Gate pass for unaccompanied minor...?

[questions2008]

Has anyone been able to procure a gate pass for an unaccompanied minor, if so did you arrange this from the airport or the airline?

DS will be travelling this summer as an UM for the first time and I was hoping to be able to take him all the way to the gate. Travelling from Heathrow if that matters.

I’m afraid once you send them through security they are on their own. Only working staff and passengers with a boarding card can go airside (ie through security.) However, you can help them check in and then have a coffee with them landslide till about an hour beforehand then send them through with strict instructions to go straight to the gate and wait there. How old is he? If he gets himself to school on public transport then passing through an airport should be no problem, but tell him to ask for help if he gets lost or stuck - there are so many uniformed staff walking round airports that he should have no difficultly finding someone who can help. You can check before you send him through which gate he needs to go to, and then keep tabs on him using Find Friends if he has an iPhone, and get him to call you from the gate too.

Dd is old enough this summer to come to work with me unaccompanied - I will be the operating pilot of the aircraft but cannot go through passenger security with her, I will have to send her through and hope she gets to the flight (because work expect me to fly it, dd or no dd!) We’ve been getting her to navigate through the airport every time we go away as a family for years in preparation for this!

I would recommend giving him as little carry on baggage as you can. It is much easier to negotiate security and boarding without a large carry on. If you can pack all liquids in his checked bag.

If you have the money, you could use the concierge service at Heathrow to guide him through and make sure he gets to the gate.

Thanks for the replies. His ticket is as an UA so from my understanding, a steward from the airline will accompany him from check in to the plane through security etc. I guess I was wondering how likely it will be that I can get a gate pass issued, I've read that it is possible but wasn't sure whether I could ask ahead of time or just have to wait until check in and ask there.

Pretty sure they're not available in the UK.

Which airline are they flying with?

When my DS used to travel as an UM (when BA used to do it), he was taken to a separate room with all the other UM.

A BA staff member would walk with all of them, show them to their seats and hand them over to the family member on the other side.

I imagine it's still the same with whichever company he's flying. There's absolutely no risk of them getting lost.

Such passes are not issued nowadays due to security issues.

How old is DS and which airline is he flying with?. Is the airline currently aware that he is unaccompanied?. Airlines have their own policies re unaccompanied minors and they are often escorted through the airport by airline staff.

How old is he OP? My ds has been flying alone since he was 14 (just domestic flights to see his Dad with Easy jet). I've never been able to go through security with him. I was so nervous about this the first time but he was absolutely fine and just rang me when he'd gone through. He's always found it quite easy to navigate his way through airports, I just get him to text when he's about to board etc and I track the flight to see everything's on time etc.
He had an occasion when the flight was delayed by 2 hours so just make sure he has plenty of mi way to buy food and drink if needed and lots of stuff downloaded on his phone to watch it books to read in case he gets bored while hanging around.

For reference he has never been escorted by airline staff with easy jet as their policy is that 14 and over can fly alone. It's not been an issue.

I was an UM a lot as a child, got collected by staff at check in.

The low cost airlines don't do the UM escort thing and I'm pretty they don't allow children to travel unaccompanied by an adult.
When mine flew as UMs they had to wear a large sign round their neck covering most of their fronts with the letters UM in red on a white background and were escorted onto and off the plane before the other passengers. They enjoyed it😊