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THE kingdom’s national carrier Gulf Air looks set to cash in with extra bookings from British expats after its only direct flight rival to London announced it will end its ‘Unaccompanied Minor’ (UM) service.
British Airways (BA) has informed parents with children booked to fly as UMs that existing tickets would be honoured but no new bookings would be accepted.
The largely unpublicised move has angered parents who face flying thousands of miles to pick up or deliver their offspring to and from UK boarding schools, as witnessed by a letter from one anxious father published in last week’s GulfWeekly who urged BA to reconsider its decision.
British Airways has flown generations of solo children around the world, with ‘flying nannies’ looking after under-12s travelling alone … but Gulf Air has no plans to follow suit by axing its service. In fact it’s geared up to meet the anticipated increase in demand.
“Gulf Air has clear policies and regulations in place to facilitate the travel of unaccompanied minors - children between the ages of five and 11,” an airline spokesman told GulfWeekly.
“With the proper documentation, minors can fly alone, provided they meet the airline’s criteria. Appointed ground staff/special services staff will receive them from their parents/guardians at the time of check-in, verifying that all documents necessary for travel are in order and ensuring that at no time will an unaccompanied minor travelling with Gulf Air be left alone.”
BA claimed that demand for its service had declined by two-thirds globally and had fallen 21 per cent in the last year and industry analysts suggested it was the airline’s latest move to cut costs.
Its passengers were told: “The airline will continue to take bookings for 12 to 18-year-olds who wish to fly independently. However, children under 12 must be accompanied by an adult aged 16 or over.”
Until recently the airline had charged around BD58 (£108) for a long-haul trip, on top of the normal fare. BA’s spokeswoman said: “We have concluded with regret that we can no longer offer this service.”
Other airlines travelling out of Bahrain International Airport offer UM services to the UK but, like KLM and Lufthansa for example, the journey involves stop-overs and flight changes at other airports in Europe or a neighbouring Gulf state.
Fares change depending on dates of travel and whether there are any promotions at the time but last week the cost of a Gulf Air UM ticket to Heathrow was BD175, travelling one-way, economy class.
As in line with the policy of other carriers, children under five years will not be accepted as unaccompanied minors by Gulf Air and can only travel with their parents or guardian, or a pre- arranged escort. For children over two and under five, a pre-arranged flight attendant escort may be requested at the guardian’s cost.
If you are booking a Gulf Air flight for your child, contact the airline directly for information by visiting gulfair.com, calling the airline’s 24-hour contact centre on 17373737, or visiting any Gulf Air sales office.
