Seriously.. this is the first time I've ever heard of adults being jealous of kids in first..

First is available to whoever books it.. or gets upgraded to,.

But if you had booked a first class ticket, looked forward to it for a long time, stepped onto the plane and saw 4-5 kids there, tell me with a straight face your heart wouldn't sink as you cringe and moan!! :P

I've got two kids.. so the more kids the merrier..:p

I personally feel that children should not be allowed to fly at all except in documented emergencies, and then only in the last rows of the plane where smokers used to sit.

If you have a kid, get used to the idea that you should not be in bars, pubs, restraunts (aside from untermensch ones like Shoney's and McDonalds) and aircraft for at least 14 years.

OP, did you accidentally leave out part of your message? Did you mean to go on and say that the kids were loud and obnoxious, or anything like that?

And just out of curiosity, were the kids sitting together (siblings or friends), or randomly scattered throughout first class?

Well, the OP sat (and paid for) a ticket in Y, so I don't think this applies.

You sound like a charmer. I feel this way about 50% of the adult population.

Then you weren't bothered by them. What's your problem?

:td:
I too disagree with you. "Kids are kids" is an excuse. If you can't control your children in public then don't take them with you. I've heard that excuse from a LOT of lazy or stupid parents who just let their kids do whatever. Of course it's easier to embrace that stupid excuse and just sit on your @$$ rather than actually take on your role as a parent and look after the kid(s). Also, when you travel with children you have to make sure they are entertained... bring toys, coloring books, whatever. Of course they're going to scream if they're bored. That's just parents being stupid and/or lazy.

I don't care about kids in F. If they behave, they can fly in any class. If the parents let them do whatever then they should not be flying at all.

If I am flying in Y I'm not sure why I should give a cow's hide about who is in F. In fact, if I saw all the children on the flight in the F cabin it might be one of the very, very few times I was happy that my upgrade did not clear.

As with most FFs, I cringe when I see children coming into the F cabin. However, if the children are properly behaved I see no issue. Sadly, given that too many children today are not properly parented (and income level seems to be make no difference) I make it a point to compliment parents when their children behave as they appropriately should do in an "adult place", as my mother used to call it.

I don't think you understand kids, or at least ALL kids. Because there are times some kids (boys especially) in the 0-5 range are always going to be out of control. Nothing you can do and it doesn't mean you are stupid or lazy. You might be a great parent but your kid is having a bad day or some kids are very difficult/impossible to control all the time. And that might be unpredictable -- he might be great on some flights and a complete terror on others. Those families have to travel sometimes, or even just want to travel, and should be allowed to.

What's the big deal? When i flew with my parents and grandparents as a kid they always put us in first. We were dressed in jacket and tie (tie only with grandparents) and were always well behaved - there were consequences for not being well behaved.

The only time I caught a look/grief was from JFK to LHR then onto NBO (Nairobi) in the 'old first class' on a 747 - someone made a comment when I ordered 3 steaks and 2 cheese platters (I was 14 and I ate it all).

Seeing kids up front does not bother me at all. If it bothers you, you will not enjoy flying as they are up front often.

Oh to be young again! :D

I would love to occupy an F cabin with 4 or 5 children.

That lowers the odds that there will be a disruptive, obnoxious, self-important, liquored-up, loud, smelly passenger causing serious problems in F. ^

In my lifetime of probably around 1,000 total flights (give or take), I've only been on 1 where there was a problem caused by a child. (That story is another thread of its own...all I'll say is that it was mid-90's, AA, the captain handled the problem well, and it ended up not creating irrops.)

I've been on 3 or 4 where some sort of problem was caused by an adult - something serious enough to prevent the flight from departing ontime. I've also been on 1 (inflight) where an adult was disruptive enough to generate a warning that the captain would divert to have him arrested.

I realize that the odds of problems are slim either way, but I truly believe they likelihood of a child causing a serious problem are smaller than the likelihood of an adult doing so - especially in F with the booze flowing.

Agree... agree... agree.. While I'm not sure that all kids appreciate being up front, if they are in a paid seat (money or miles or status etc) what can anybody say... I don't think it's necessarily the kids per se... I blame the parents for not having control of their kids. A good deal of the time, I've seen it where the parents are basically out to lunch and think that either the FAs should be babysitting their kids or people should worship their little offsprings the same way that they do. When mommy and daddy pop down and goo-goo and ga-ga over baby Matilda while little lord Beauregard sticks his finger down his throat and pukes all over the passenger in the next seat and sweet missy Daisy throws a hissy fit and threatens to bite the FA it's no wonder people don't like kids up front (or in the back for that matter)..