Safety expert: Risks low for young fliers

Hurley says airlines generally do a good job in making sure solitary child passengers arrive safely.

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Three times in less than a month, America West employees put child passengers on the wrong connecting flights. The incidents spurred the airline to change its policy and prompted a national debate about the safety of children flying alone.

Chuck Hurley, vice president for transportation for the National Safety Council, talked with CNN's Frank Buckley on Saturday about what parents should know to assure their children will fly to their destination safely and efficiently. BUCKLEY: What are the policies ... from the different airlines regarding children?

HURLEY: The general policies are pretty much the same. It is important to call ahead to the individual airline to find out the differences that might be on that particular carrier. But kids under age five really are not allowed to be unescorted -- five to seven, generally only on nonstop flights.

MORE STORIES Handling kids flying solo is no small feat   America West restricts children flying solo     RESOURCES Sound off: Would you put your child on a flight alone

The airlines generally do a very good job of this. I mean, the perceived risk is very high; it's a primal fear, I guess, of parents to lose their kids. The actual risk is quite low. And there are some things that can be done to reduce those risks and give parents some peace of mind.

BUCKLEY: I understand you pay a little extra money to have the service to alert the airline that the child is traveling unescorted. What do you actually get for that money, and is there a representative on that plane who's monitoring your child at all times?

HURLEY: The fee is generally $30. Often the kids have special buttons they wear to identify them as unaccompanied minors. And the airlines generally do a very good job of keeping track of kids.

The best advice, though, is to book a flight early in the day. That way if there is a disruption, there are more chances to get your child to the destination that day.

Things like cell phones and phone cards are a very good idea so that you can keep in touch with people at both ends of the flight. And I think, again, that United, for example, I know, flew more than 100,000 kids last year without incident. The actual risk is pretty low.

It's probably important to remind parents that they will have just completed the safest part of their child's journey. The real risk comes when they get on the road. And, of course, they should make sure that every child's properly buckled.

BUCKLEY: With children on the airplane … in addition to giving them some sort of a card that tells who they are, what their phone number is, the cell phone that you mentioned, what about snacks and things like that to make the child feel secure?

HURLEY: The airlines do have special meals available for kids. Parents can call customer service for that (information) well in advance. It's also important to arrive early at the airport, so all of the specific arrangements can be clarified and ironed out, and to make sure that people receiving that child at the other end are informed of those procedures.

The airlines, by the way, are very strict that … the person you identify to pick the child up is the only person they will give the custody of that child to. So it's a pretty good system.

BUCKLEY: America West has decided to stop allowing (solitary child passengers) for the connecting flights. Do you think that's an overreaction, maybe?

HURLEY: They've had a couple of unfortunate incidences, so it probably is. They're trying to stay off your media, I think, in that regard. Generally the system works well.

For parents' peace of mind, again, if they do … call ahead to the customer service, find out the particular policies of that airline, book an early flight, make sure the child has a phone card, or, if possible, a cell phone so that they can stay in touch with the parents during … that travel, those are some tips that I think would increase the peace of mind.