Summary
Overview of the Family Seating Dashboard
The Department of Transportation launched an online family seating dashboard, providing insights into the policies of 10 major U.S. airlines as they commit to ensuring that young children can sit with a parent or guardian for free.
The new dashboard emphasizes which major U.S. airlines guarantee fee-free family seating for children aged 13 and younger, according to the DOT.
“Parents traveling with young kids should be able to sit together without an airline forcing them to pay junk fees,” stated Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. He added, “We have been advocating for airlines to guarantee family seating without additional charges. Consequently, some airlines are starting to implement this common-sense change. All airlines should follow suit promptly, as we work towards establishing a rule to make this a requirement.”
Airline Commitments to Family Seating
As of now, only American Airlines, Frontier Airlines, and Alaska Airlines have pledged to the DOT to offer free family seating by incorporating this guarantee into their service plans.
Alaska Airlines stated on Monday that they have always “prioritized sitting families together,” and now they have taken a further step to “guarantee” this seating arrangement, provided the child and parent are booked on the same reservation, among other conditions.
While many airlines have yet to formally add free family seating to their service options, some have begun to offer similar assurances to help families sit together, including United Airlines.
Conditions and Additional Information
Delta Air Lines has its own version of a dynamic seat map, which blocks off specific rows in the main cabin to ensure that only groups of three or more traveling together can book those seats. Additionally, Southwest announced plans to test a new pilot program that will permit families with children to pre-board the plane first.
The dashboard not only illustrates which airlines provide free family seating, but it also outlines the limited circumstances under which those seats can be assured, directing users to each airline’s service plan. The DOT further offers useful tips for families traveling together and outlines the procedure for filing complaints with an airline or the department if necessary.
This new airline policy dashboard marks the second initiative introduced by the DOT. Last year, the department developed a dedicated website focused on policies related to cancellations and delays.
