Blumie

Yeah, but you're starting to sound it.

brp

As we all noted in another thread, kids cry because, well, they're kids, and they do that. Can't really be helped in many cases.

Inconsiderate, bratty behavior? That can be helped. I'll add the obligatory "I blame the parents," and if it requires that the FA or pilot get on the loudspeaker and embarrass the parents into compliance, I'm all for it.

Cheers.

mvoight

FAs are there for our safety, remember?

If the passenger refuses to sit, the plane should be stopped and the passenger removed. It doesn't matter their age.

brp

Oh, I agree. That's where the police/authorities part I mentioned comes into play. I'm thinking, also, of cases where the plane is airborne and something disallowed is going on. Stopping the plane at that point is less of an option

Cheers.

Blumie

I don't know about you, but I'd rather fly with a screaming child than have to go back to the gate to evict the little bugger and/or his parents. Cause if you think that's gonna be a quick transaction, I got some news for you! I'm thinking you're looking at an hour delay, if you're lucky.

MiamiAirport Formerly NY George

We have two similiar threads going at once here in the AA forum, but I will say it again. I agree totally with tigerpaw (I am also nearing 50). I remember in my childhood, children were expected to behave like proper young ladies and gentlemen. Now it seems that children run amuck anywhere, anyhow, and their "working professional" parents are too tired or distracted to do anything about it. And parents think that their children should be able to go anywhere, anytime. What ever happened to certain places being off limit to young children (like F class or an airline lounge) or certain times (like taking a small child on an early morning or late evening/red eye flight were they are bound to be noisy and most unhappy.)

Blumie

Yeah! And what happened to the good 'ol days when you could beat a child senseless for looking askance? The world was so much better when we lived in black and white, none of this stinkin' "living color" that we have to deal with today.

MiamiAirport Formerly NY George

Yes, and I will finally leave this alone, there are parents today that take the time and effort to teach their children to behave appropriately in public without beating them to a pulp. Even with that children do cry and they do get restless easy, so parents with some common sense would realize that little three year Billy or Mary would not do well on a LAX to NYC red eye, or sit in an airport lounge for several hours that really has nothing for kids to do (cocktail lounges, part of the airline lounge experience, were not made with children in mind). And to be truthful, some of the most behaved children that I have seen tend to be on flights from Central America to NYC routed through MIA (and sitting in Y) where is it fairly apparent that the parents are of more modest means.

aamilesslave

Nothing like a good ol' butt bruising we used to receive when we acted up in Gibsons...and you never wanted to get taken outside during church.

RobtErskine

I'm the father of a 5-year old and we often deliberately choose red-eye or night flights so that he will likely be sleeping for most of the flight - and I like to think, at least, that I have some common sense.

sinanju

And remember the days when, if a neighbor disciplined you, and you complained to your folks, they'd respond, "What did you do to deserve it?"

Nowadays, said neighbor would be in jail for raising their voice to the precious snowflake.

AA53

I'm seeing a lot of "lap children" that look suspiciously over 2. Do airlines check birth certificates?

Jaimito Cartero

Paging PTravel. Please report to AA thread, child on the loose.

Blumie

Here's the way I look at it:

AA carries about 35 million passengers a year. Given my statistical sampling, I'd guess that approximately 98.857%, or 34.6 million, of those passengers annoy me one way or another (and only a small fraction of that 34.6 million are kids), and approximately 62.347%, 21.8 million, of those passengers really annoy me (again, only a small fraction are kids). (BTW, HNL, if you can get the UCP to generate more precise numbers, I'd greatly appreciate it.) I just can't get worked up about any of these "someone was bothering me" threads. If I started a new thread each time I got annoyed while traveling, I'd annoy all of you guys a lot more than I already do. And if I complained to the FAs and AA each time, I'd be permabanned so fast it'd make your head spin.

I'm not much for following rules. So use your bberry during takeoff and landing, let the lights flash on your laptop while it's stuffed in the seatback pocket, let your kids dance in the aisles. I don't care. Just leave me the f**k alone. But notwithstanding my intolerance for people, I am far more tolerant of kids than I am of adults. Most kids can't control themselves. Most adults can't either, but at least they should be able to.

DataPlumber

Nail hit on head.