NOT THE SHARPEST KNIVES IN THE DRAWER: I’m Leavin’ On A Jet Plane, Don’t Know Where I’ll Be Landin’ Then
Miriam Kamens, 10, was flying alone to visit her grandparents in Cleveland, OH. Her father Jonathan Kamens walked her to her gate at Logan International Airport, and craned his neck to watch her walk through the doors to her plane accompanied by Continental Airlines employees. Somehow, she ended up in Newark, N.J., reports WCVB (Channel 5-Boston):
"I realized she was missing when I got a phone call from my father-in-law saying, 'Where's Miriam?'" Kamens said. …
"For 45 minutes I was panic stricken. I didn't know where my daughter was," Kamens said. …
Miriam was escorted by an airline employee to the wrong plane. Her paperwork hadn't been checked.
"The flight crew on the Cleveland flight was supposed to check that they had the right number of passengers, and they didn't do that," Kamens said. "The number of people who must have failed to do what they're supposed to do is mind boggling."
A spokeswoman for Continental confirmed there were two flights departing simultaneously from a single doorway and miscommunication among staff resulted in Miriam boarding the wrong aircraft.
Continental insists Miriam was never out of the sight of its staff, and was rebooked to Cleveland later that day. The airline is willing to refund the $75 fee Kamens paid for her travel as an unaccompanied minor but he vows: “You can bet they’ll be refunding a lot more than that fee by the time I’m done with them.”
[Hat Tip: The Heel, an Ivy-educated attorney with a prestigious New York firm, and occasional contributor to this blog.]
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