Is this neglect or an understandable accident?

18 suitcases?

Er...well, it isn't really neglect. They should have paid more attention with such young children with them, but it's understandable that in the confusion and in their haste to get onto the plane, they could forget one.

That doesn't make it okay.

They didn't notice for 40 minutes after they boarded the plan. That is neglect. They are extraordinarily lucky the little girl wasn't kidnapped or anything. If you can't keep track of 5 children, you shouldn't have 5 children!

i bet they freaked out. Like Ich said, with 18 suit cases and 4 more kids, i am sure it was a mistake. Neglect would be like sending the kid to the bathroom by its self or something like that. Given the circumstances i think it was just a mistake.

Well not noticing the kid for 40 minutes was pretty bad, actually.

Mistake would be noticing as you do a head count when boarding the plane. Not even bothering to make sure all 5 kids made it onto the plane is neglect. Pure and simple.

i do not think it matters how long.

If a child wanders off for a minute and the parent notices immediately, that's a mistake. Not noticing for nearly an hour and not bothering to do a headcount before the plane took off is neglect. The flight attendants having to tell them the child was missing is exactly what places this very firmly in negligent territory.

after i re read the whole article, the air port police informed THEM! they had no idea

Actually it was more than an hour, with all the boarding procedures and waiting to take off and such.