How old does a child have to be to fly alone?

[eleusis]

From London to Chicago. I'm being hounded by my sisters in Chicago to see my kids before they are grown. And so I'm thinking about sending her on her own next summer for a couple of weeks. She will be 5 in March. Is this old enough?

But does she really need this trip? You'll certainly not be selfish if you don't want her to be 3OOO odd miles and a 7 hour flight away, that's perfectly normal, not selfish at all.

I also think if you were 100% certain that she would cope with this sort of trip, you probably wouldn't have started this thread

There's no harm in waiting another year or two until she's just that bit older, she won't be missing out. In fact, she may appreciate it more if she's a little older.

My cousins used to fly to Hong Kong and back on their own from the age of 7 when they started boarding school over here. They loved it - probably because they were spoilt rotten on the flight.

I don't buy the plane crash argument. It's more likely that something will happen to her when you/dh/nanny are taking her out in the car.

We would all be very dull if we sat at home doing nothing because we were scared to let our children have experiences like this one. You know your dd better than anyone - if you think she'll love it then she'll love it. End of.

id nto liek to leave a kid of 5 alone allt hat time
nothgin to do wiht the flight

i knwo there will eb cabin crew etc but no. id not do it

Piggy, when I wrote the op, my intention was actually to enquire about the airline rules and not whether or not this was a recommended parenting decision. But, hey, the thread has evolved into an interesting discussion.

I might actually wait another year or even two when DS will be old enough to fly with her. I haven't really decided.

As I said further down, you need to check with the airline as they all are slighlty different. BA link

Skyflyer Solo involves British Airways taking special care of your child through the airport process - departure, arrival and, of course, in the air. (This service was formerly known as the Unaccompanied Minor Service.)
Our staff will make sure your child has a safe and fun flight.
However they will do it for flights over 4 hours!

The also say
Please note: British Airways flights operated by Aer Lingus or America West using a BA flight prefix do not allow children under 12 years old to travel unaccompanied.

Old enough for her wings to be fully developed. Before that would be dangerous.

I am a paranoid parent and I don't think there is anything wrong with what the OP has suggested.

Putting a child on a plane with an airline who employs people with the skills to look after a small child is very similar to putting a child in a nursery - you are trusting a paid adult to look after your child.

It is nothing like putting a child alone on a bus, the child will be truly alone and at the mercy of the general public/strangers in that case.

It is also nothing like leaving a child unattended.

If the OP considers that her DD would enjoy this, then it really is not a risk, anymore than flying itself is a risk and putting a child into nursery is a risk.

I used to travel to africa as unaccompanied minor with loads of other kids - we had a great time on the flight and at the airport we were well looked after ( we were mainly 7 plus ish from memory - I was eleven) - so if you think she can manage it - do it but try to do it at start of school holidays then chances are there nmay be other unaccompnied minors

My friend said the unaccompanied minor staff were great. They chatted to her and gave her stickers and it was only when she mentioned in passing that she was a palliative care nurse that they realised she wasn't 11, but an extraordinarily small and young-looking 20.

It was her first overseas flight and she thought all Qantas staff were just amazingly friendly. Now she knows better, though.

ninedragons

First flew on my own about 8ish. Staff always great. Can''t remember ever being scarred or not looked after.

Even did transatlantic Paris- LA with (3/4 hour) stopover in JFK wich involved changing terminals at about 12.
Clearly remember this one because such an adventure but was always well taken care of.

That was during the eighties. Must be even safer now.

It is a very long flight for a 5 year old though. Would not recommend it.

I genuinely thought this thread was going to be about children doing housework....

Oh housework, yes, must work on training her for that now at age 4.

Try this service:

www.airlineangels.co.uk/index.htm

I did it as a child aswell (12 hour flights alone) - it was great fun. Hated the big thing round your neck that you had to wear (with a giant UNACCOMPANIED MINOR tag!).

It's so child dependent. My parents never sent one of my sisters because she would never have coped and would have hated it.

There were always loads of children being shunted between a divorced mum and dad when I flew alone. I always thought that was quite sad!