to be annoyed at BA for seating my toddler on his own, in a different set of seats from any family?

[SuiGeneris]

DSis, DS1, DS2 and I are flying tomorrow morning. I have just checked in online to find we are split in three different bits of the airplane, with me and DS2 (a baby on my lap) in row X on the aisle, DS1 (2!) across the aisle and DSis, who has travelled to London specifically to fly with us and help with DS1, on row X-1. We booked ages ago, was it so difficult to keep us all in the same row? How do we get this fixed?

What would the airline do though?

Surely they wouldn't actually allow a 2 year old to sit on their own, even if you had set this up on purpose?

Ooh just flew a country airline to aviod the crappo of cheapo airlines.

We are now loving he crappo cheapy shite given the very expensive and chaotic shite of the national airline.

With all that computers can do nowadays, it ought not to be beyond the realms of possibility for the computer to work out the passenger's age from the date of birth, and if the passenger is under a certain age, they should be seated with at least one adult from their party. Surely it's not rocket science?

Agree SDTG- there seem to be a of airlines using "computer glitch" as an excuse!

From the BA website: As you're travelling with an infant, you can choose your seat for free through ba.com as soon as your booking has been made. If you don't choose a seat in advance, we'll allocate a seat for you three days before departure.

So, the OP had the opportunity to seat the family together at the time of booking and also had the chance to sort the seating 3 days before departure.

This happened to us a few months ago (normal airline, not a budget one) and they fixed it. It took a bloody long time, and several people were called in and started fiddling with the computers, but in the end they sat us together. I think it's illegal to seat a child on its own (except of course if it's an unaccompanied minor, and of course they have the parents' permission for that) so they HAVE to put it right.

yes, that opportunity is there, but BA tend to just override your preferences (see my earlier post).

I spent weeks choosing our seats every blooming day, and hours talking to BA about it, and they just kept moving dd1 regardless.

it really shouldnt be beyond the wit of airlines to sort our their online checkin/seat allocation programmes, but at times they are less than helpful in sorting it all out.

it certainly isn't always the fault of the customer that seats are allocated in different sections, or moved about, and it doesn't always get sorted at check in, regardless of how early you turn up (we are always pathologically early, as need lots of time at the airport in case dd1 needs talking through stuff, and don't want to be rushed at security etc)

BA do have a habit of moving you around. They've done it to us a lot and it's annoying - usually we do manage to get back together but it often goes

1. We select seats well in advance, where we actually want to sit
2. We check back and find we've been moved to a bunch of different places on the plane, often with one of the children left sitting alone.
3. We change back to sitting together, but normally can't get where we originally wanted to sit. Sometimes we have to go for 2+2.

Sometimes we go through several iterations of 2 and 3. and quite often we arrive at the airport to find they've moved us again.

And that's blatantly untrue from BA, anyway. If you are travelling with an infant they won't let you choose your own seat most of the time - when you log on the person they have decided is the adult holding the infant is allocated one of their designated "person with infant" seats and you can't change it. You can move the rest of the party around to be near the immovable person if there's space - but given that they know you've booked as a group, and know that they won't let you move the infant, why don't they just allocate all the seats right away?

We had a complete nightmare with Virgin over seating. We booked 4 seats to Miami and as soon as the payment went through I went to choose seats and was told I couldn't. Called them and they said that all "early allocation" seats had been chosen (this was SIX MONTHS before the flight) and we would be allocated 4 seats together 3 days before, and if THAT didn't happen we could get to the airport early and they would sort it. I was so worried about it with 2 small children that I asked to just have a refund instead and I'd book another less busy flight as I would worry about it. They refused (even though it was exactly 4 minutes since I'd booked):(

3 days before - we were allocated 4 seats at different corners of the plane. Called them again - "nothing we can do, arrive at the airport early". Got to the airport 5 hours before flight, "nothing we can do". We had to beg people to move so we could get 2 sets of 2 seats together.

And exactly the same thing happened on the way home.

The CAA only have guidelines on this. I believe they say that children should ideally be seated no more than 2 seat rows away from a parent but even that doesn't have to happen. As there are no actual rules, the computer allocating the seats doesn't see anything wrong with having a child sat on their own. So it often falls to the cabin crew onboard to ask other passengers to move seats, but if they refuse then the crew can't make them do it.

In the case of an emergency If he wasn't next to a parent he would create an obstruction to other passengers trying to leave the plane

Never flown with a budget airline (don't fly very often) but if you pay extra to choose your seat do you get refunded if you need to move to allow a family to sit together? Seems a waste of money if you don't

Sorry if this has already been said but BA reserves those 3 front seats for two passengers with babies so someone else with a baby has already reserved that seat and the middle one (prob couple with one baby). You may have to give up bassinet seat to sit with your DS but if you have someone else with you (sorry I don't know what DSis means) you would prob prefer them to sit together instead of no bassinet!

I've had DS1 who was 3.5 at the time sit behind me when i had the bassinet for DS2 because a couple had already checked in with their baby and refused to move. There were about 10 babies around us, it was a total nightmare and I found BA terrible in sorting it out compared to other big airlines.

i dont give a fuck if im selfish and entitled i would refuse to move if i couldnt have an aisle seat where i moved to. i have anxiety problems and hate feeling trapped, last time i went on a plane i was nearly travel sick for the first time in my life because i couldnt get out of my seat to go to the loo. then i started winding myself up about being trapped, then was almost violently sick by the time the plane landed. id rather look after someone elses screaming toddler for the whole flight than sit mid row

Highly unlikely withoutcaution.

It makes the situation worse as it means people are more likely to begrudge families who haven't bothered to buy allocated seating, and did their heels in because they have.

Its why paid for allocated seating is bad. Prefer either completely allocated (and free) or first come first served. At least people don't get so annoyed at the situation then.

There's also the issue of Speedy Boarding/pre-boarding, which in Munich simply means you get on the bus first that takes you to the aircraft, and you still have to scrum at the other end. Really annoying for people who have paid for a service and then find it entitles them to nothing. I never understand why they don't make more of a fuss, tbh. What a rip off.

I think everyone should be able to choose seats online at the time of booking, as that incurs practically no cost to anyone, surely?

With both sets of our parents abroad we fly regularly with Easyjet to Holland and Majorca. Their policy is to allow families with under 5's to board immediately after Speedy Boarding, which allows ample time to get seats as a group.

Never had a problem getting seats together, if the flights not full, they often tell us to keep a seat for DD who is 20 months, so that she has more room after take off. One time I was travelling with just me and DD, a lovely steward stood at the end of the row and waived all the passengers further down the plane. I wanted to kiss him!

I'm flying Ryanair on my own with 3yo and 6yo later this year and there is absolutely no choice about it - it's the only airline flying there from London. Ryanair do not let you board early with under 5s, you have to pay. I have paid for early boarding but have been on Ryanair flights before where, like Boffin says, you just get to board the bus first and then the people who didn't pay but got on the bus behind you actually end up getting off first and so on the plane first .

I can sympathise with saintmerryweather's point of view as my mum is terrified of flying and has to have an aisle seat - last time she was accidently put in the middle she had a panic attack on the plane - but surely that can't be the case for the whole cabin? I've given up my coveted window seat on a long coach journey before now so that a toddler could sit next to his mum - I imagined that's what most normal human beings would do, but clearly I'm wrong...

I've got a slightly different question on this.

I'm flying to Prague next month with my mum, with Jet2. We've selected seats already, but in the event they change the plane being used etc, is there any rule that says I, being visually impaired, HAVE to travel with my mum, even at age 22?

I am a nervous flyer anyway, and the idea of being apart from her, even though it's 2 hours max, is just horrible. She knows my sight, she can help me if things go pear shaped.

Flew with Easyjet last year, who actually did reserve 2 seats together each way for me and my mate, because they knew about my eyesight.

I'm going to phone Jet2 tomorrow, I think.

we experienced the bus thing Boffinmum and Liege with Ryanair and finally boarded the busy flight to find there were no rows of 3 seats togther (me travelling alone with my 2 young dc - dd is sick every time she flies). The crew had left the front 2 rows free but wouldn't let us sit there and told me their policy was not to ask other passesngers to move. So I calmly unpacked spare clothes, wipes and plastic bags from my bag, handed them to the stewardess and told her that wehn both DC were sick she could clean them with the wipes and change them into their clean clothes as undoubtedly i'd be trapped behind a trolley. We were then given the three seats in row 2.
But OP - I agree it will get sorted at the airport!

Lollipop definitely phone as the airline should be aware of your needs in case of an emergency and make sure you are seated appropriately.

Thanks impatientone - I'll phone tomorrow :)

I also had it explained, by a friend very hot on aviation safety, why easyjet insisted I was in the window seat on both flights last year - all I will say is

If I hadn't paid extra to choose my seat then I wouldn't mind swapping on the budget flights. If I'd already booked extra leg room seats and the ones I was being asked to move to weren't also extra leg room on Virgin/BA flights then I would have to say no I'm not moving as there is a reason why I try to book those seats.

That is exactly what I'm dreading makemineapinot! Starting to panic a little now... Ds is probably capable of sitting on his own but is of a nervous disposition and is already worried about the flight. He'd have a breakdown if he wasn't next to me. Dd is just 3.

Neither of mine have been airsick before but might try your tactic in case of emergency. My mum did something similar when Jordanian border control were trying to unpack every last bit of our luggage (she was moving countries on her own with two small dc, we were halfway there and it was the middle of the night, I think she was a bit frazzled!). My db started crying louder and louder so she held him in the direction of the border control people and said "oh dear, I think he's going to be sick." Apparently it worked a treat.

i dont mean this harshly but if i had paid to pick my seats then i would refuse to move as i had paid extra to be happy where i was sitting.im a nervous flyer and i def wouldnt be parted from my other half!