeting them while I was on hold. There was still no word of my niece's status of wellbeing nor any reason why the flight was diverted," Zoser said.

Zoser waited and after about an hour, she was able to get in touch with a "very helpful customer service representative." Zoser waited on the line until the child came on the phone.

"My niece was scared and hungry, in an unfamiliar place with no reasoning. She is only eight years old," Zoser said.

There were four other unaccompanied minors on the flight along with her. They were given food vouchers at some point, but Zoser said her niece did not reach LaGuardia until well after midnight.

Southwest offered a $150 flight voucher to Zoser's sister, but "refused to take responsibility for not contacting Regine about the whereabouts of her only child and not be forthcoming with information as her mother had to venture through many loopholes to finally speak to her daughter," she said.

Southwest did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.

Read the original article on Business Insider