<p>Thought I would pass on a tip I learned from Southwest today. First the background. My d missed her connecting flight due to a mechanical issue on her initial leg and all the other flights into Manchester were sold out. Southwest wanted to send her home, which was reasonable since she couldn’t go to a hotel. D suggested they put her on a flight into another city in order to make a connection to Boston and she took a car service to Concord. It all worked out and she did it all without me (boy has she matured). Southwest tried to call me to approve my d’s new travel arrangement’s but I had listed d’s cellphone number when purchasing her ticket so they called her and she told them I approved (we had already talked so I had in fact approved). </p>
<p>When I called Southwest today to complain about the initial delay and ask for compensation, the customer service person was the same person who had worked with my d yesterday. She suggested that my d always let the gate agent know that she is a minor flying alone and give the gate agent my contact information. She said if they had been aware of her status yesterday, they would have held the connecting flight for her. I told her that I did indicate that she was a minor flying alone when I purchased her ticket. She reiterated that the gate agent should always be informed. That information would have made a huge difference yesterday in time and money.</p>