A Canadian dad is seeing red over the mishandling of his son on a Westjet Airlines flight from Calgary to Vancouver Island last month.  Seven-year old Will has made the trip 8 times with no major mishaps, but his last journey went all kinds of wrong.  Not only was the UM ("unaccompanied minor") not escorted from the plane to the terminal as company policy dictates, but he was left wandering aimlessly for 20 minutes until his grandma bumped into him by chance.  No escort, no supervision, no signing him into his grandmother's care, and no one is taking responsibility for the mistake that could have put Will in serious jeopardy.

Will's story has a happy ending, but it could have been so much worse.  Will's dad is struggling valiantly to find out how and why this happened, and to make sure it never happens, to any kid, ever again, and - needless to say - he's meeting resistance from the airline.  Let's all let Will's story serve as a reminder that we can not expect busy, underpaid flight attendants and airline representatives to care about our kids.  And we can't expect our 7-year-olds to keep themselves safe in compromising situations.  Which is why my children will not be flying unaccompanied until they're in their 20s, at least.

[Via ParentDish]