747_not_777

Opted for the 'Lemon Sole' Catch of the Day en route to SFO yesterday - it was lovely, but what I got wasn't Lemon Sole. Wasn't going to say anything as I enjoyed it, but when the crew member was clearing the table, she said - "Hope you don't mind me asking but was what we served you actually Cod?" I explained it was, but still delicious, and she said they'd all be crowded around the fish in the galley thinking "This isn't what's printed on the menu..."

Guess my Catch of the Day jumped nets at the last minute...

As for the crew on BA285 - impeccable service and attention throughout the flight. And my first experience of "kids" in the nose. Did annoy me though how the 8/9 year old in front of me, in 1K, with his young sister alongside, seemed to do pretty much whatever they wanted all flight. Their Granny was travelling with them in 5K, but mostly left them alone. The youngster opened his Macbook up as we taxied to the runway at LHR and put his headphones on to watch a movie, immediately after being made by the crew to switch if off and put it away.

And within 10 seconds of landing he was unbelted and on his I-Phone to friends. Of course, the crew are still seated so saw none of it. Just annoys me (I don't know why!).

Probably 'cos they got 1A/K before I got a look-in, despite checking bang on 72 & 24hrs before take-off. They certainly dont have Gold status - so not sure how????

og

Do you think their mother or father might be significant on the BA radar?

CT-UK

How do you know they don't have Gold status?

Many kids have it or other top tier cards.

stevie-d

I don't see what the problem is with kids in either J or F. My six year old daughter regularly flies in J and knows how to behave herself. In fact is off to SFO in J with her mother today.
We all went to IAH last Easter and the young lady had 1F on a 777 and was complimented on her good behaviour from the crew. It's not the kids, it the control of them - the same whether you are on an aircraft or anywhere else.

rtaylore

Had exactly the same on recent F flight to CAI, was told by the crew it was cod not sole; still pretty good though...

747_not_777

How can a kid be Gold when you cant join the EC until 18?

G-BOAC

HHA

LHR-HUB

I agree. Although it makes no difference to F, I have for a number of years wondered, "why isn't there seperate 'Club' and 'Business Class' cabins.

Business Class = people generally on business who want to work, sleep, read quietly etc.
Club = Those who are travelling with kids and/or on their way to/from Lions tours (who, in my experience last month like to ensure there is no beer or wine left in the Galley!)

I appreciate that there is limited space for bassinets so there will sometimes be a need for younger ones to be in all cabins, but I do object when there are 5 year olds+ running around the cabin, bumping into people and generally disturbing other pax while mum or dad (or granny) either watch a movie and ignore them, or worse, smile in a "isn't he/she sweet" sort of way just after the little ***'s just woken me up for the 5th time!

I don't know how it would work in practise, but it must be quite simple to ensure that kids are all in the same cabin.
I wonder if it's possible to show where kids are seated in MMB, so they could be avoided when selecting a seat.

I am not anti-kids BTW. I often travel with mine, sometimes in J, but I or my wife always ensure they're not disturbing other pax.

BA or bust

Spot on! If they are under 18... it is the parents who are responsible! Like you when I travelled with the children when they were younger (all high teens now) they got a severe talking to before the flights. All now know how to behave in J and this, I hope, will be a life skill that will serve them well in future years.

I think I was deeply impressed on how important it was when actress Marisa Berenson complimented my mum on my good behaviour when I was a wee lad. I still swoon when I see Marisa's picture...

sunrisegirl

I agree 100%. ^

Unfortunately working at the airport you see every day the parents who couldn't care less what their darlings do and who they disturb, inconvenience, injure, etc, etc. It's not the children, they're often too young to know any different. But parents need to take more responsibility for them and far too many couldn't give two hoots.

A child should not be watching a DVD on take off - this is against safety procedures and the parents should have stopped it immediately. The parents/nanny of this child were clearly selfish people who cared about nobody but themselves. I would have said something to the crew, even if it was after the event, so as to ensure that wasn't a recurrence on landing.

BA, or any airline operating 747's, have an ideal solution to this at least in CW. Make the upstairs cabin child free. This always used to be the case from discussions I've had with colleagues at LGW. I was told due to safety reasons that infants/small children could bounce off the emergency slide should they be required.
The number of comments recently made in the thread about the PHX incident highlighted just how steep this slide is. I can understand parents wanting to be upstairs for the quiet, intimate feel of the cabin but surely when you have children they should be your first consideration, not yourself.

And don't get me started on strollers You get far more turn up at the gate full of duty free shopping and hand baggage than you do with children in them.

henkybaby

I always wonder if the people who object to kids are exactly the same people who say "I will not close the blinds. I paid for the ticket so I will do as I d*mn well please!".

Also the hero stories about drinking on this forum aren't few and far between. Although I am sure you can hold you liquor better than anybody else.

I will take a well behaved kid before those types any day of the week.

voracious violinist

Ahh, but the key is in my bolding: well-behaved kids are seen but not heard, they sit quietly watching movies, eating, sleeping, reading or playing with their Nintendo (on silent mode of course,) they don't disturb other passengers... and are a delight to share a flight with in any class.

I'd have said something to the kids on the OP's flight, and if their granny objected, made my feelings clear to her as well.

As some of the other posters have commented, it is all to do with how you are brought up by your parents - and might I suggest - at school. Any time that I was taken somewhere that would be dominated by adults, I'd get the lecture about "being a good girl..." Now children think they are the centre of everything and have no understanding of how their behaviour affects others.

These days it really seems to happen so rarely and that's why it all goes wrong. I found it rather sad last week when I stood up to offer a pensioner a seat on a crowded bus (none of the hordes of kids sitting down did...) and she told me she was shocked as "it just doesn't happen any more."

sunrisegirl

Can't speak for anybody else, but I do close the blinds if asked and never show the DYKWIA attitude at check-in, on board, in Immigration, Customs, etc. I'm always extremely courteous and polite to those I encounter.

I'm very aware that some people drink and can get loud on board. However, I've been lucky to only have experienced drunks on board once and the crew were very proactive in quietening them down. I've had numerous flights disturbed by screaming or badly behaved children.

And also, the crew will have no hesitation in telling adults to behave themselves on board, whereas some crews (especially female) seem too afraid to ask this of a parent. This is wrong in my view as the inconvenience is experienced whether it be a drunk or a child.

henkybaby

All I am saying is that an unbehaved adult is just as bad as an unbehaved kid. Maybe even worse, since a kid is - unlike an adult - less aware of what causes inconvenience to others. They are not necessarily poorly raised, they can be more active, more curious, less inhibited. Nature, nurture, blah blah.

No, I have no kids and several horror stories of flights involving them. Most noticably this one, where I actually got compensated for the inconvenience caused.

KenJohn

2 kids on their own in 1A/K should not be allowed if granny/nanny is not in 2A/K.
An 8/9 year old with their own DVD and iPhone? I think Dad is probably a super Prem.

Agree about badly behaved adults. I saw the person across the aisle and one row up answer his phone while the plane was taxi-ing to the run way. He ignored shouts by fellow pax to turn phone off. Crew were belted up and hidden. This was KLM.