Photo: traveller.com.au
Blame it on miscommunication or a severe lack of consideration for the safety of underage passengers, but Virgin Australia managed to cause serious concern to two Australian parents who sent their kid on a flight to Sydney.
Katie Meredith, the mother of 9-year-old John, tells the Daily Mail that she had paid “extra money” so John could fly from Brisbane to Sydney alone. The extra charge means that she was offered guarantees by the airline company that John would be permanently supervised on the flight, from the moment his she parted with him at boarding to the moment his grandmother would pick him at the airport upon landing.
At the same time, she should have received constant notifications from the staff, as to how the boy was doing. That never happened: when the plane had to be diverted to Melbourne, John ended up spending the night with 2 other kids at the airport, in a storeroom, sleeping on the floor. Katie never heard a peep from the company about the detour, let alone about the conditions her son was in.
“Let's not forget we are talking about a nine-year-old boy, who last month had a heart operation. I would never agree to have him sleep on the floor at an airport,” Katie tells the publication. “His godmother lives in Melbourne, she would have picked him up if I had the opportunity to know he wasn't going to a hotel.”
The grandmother, who was listed as guardian, did receive a notification that the flight had to be grounded in Melbourne, that it would take off again in the morning, and that John had been fed McDonald’s. However, when she asked about the hotel he was staying at for the night, she got no reply.
The airline company is blaming the entire situation on a “miscommunication.”
“We take the utmost care when transporting unaccompanied minors and aim to ensure their nominated guardians are aware of any developments as they arise,” Virgin Australia says in a statement. “We apologize for any breakdown in communication between our team and the child's guardian during the course of the evening.”
At the same time, she should have received constant notifications from the staff, as to how the boy was doing. That never happened: when the plane had to be diverted to Melbourne, John ended up spending the night with 2 other kids at the airport, in a storeroom, sleeping on the floor. Katie never heard a peep from the company about the detour, let alone about the conditions her son was in.
“Let's not forget we are talking about a nine-year-old boy, who last month had a heart operation. I would never agree to have him sleep on the floor at an airport,” Katie tells the publication. “His godmother lives in Melbourne, she would have picked him up if I had the opportunity to know he wasn't going to a hotel.”
The grandmother, who was listed as guardian, did receive a notification that the flight had to be grounded in Melbourne, that it would take off again in the morning, and that John had been fed McDonald’s. However, when she asked about the hotel he was staying at for the night, she got no reply.
The airline company is blaming the entire situation on a “miscommunication.”
“We take the utmost care when transporting unaccompanied minors and aim to ensure their nominated guardians are aware of any developments as they arise,” Virgin Australia says in a statement. “We apologize for any breakdown in communication between our team and the child's guardian during the course of the evening.”
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