Mom says her Kids Flying to Syracuse were Treated like Prisoners

Stranded kids allegedly mistreated by American Airlines

A mom in Florida filed a lawsuit against American Airlines recently, alleging that they mistreated her two young kids, who were traveling alone to Upstate NY.

Amber Vencill claims that the boys were delayed in getting to their final destination in Syracuse NY back in July 2022 and were stranded in Charlotte when a connecting flight to Upstate NY was cancelled.

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"Vencill had paid American Airlines for unaccompanied minor service, about $150 each way, for her two sons – a 10-year-old and a 12-year-old – so they could travel from Missouri to New York to visit her partner's family. The trip had a layover in Charlotte, North Carolina." ABC News

According to ABC News, Vencill sued the airline for the mistreatment of her two children, ages 10 and 12, after they were placed overnight in a "cold room akin to a jail cell" while they waited for the connecting flight to visit her partner in Syracuse.

Vencill claims that the airline assured her partner that her two boys would be well taken care of while they stayed the night in Charlotte awaiting the connecting flight.

According to the report, they were told the boys "would be placed in a nice room for unaccompanied minors where there were beds and their own bathroom," but if we're to believe Vencill's allegations, that didn't happen.

No food, no drinks

Making matters worse, Vencill told reporters that her boys didn't travel with cell phones, and she wasn't able to contact them for several hours after their flight was canceled.

According to ABC News, Vencill asked "if they had anything to eat or drink. And they were like, 'No, mom."

No help from American Airlines

The next day, the young boys did make it to Syracuse, but no thanks to the staff of American Airlines.

The report states that it was an airport employee, not one from American Airlines, who eventually gave the kids food and drink before they boarded a flight to Syracuse, New York the next day.

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