Carrier Says Ages "Misrepresented"; Proper Actions Taken With Information Given

The family of a 15 year-old and 10 year-old who flew unescorted from Alabama to Alaska on Delta Air Lines is accusing the carrier of abandoning the children.

Blake Sims and his younger sister, Briana, had to stay overnight in a Salt Lake City, UT hotel because they missed their connecting flight when their original flight was delayed, according to the Salt Lake City Tribune.

The children were traveling between parents July 1 and 2. Blake, who lives with his father in Alabama, and his sister were going to their mother's home in Alaska after Briana's visit.

Their father, Allen Ables, went though a travel agency in Alabama when he purchased their tickets. He told reporters the travel agent said he didn't have to pay for unaccompanied-minor service for Briana, as Blake is older than 12.

Delta spokesperson Anthony Black said that although the 15-year-old might not have needed the unaccompanied-minor service, the 10-year-old did. He contends the airline acted properly on what information it had about them.

"We regret the operational events that led to the children having to overnight in Salt Lake City. Unfortunately, their age was misrepresented during critical points of travel," Black said. "We are in contact with the family and investigating the details of the children's stay in Salt Lake City."

The first leg of the flight, from Dothan, AL, to Atlanta, was fine and the kids made their connection to Salt Lake City. It was the last departure of the day, and as scheduled should have provided enough time to make their connection to Fairbanks. But, their flight from Atlanta left two hours late -- causing them to miss their connection.

"Blake had called me from the plane in Atlanta," their mother, Adriana Ables said. "He said, 'We are OK, but we'll be late.' It didn't occur to me that they were going to be stuck in Salt Lake."

A flight attendant directed the pair to a Delta agent who said they could either take a late-night flight to Seattle and wait standby for a Fairbanks flight or take a hotel voucher in Salt Lake City and catch the next flight to Fairbanks at 8:50 pm the next night.

Blake chose the voucher. "He knew he didn't want to sit stand-by," his mother said.

Blake called his mother around midnight while waiting for the hotel shuttle.
"I said, 'What do you mean, you're standing at the bus stop?' He said, 'Mom, they gave me vouchers for a hotel.' I said, 'Do you have your hands on your sister?' They were waiting for a bus that was going to take two kids to God knows where," Ables said.

The kids were taken to a Radisson Hotel, according to the Tribune. Radisson manager James Courtney said Delta contacted the hotel after they checked in saying they "thought they had mistakenly sent over a couple of sibling minors," Courtney said in an e-mail.

"Not recognizing that the older sibling was underage (as he provided a voucher and credit card for incidentals), they were already checked in and assigned a room."

Courtney said one of his employees called the room to check on the children and assumed they'd gone to sleep when no one answered.

At Delta's request, the hotel allowed the children to stay until 6 pm. The carrier arranged for them to be picked up at that time for their flight that evening.

"Delta was aware of their location," Courtney said.

But in Alabama, Adriana Ables was unaware provisions had been made for her children. She called her sister, Annie Pollard, who called a Delta number in Atlanta and was told someone would call her back.

When that didn't happen, Pollard called an attorney friend who was attending a horse show in another state who apparently talked to a retired Salt Lake City police officer who happened to be attending the same show who contacted the Salt Lake City Police Department. An off-duty police officer and his wife picked up the children and took care of them until their flight that evening.

Ables said Delta has not yet apologized or offered an explanation.

The situation is just the latest in a series of events that is tarnishing airlines' image in the public eye. Such happenings combined with delayed flights and packed aircraft are fueling enthusiasm for a passenger bill of rights.

The carriers view such situations "as a huge challenge, because one unfortunate situation has a big impact on a company's reputation, and that's very frustrating,' said Allen Kay, a spokesman for the Travel Industry Association.

FMI: www.delta.com