The 27-year-old North Carolina resident was detained and interrogated at a Florida airport, according to his father, after he tried to use a popular travel hack.
A gate agent stopped Hunter Parsons teenage son, who had a reservation to fly from Gainesville, Florida, to New York City, before he was allowed to board because he had a North Carolina license and the flight had a layover in Charlotte, North Carolina. The elder Parsons told WJZY that an American Airlines gate agent suspecting the teenager was planning to skip lagging or intending to travel to the connecting city, rather than the destination on their boarding pass, in an effort to save money.
The police then notified security and his son was taken to a security room and was interrogated a little bit, the father said.
Skip lagging, also called hidden city ticketing or point beyond ticketing, violates the travel policies of most major airlines.
FOX Business asked American Airlines about the airline's prohibited booking practices, which include purchasing a ticket without intending to fly all flights to gain lower fares. The FBI also confirmed that the traveling teen was questioned during the incident and said a member of American's customer relations team has communicated with the family.
Also, Delta and United Airlines, as well as Delta and United Airlines, prohibit skip lagging.
The Parsons patriarch confirmed that his son was skip lagging and said the family has used Skip Lagged, a website that specifically lists hidden-city ticketing trips for at least five to eight years.
The site warns travelers who use its service that their checked luggage could be sent to the final destination instead of where they intend to stop, among other potential problems.
The father said he would not have done so if he knew it would have resulted in his son being stopped and questioned, WJZY reported.
Parsons said the family was concerned when they learned the airline put a minor in that situation. He said, instead, his son should have received a stern warning.