Birth Certificate ???? Flying Child

[chrissy92972]

I am traveling with 3 of my children later in August from Baltimore to Orlando on Southwest/Air Tran. Do I need to present their birth certificates at the airports? If so original or a copy. I am married to their father, but he is not traveling with us, do I need anything else?

Thanks,
Chrissy

 

[Jestocost]

I am traveling with 3 of my children later in August from Baltimore to Orlando on Southwest/Air Tran. Do I need to present their birth certificates at the airports? If so original or a copy. I am married to their father, but he is not traveling with us, do I need anything else?

Thanks,
Chrissy

Passengers under 18 years of age do not need any identification to travel by air within the US. The only exception would be for a child under two who is traveling without a ticket as a lap baby. In that case you would need proof that the child is young enough to travel on that basis and a copy of a birth certificate should suffice.

 

[tjmw2727]

No - only passengers 18 or over need to show ID to travel domestically. The exception is if one of the children is under 2 and flying as a lap child, even then you only need the BC to prove eligibility for the fare / not to travel.

 

[winterwhite]

I am traveling with 3 of my children later in August from Baltimore to Orlando on Southwest/Air Tran. Do I need to present their birth certificates at the airports? If so original or a copy. I am married to their father, but he is not traveling with us, do I need anything else?

Thanks,
Chrissy

Copies of birth certificates are typically okay for southwest. They are used to validate the age of the child to confirm that they are flying on the correct fare, and to ensure that children are seated with an adult/in legal seats on the airplane. They want proof of age for anyone up to age 11.

As for the traveling without the second parent: while it is never really expected that you'll have a problem, it cannot hurt you to carry a notarized letter of consent to travel. There's templates for these on the internet and most banks have a notary public available. type it up, and don't have your husband sign it until in the presence of the notary.

I have only ever heard of one person having a problem, but due to the notary issue it is a really tough document to get on demand if you need it-- so better to have it and not need it than need it and be stuck in an airport somewhere.

If you've never flown Southwest through Baltimore, I would recommend going through security UPSTAIRS if at all possible. For whatever reason, the folks upstairs seem to have it more together at security.

 

[stitchlovestink]

I am traveling with 3 of my children later in August from Baltimore to Orlando on Southwest/Air Tran. Do I need to present their birth certificates at the airports? If so original or a copy. I am married to their father, but he is not traveling with us, do I need anything else?

Thanks,
Chrissy

The only way you will need a birth certificate is if you are flying with one of your children as a 'lap child' (as in w/o their own ticket and on your lap because they are under the age of 2, and you need to provide proof of age). HTH!

 

[chrissy92972]

Thanks everyone! My kids are triplets age 10. One of them has type 1 diabetes and we will be flying for the first time with his pump, insulin, and all of his stuff for the week. Outbound flight is through Air Tran. So I go upstairs for security?

Any other advice for parking, flying out of Baltimore etc.? This is our first time flying in 7 years.

Chrissy

 

[jocin3]

Thanks everyone! My kids are triplets age 10. One of them has type 1 diabetes and we will be flying for the first time with his pump, insulin, and all of his stuff for the week. Outbound flight is through Air Tran. So I go upstairs for security?

Any other advice for parking, flying out of Baltimore etc.? This is our first time flying in 7 years.

Chrissy

We fly out of Baltimore 2-3 times a year (we live in S. Central PA) So far our best long term parking experiences have been with FastPark. It is only a short distance from the airport. After parking in the lot, a van picks you up right at your car (so you don't have to drag luggage anywhere) loads your luggage and drops you off at the terminal. Same thing on the way back, you are delivered directly to your car. We love it. Very reasonable for daily/weekly rates. Here is a link. http://www.thefastpark.com/location/baltimore-blue/ Hope this helps. Have a great trip!

 

[tjmw2727]

I have never EVER needed ID for my children and I have been flying with them many times a year for since they were babies - with and without my husband. I have also traveled with my minor nieces (without their parents) and never had issues. TSA isn't concerned with your travel party.

There is also no requirement that a child be seated with a parent/ guardian except when using a CRS.

OP - you don't need BC for any of your children nor do you need permission to travel with them.

For more info I recommend the TSA . gov website as well as southwest . com and BWI airport also has a pretty good website. FWIW I have never had issues at any of their security checkpoints, we fly out of BWI again tomorrow!

ETA - I use preflight parking.

Copies of birth certificates are typically okay for southwest. They are used to validate the age of the child to confirm that they are flying on the correct fare, and to ensure that children are seated with an adult/in legal seats on the airplane. They want proof of age for anyone up to age 11.

As for the traveling without the second parent: while it is never really expected that you'll have a problem, it cannot hurt you to carry a notarized letter of consent to travel. There's templates for these on the internet and most banks have a notary public available. type it up, and don't have your husband sign it until in the presence of the notary.

I have only ever heard of one person having a problem, but due to the notary issue it is a really tough document to get on demand if you need it-- so better to have it and not need it than need it and be stuck in an airport somewhere.

If you've never flown Southwest through Baltimore, I would recommend going through security UPSTAIRS if at all possible. For whatever reason, the folks upstairs seem to have it more together at security.

 

[chrissy92972]

Thank you!!!!

Chrissy

 

[msjprincess]

Copies of birth certificates are typically okay for southwest. They are used to validate the age of the child to confirm that they are flying on the correct fare, and to ensure that children are seated with an adult/in legal seats on the airplane. They want proof of age for anyone up to age 11.

As for the traveling without the second parent: while it is never really expected that you'll have a problem, it cannot hurt you to carry a notarized letter of consent to travel. There's templates for these on the internet and most banks have a notary public available. type it up, and don't have your husband sign it until in the presence of the notary.

I have only ever heard of one person having a problem, but due to the notary issue it is a really tough document to get on demand if you need it-- so better to have it and not need it than need it and be stuck in an airport somewhere.

If you've never flown Southwest through Baltimore, I would recommend going through security UPSTAIRS if at all possible. For whatever reason, the folks upstairs seem to have it more together at security.

I've flown SWA at least 10 times with children under 11 and they have never asked for a birth certificate.

 

[chrissy92972]

I am driving down from NE PA. It is way cheaper for our dates then Philly and Parking is so much cheaper. Google directions said 2 hours 45 minutes.

Chrissy

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

Copies of birth certificates are typically okay for southwest. They are used to validate the age of the child to confirm that they are flying on the correct fare, and to ensure that children are seated with an adult/in legal seats on the airplane. They want proof of age for anyone up to age 11.

As for the traveling without the second parent: while it is never really expected that you'll have a problem, it cannot hurt you to carry a notarized letter of consent to travel. There's templates for these on the internet and most banks have a notary public available. type it up, and don't have your husband sign it until in the presence of the notary. ......

Your statement about needing a BC is incorrect. No airline cares how old your child is and no proof of age is necessary unless they are a lap baby or flying on a child fare, which would be unusual.

You don't need any permission from either parent or guardian to travel domestically.

 

[puffkin]

We fly 2-3 times a year with our kids and have never needed any ID except when they fly as a lap baby. I have also taken my nieces with no ID or anything like that.

When we fly out of BWI we use Fast Park Blue which is now called Fast Park and Relax I believe.

My DH is Type 1 and has been on an insulin pump (Omni Pod) for 6 years now and we travelled many years prior to that with syringes. He has never had a problem with his insulin/pump/supplies going thru security. He doesn't even pull them out of his bag and just sends them through. One time he was select for random extra screening and when they felt it on his arm he told them it was his insulin pod and they didn't question him further.

 

[goofy4tink]

My dd, now almost 20 y/o, has been flying since she was 3. She has never needed to show an ID until she turned 18. The funny thing is that she loved having her school ID with her. And she would show it at both the counter to check in and at security.
But she didn't have to have it! It was her choice.
Even when she and I traveled without my dh, it was no problem.

 

[chrissy92972]

good to know about the insulin pump, however Medtronic told me no scanner and no xray that it would ruin the pump. He needs to have a pat down.

Chrissy