Family Seating in Air Transportation

Résumé

The U.S. Department of Transportation (Department or DOT) is proposing to require U.S. and foreign air carriers to seat children aged 13 and under adjacent to at least one accompanying adult at no additional cost beyond the fare, subject to limited exceptions. The Department considers family seating to be a basic service, essential for the provision of adequate air transportation, that must be included in the advertised fare. Under this proposal, a carrier's failure to provide family seating would subject it to civil penalties on a per passenger (child) basis, and if the carrier charged families a fee beyond the fare to secure family seating, the carrier would be subject to civil penalties for each fee imposed.