[jimworcs]

There is a toxic and hostile attitude towards customers at Delta. It is so pervasive across the whole organisation that it can only be a cultural problem with the company.

This represented a child protection issue and I would write a letter to the DOT outlining your concerns about their handling of this case. The issue is not just the typical crap Delta service, in which the purchased service was not delivered and then you were made to feel they were doing you a favour by not charging for it.

In this situation Delta are guilty of child endangerment. This situation illustrates perfectly why airlines need re-regulating, they are incapable of acting in anything other than the best interests of the managment and shareholders, even if this puts customers in danger.

They did this in two ways. First, Delta had no way of knowing who the child would have been placed next to. A two year old child is hugely vulnerable and could have been sexually assaulted by the stranger they placed them next to. They also placed others in danger. If there had been, for example, a rapid decompression, the child would have been totally dependent on a stranger to take care of them. Furthermore, had there been an emergency evacuation, the likelihood is that the child's parents, instead of exiting the aircraft immediately would be trying to find their child to ensure they were safe, which would impede the egress of others and potentially endanger other lives.

The Delta staff acted utterly irresponsibly and whilst this is typical and common for Delta, it is unacceptable when the line is crossed and this becomes a safety issue. Delta has a legal responsibility for the safety of it's passengers and I think you should let the DOT know that they were prepared for the child to be placed at risk, unless you intervened yourself. Totally unacceptable.

There is a link to complain to the DOT in the Quick Links at the top of this page.