Last week we let you know about how an airline overbooked their flight, which resulted in them telling a 14-year-old boy to stay alone in Rome for a week.
It’s a new week, and now another airline reportedly kicked a child, also 14 years old, off a flight, this time due to a “weight imbalance.”
What is wrong with airlines?
According to the CBC, Camryn Larkan, age 14, after visiting family, had boarded a Porter Airlines flight from Toronto to Victoria, Canada, on August 30th. However not long after she had sat down and gotten settled, a flight attendant approached her and said she had to leave the plane.
PC: Porter Airlines
To add insult to injury, Porter Airlines reportedly gave her no support or guidance during the incident. Did I mention she was just FOURTEEN?
Fortunately, Camryn’s father dropped her off at the airport, and he was able to pick her up.
“I’m just glad that my dad was there because if he wasn’t I would have been alone,” she added.
She was stuck staying in Toronto for one extra night, and was able to be rebooked for a flight for the next day.
According to a spokesperson for Porter Airlines, Larkan was removed from the flight due to a weight imbalance.
“Our team asked for volunteers to travel the following day to Victoria. When none came forward, passengers were selected based on their fare type. It was not known to our team at the time that Camryn was a minor. Camryn quickly left the airport and there was limited opportunity for our team to discuss options with her,” spokesperson Robyn van Teunenbroek told the CBC.
PC: Porter Airlines
Redistributing passengers and baggage due to a weight imbalance issue happens quite often, especially on smaller aircraft. However, Camryn says the airline did not convey that information to her at the time, leaving her shocked when the plane took off without her.
“I was kind of just like really confused… I thought I was coming back to my seat,” she says. “I thought that they were just going to take my bags. As soon as I got off the plane and I saw that the door had closed, that’s when I started to like get really anxious.”
According to Porter’s website, it offers an unaccompanied minor service (UM service). It costs $100 per child and is only available on non-stop flights. The service is mandatory for unaccompanied minors aged 8 through 11, and optional for kids age 12 through 17 (children under age 8 aren’t allowed to fly as an unaccompanied minor). The plan ensures kids can’t be deplaned.
Unfortunately, Larkan’s parents said they weren’t aware of the service. That, in turn, meant Porter Airlines treated 14-year-old Camryn as an adult.
Camryn’s mother, Catherine Larkan, said the service should be automatically provided to kids 12 and older.
“They put my child in imminent danger,” Catherine Larkan told the CBC. “It was completely negligent and it shouldn’t happen to any other minor.”
“They’re providing a service saying we know these people are at-risk and they’re saying if you don’t [pay for] the service, you’re treated as any other adult passenger traveling,” she added. “It’s just absolutely ludicrous.”
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