KLM Flying Dutchman - An unsual screaming child scenario in WBC

I've just returned from a delightful trip with my partner to Bonaire. We had a rather stange "screaming child scenario" on the way back, which I thought I might pass on to you.


We were sat in row 1 in WBC. (Henkybaby deserves credit here - we spotted his trip report on another forum, advising it's best to go for the front cabin on the MD11. Thanks !)

A lady was sitting in row 1 too, with a young (approx 2 year old) child on her knee. We'd seen her at boarding, and she appeared agitated at the gate.

The child screamed for most of the 8.5 hours of the flight. Even the lovely Viktor and Rolf ear plugs couldn't keep the noise of the child out!

We became suspicious that something might have been wrong, because the lady was in her late 40s, and was carrying a young child. The child bore no resemblance to the lady. The situation just didn't look "right". :confused:

The lady did not know how to calm the child. She had little interaction with it. At this point we realised it probably wasn't her child, so we thought perhaps she was a nanny.

The child became very upset, so she force-fed it two bottles of milk. The child then vomited over the passenger next to them. He remained INCREDIBLY calm! All the hot towels on board had to be used to clean up the mess.

As we approached Schiphol, the child became more agitated, and hit the lady over the head with a huisje.

As we disembarked the aircraft, the Dutch customs were ready and waiting for the Bonaire flight. The lady with child was stopped.

At this point we remembered that she hadn't eaten or drunk anything at all on board, and the penny dropped.

We felt incredibly sorry not only for the child, but also for the lady herself.

The crew did their best, but seemed more interested in making sure the child was OK (which is understandable). Unfortunately it ruined the WBC experience for other passengers.

(I digress slightly, but the Marcel Wanders / Viktor and Rolf / new menus have really made a big difference to KLM since I last flew on them a year ago)

We then headed home to bed, to try to get some sleep ! I emailed KLM, and they suggested a quiet word with the Senior Purser if something like this ever happens again (plus the standard 5000 miles).

So now I think I'll invest in some noise-cancelling headphones, to use alongside the earplugs :D

I'm already planning on going back to Bonaire though :p

Wise investment. I always travel with my kid-canceling headphones :D

Standard 5K? Hope this won't be Flying Pesos! :p

BTW. the penny hasn't dropped with me

As we disembarked the aircraft, the Dutch customs were ready and waiting for the Bonaire flight. The lady with child was stopped.

At this point we remembered that she hadn't eaten or drunk anything at all on board, and the penny dropped.


I might be think but can you explain?

Yes, please explain this one...

Probably smuggling drugs (bolletjes) or something similar. These Dutch Antilles flight are known to carry quite some smugglers...just a guess

I might be think but can you explain?

The woman was a drug mule. She was carrying the drugs in her stomach, hence the fasting during the flight. The baby was provided to her to reduce the scrutiny she would receive at customs, since the officials are less suspicious of mothers with babies than they are of single travelers.

The woman was a drug mule. She was carrying the drugs in her stomach, hence the fasting during the flight. The baby was provided to her to reduce the scrutiny she would receive at customs, since the officials are less suspicious of mothers with babies than they are of single travelers.

There are two possible explanations I can come up with:

1. She was a nanny to the child. The child didn't like her. She was a nervous flyer. Despite the flight being a long one, and over 2 hours late, she didn't feel the need to eat or drink anything. Latin American lady carrying distressed northern European child looked unusual, so she was stopped. This was just bad luck.


2. She was a drugs mule. She couldn't eat or drink on the flight because it would have flushed the bolletjes (small parcels of drugs) out of her system. Travelling in WBC and carrying a child was done to reduce suspicion. The child wasn't hers, so was scaredby what was happening. However her choice of child wasn't the best, and it made her stand out.

It genuinely could be either, and to be honest we'll probably never know.

I for one don't understand why any mule (or the people behind the drug trafficking) would use direct flights from high risk areas such as the Caribbean?

Every single time I have come from SXM there has been an extra check at the air-bridge at disembarking so it shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone.

It, for sure, sounds very dodgy tbh with a Latin looking Woman in her 40's with a Northern European child around 2 y.o. Still it is possible, but who would "lend" out their child for such an operation?

Had it been a nanny she would for sure know more basics around feeding habits etc...

OMG she kidnapped the child!!!

I'm glad she was stopped as if it was me I would have informed customs.

I'd suspect KL crew record which pax don't eat or drink on such flights and have a certain profile, that itself is very odd.

Had it been a nanny she would for sure know more basics around feeding habits etc...

I'm afraid I'm inclined to agree. Neither the child nor the lady looked very comfortable with each other. When she overfed the child until he was sick, I began to wonder if there was something odd happening. :(

We only realised what is *might* have been after going through Dutch customs. Their customs operation is incredibly tight for these Caribbean flights.

If I'd realised at the time, I think I would probably have had a very quiet word with the purser.

If I'd realised at the time, I think I would probably have had a very quiet word with the purser.

^^^ So would I without question...

Sounds more likely to be a custody case.....?

suspicious....

So where's the child now?

You could be right about the woman, but I would hesitate to jump to conclusions.

I had a similar situation some years ago when I, my wife and child, were upgraded to WBC on a KLM flight from Bangkok (I am PFL since 1998) - in those days upgrades were quite common before it was joined with AF.

Our 2 year old had a touch of colic the night before, and was not in a happy mood for the full 12 hour flight, and I felt sorry for the rest of the passengers in the cabin - we tried to take him into the galley as much as possible to reduce the noise.
My wife had been up all night with him and was feeling so tired and depressed she could not eat anything.
My wife is very asian looking, and I am very western , but our child takes completely after me, blue eyes etc. so often my wife gets asked if she is the nanny.
She used to be regularly stopped on her old passport due to a wrong visa stamp put in by the British Embassy - we even had a personal contact there that would sort it out every time.
So, if I was not with my wife on this occasion, you could have assumed the same about her...

crobe

We became suspicious that something might have been wrong, because the lady was in her late 40s, and was carrying a young child. The child bore no resemblance to the lady. The situation just didn't look "right". :confused:

The lady did not know how to calm the child. She had little interaction with it. At this point we realised it probably wasn't her child, so we thought perhaps she was a nanny.

The child became very upset, so she force-fed it two bottles of milk. The child then vomited over the passenger next to them. He remained INCREDIBLY calm! All the hot towels on board had to be used to clean up the mess.

As we approached Schiphol, the child became more agitated, and hit the lady over the head with a huisje.

You could be right about the woman, but I would hesitate to jump to conclusions.

I had a similar situation some years ago when I, my wife and child, were upgraded to WBC on a KLM flight from Bangkok (I am PFL since 1998) - in those days upgrades were quite common before it was joined with AF.

Our 2 year old had a touch of colic the night before, and was not in a happy mood for the full 12 hour flight, and I felt sorry for the rest of the passengers in the cabin - we tried to take him into the galley as much as possible to reduce the noise.
My wife had been up all night with him and was feeling so tired and depressed she could not eat anything.
My wife is very asian looking, and I am very western , but our child takes completely after me, blue eyes etc. so often my wife gets asked if she is the nanny.
So, if I was not with my wife on this occasion, you could have assumed the same about her...

I guess your wife will interact with the child.
I guess she will not overfeed it.
I guess the child will not hit her with a huisje.

Ofcourse things happens, so it can be nothing. We will probably never know.

You could be right about the woman, but I would hesitate to jump to conclusions.



crobe

I completely agree. She could perhaps have been the child's grandmother (she looked too old to be the mother).

Changing subject slightly - how should cabin crew deal with a screaming child ? KLM don't seem to be brilliant at handling these situations.

Most parents would do what you did, and take the child to the galley for a while to reduce the disturbance to other passengers.

Some parent's don't though.

Personally, I think the cabin crew should have a quiet word with the parent, and encourage them to go to the galley until they have calmed the child.

I guess your wife will interact with the child.
I guess she will not overfeed it.
I guess the child will not hit her with a huisje.

Ofcourse things happens, so it can be nothing. We will probably never know.

Agreed. Could have been something or nothing. Dutch customs stopped her, so it's up to them to work it out.