http://www.travelweekly.com/printarticle.aspx?pageid=56938 Agency, toddler's mom at odds with Alitalia over child seat policy (06/08/2006) By Andrew Compart A Massachusetts agency is complaining to Alitalia and the U.S. government because the carrier is refusing to allow a client to buy a separate seat for a toddler, insisting that the parents hold the 1-year-old child on their laps during a transatlantic flight. Alitalia says it can?t and won?t issue a ticket to put the toddler in a separate seat, but Scituate Harbor Travel in Scituate, Mass., issued just such an Alitalia ticket months ago for a family that is slated to travel on June 14. The carrier says it won?t honor the ticket, which has set the agency wondering how the res system confirmed a separate seat for the child in the first place. The agency booked the flight for Catherine Armstrong, her husband and their five children -- ages 1 to 13 -- who were joining 11 other family members on the flight. The Amadeus record provided by agency president Nancy Monahan shows the agency provided the ages for all of the children, including 1-year-old Julia. Amadeus accepted the booking and Armstrong left the agency Jan. 12 with her booking confirmation. But when Armstrong called Alitalia in April to see if she could move to a roomier row and to find out which car seat she could use, she found out that Alitalia provides bassinets for infants, but it doesn?t allow any child safety seats and does not allow the sale of airline seats to children under 2. If Armstrong wanted to take Julia, she?d have to carry the child on her lap. ?I absolutely, positively would not have proceeded [with the booking] had I been in the know,? Armstrong said. ?None of us were in the know about this.? Armstrong, a pediatric nurse, said children become ?highly mobile? even before a year -- Julia already is walking -- and ?they?re curious.? ?If I fall asleep when she?s in my arms, she?s going to be hard to contain,? she said. ?Traveling eight hours overnight, I don?t think anyone could reasonably hold a child that long.? Armstrong said an Alitalia?s call center employee suggested she ask the travel agency for a refund. Instead, Armstrong and Monahan asked Alitalia to honor the ticket or offer the family transportation on a partner carrier. Most airlines offer the option to purchase a separate seat for young children at a discounted rate, as Alitalia does for older children, and use an approved child safety seat. Seatguru.com lists the policies for 34 carriers, 18 of which are outside the U.S., and all but Alitalia offer the child seat option. Monahan said Alitalia has not been very responsive. But it has said its policy against selling a separate seat or allowing a child safety seat is based on Italian law. An Alitalia spokeswoman gave TravelWeekly.com the same response, saying Italy?s aviation authority doesn?t allow the usage of child safety seats on aircraft. She said ?security regulations? require the parent to hold the child. The parent is given an ?infant loop belt? attachment to use for takeoff and landing, and the flight crew alerts parents to ?pay special attention? when turbulence is expected, she said. That?s not good enough for Monahan, who copied Rep. William Delahunt (D.-Mass.); Massachusetts senators Ted Kennedy and John Kerry, both Democrats; and Sen. Daniel Inouye (D-Hawaii), the co-chair of the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, in her April 12 and May 15 letters to Alitalia?s CEO. She told them it is ?shocking to me that in a country so concerned about child safety, we allow Alitalia to place them at risk of injury.? Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman Alison Duquette said the FAA does not have the authority to make foreign carriers allow the use of child safety seats. Amadeus is investigating how the booking went through against Alitalia policy. In the meantime, Monahan is taking no chances: She told agents to check with every airline to make sure a separate seat and child safety seat are allowed before confirming. Monahan said by May 31, Armstrong had decided to show up at the gate with her tickets and hope for the best. If she can?t use the aircraft seat with or without the child seat, she?ll ask for a refund and fly with Julia in her lap. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com