Kids on planes

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eracode

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#2165511 22-Jan-2019 15:29

kingjj:

[Snip]

The idea of an adults only flight is interesting but personally I think it would never take off.

Yeah - nah a flight with only adults would be far too heavy. 😁

Sometimes I just sit and think. Other times I just sit.

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#2165573 22-Jan-2019 16:41

ajobbins:

There is a degree of responsibility for the parents to manage their kids behavior, but kids are kids and sometimes not much a parent can do. What does bother me is if there is a child on a flight that is disrupting passengers, for example by kicking the seat in front, and the parents either do nothing at all about it, or are openly hostile to a even a very polite request to ask them to stop. It's usually the same passenger/parent who puts their chair in full recline the moment the plane is in the air, loudly complains that they paid for a meal when on a seat only fare and expects that their seat neighbor and/or the cabin crew are there to babysit while they have a loud nap or extended trip to the bathroom.

I agree entirely.

While there are always exceptions, very often the way the children behave is a reflection of the discipline or lack there of at home.

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Fred99

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#2165742 22-Jan-2019 20:28

When our son was about 2, we flying back to Chch, there was a woman with long Rapunzel hair effect flowing over the seat in front, was kind of bumpy with a NW Gale as we descended to Chch, so he let loose with a projectile puke right at her golden locks. She's screaming blue murder, he's screaming and still vomiting in all directions, a flight attendant is lamely holding a paper towel in one hand, nose in the other. A great experience capped off by realising that I'd handed the keys to my car and the house to the car rental counter. Got home by taxi with puke saturated 2yo, taxi driver gave me a leg up to climb through the toilet window.
This vomiting episode was in the final 15 minutes of a flight. God help any parent (and nearby passengers) if it happens early on a long-haul.

Rikkitic

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#2165745 22-Jan-2019 20:43

I could actually handle that. I wouldn't enjoy it, but I also wouldn't blame the kid. I can cope with vomit. I just can't cope with the noise.

Plesse igmore amd axxept applogies in adbance fir anu typos

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#2165746 22-Jan-2019 20:47

Rikkitic:

I could actually handle that. I wouldn't enjoy it, but I also wouldn't blame the kid. I can cope with vomit. I just can't cope with the noise.

Then spend $200-$400 on noise cancelling head phones? (note: they are not gimmicks! but yes they do work 100% only when you play your own sounds like movie/music. without it, you will still hear something, as kids screaming are not constant and are rather intermittent)

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#2165803 22-Jan-2019 21:25

Batman:

Rikkitic:

I could actually handle that. I wouldn't enjoy it, but I also wouldn't blame the kid. I can cope with vomit. I just can't cope with the noise.

Then spend $200-$400 on noise cancelling head phones? (note: they are not gimmicks! but yes they do work 100% only when you play your own sounds like movie/music. without it, you will still hear something, as kids screaming are not constant and are rather intermittent)

Not that I'm a drug fiend or similar, but I highly recommend triazolam (prescription only) for these situations. It's also used to calm condemned prisoners before execution, very effective it is too. You can basically (for a few hours) not give a flying F about anything. Some Drs will prescribe it to help you sleep / avoid jet lag when flying, or if you've got some phobia. Someone vomited in your hair? No worries - at least until the drug wears off.

MileHighKiwi

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#2165983 23-Jan-2019 10:09

How do you deal with the noise of the engines? Or do you fly by hot air balloon?

It’s probably not commercially viable to offer adults only flights. On the flipside, you’d need to have family only flights etc…just doesn’t make sense.

$400 on quality noise cancelling headphones, plus the earplugs, and you won’t hear a peep. That’s a far more realistic solution that waiting for airlines to create special flights for people with sensitive hearing.

Having done a couple of flights with my toddlers I totally sympathise with people who don’t want to hear kids….I don’t even want to hear them, even mine!

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Coil

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#2166053 23-Jan-2019 10:27

MileHighKiwi:

How do you deal with the noise of the engines? Or do you fly by hot air balloon?

It’s probably not commercially viable to offer adults only flights. On the flipside, you’d need to have family only flights etc…just doesn’t make sense.

$400 on quality noise cancelling headphones, plus the earplugs, and you won’t hear a peep. That’s a far more realistic solution that waiting for airlines to create special flights for people with sensitive hearing.

Having done a couple of flights with my toddlers I totally sympathise with people who don’t want to hear kids….I don’t even want to hear them, even mine!

A general noise floor of say an engine or jet turbine doesn't affect me, the body adapts to it, it is irregular high pitched noises. I can be around race cars and so fourth all day, its just if you limiter bash a super bike behind me without me expecting.

There is also an adults only flight in service already.
It's called Spring Break Fiji, They charter a plane for the trip and eveyrone is an adult and you can only join if youa re one.

amiga500

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#2166423 23-Jan-2019 18:17

My worst flight for baby noise was Auckland to Napier in the days when Air NZ flew B737s to many of the regional airports including Napier. I had just got off a long haul flight to Auckland & then had a very short flight maybe 30 minutes to Napier. Anyway, the baby cried the entire flight, every minute of it. About 3 seats behind me. Of course babies and toddlers can't deal with changing air pressure and the short flight probably did not help either but I was very very glad to get off that plane!

Sidestep

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#2166610 24-Jan-2019 04:47

We had to fly several times a year with our twins when they were little.
12 Hour flights - usually Vancouver (sometimes LA or SF) to Auckland and back..in economy.. it was great.

They'll board you before the crowd so you can settle in to your seats - the littlies holding their favourite toy and staring bug-eyed at everything.
The rest of the passengers board, push their stuff into the overhead lockers, settle into the seats around you.

Now you whip the toys away from the kids - they're in shock for a second then throw back their heads and begin to howl..
The attendant call thingies at all the nearby seats light up like Christmas Trees.
All the adjoining passengers request to be moved to those couple of spare seats at the back of the plane beside the toilets.

Win! Now you can stretch out over several seats during the flight..

It wasn't really like that at all:
The airline (we always fly AirNZ) was always super helpful.

They'd seat us at the bulkhead (with little fold down cots) when the kids were really small, stopped by all the time to make sure things were OK.
When the kids were old enough (and allowed) to sit on our laps, we always got them a seat anyway.
Flying is completely disorienting for little kids, the endless white noise with loud thumps and bumps, so many people, lights and smells.

Maybe we were just lucky (or maybe we put extra effort in) but our kids barely ever cried on flights.

Of course there was no kicking back and sleeping or watching movies.. there was lots of taking the kids for walks up & down the aisles, entertaining them and making them comfortable.
The Air NZ staff always went out of their way to help (which was probably in their best interest) - and it was always a relief to land at the other end without a meltdown, but I think a lot is up to the parents - to understand how bad a screaming kid can be for other innocent passengers close by - and being ready to make an almighty effort to prevent it happening.

Rikkitic

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#2166728 24-Jan-2019 10:09

I don't know if this is true or just a perception, and I don't want to kick a hornet's nest, but my experience is that Anglo kids seem to be the worst for this. I can't recall any issues with Asian children or those from other cultures. On my last flight from Australia, on a South American airline, I watched with dread as a couple with an infant settled in right behind me. The child only stirred a couple of times on the flight, and as soon as it did, the father did something that immediately settled it down again. There were also other small children on that flight, and not a peep from any of them. I always try to take airlines from other parts of the world if I can.

Plesse igmore amd axxept applogies in adbance fir anu typos

Coil

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#2166778 24-Jan-2019 10:50

Rikkitic:

I don't know if this is true or just a perception, and I don't want to kick a hornet's nest, but my experience is that Anglo kids seem to be the worst for this. I can't recall any issues with Asian children or those from other cultures. On my last flight from Australia, on a South American airline, I watched with dread as a couple with an infant settled in right behind me. The child only stirred a couple of times on the flight, and as soon as it did, the father did something that immediately settled it down again. There were also other small children on that flight, and not a peep from any of them. I always try to take airlines from other parts of the world if I can.

I don't want to kick a hornets nest, but have you seen how Anglo kids get away with what ever they want vs pretty much any other family?

ResponseMediaNZ

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#2166798 24-Jan-2019 11:15

Sidestep:

We had to fly several times a year with our twins when they were little.
12 Hour flights - usually Vancouver (sometimes LA or SF) to Auckland and back..in economy.. it was great.

They'll board you before the crowd so you can settle in to your seats - the littlies holding their favourite toy and staring bug-eyed at everything.
The rest of the passengers board, push their stuff into the overhead lockers, settle into the seats around you.

Now you whip the toys away from the kids - they're in shock for a second then throw back their heads and begin to howl..
The attendant call thingies at all the nearby seats light up like Christmas Trees.
All the adjoining passengers request to be moved to those couple of spare seats at the back of the plane beside the toilets.

Win! Now you can stretch out over several seats during the flight..

It wasn't really like that at all:
The airline (we always fly AirNZ) was always super helpful.

They'd seat us at the bulkhead (with little fold down cots) when the kids were really small, stopped by all the time to make sure things were OK.
When the kids were old enough (and allowed) to sit on our laps, we always got them a seat anyway.
Flying is completely disorienting for little kids, the endless white noise with loud thumps and bumps, so many people, lights and smells.

Maybe we were just lucky (or maybe we put extra effort in) but our kids barely ever cried on flights.

Of course there was no kicking back and sleeping or watching movies.. there was lots of taking the kids for walks up & down the aisles, entertaining them and making them comfortable.
The Air NZ staff always went out of their way to help (which was probably in their best interest) - and it was always a relief to land at the other end without a meltdown, but I think a lot is up to the parents - to understand how bad a screaming kid can be for other innocent passengers close by - and being ready to make an almighty effort to prevent it happening.

Yup both Air NZ and Jet Star have always been great with my kids flying up and down the country.

I do agree that it is very much up to the parents, there is a lot of us with kids that fly regularly so flying doesn't phase me, compared to someone who themselves is worked up and then work the kids up.

I have seen many parents also not prepared before a flight too. they know its a 2-hour flight but don't bring snacks or things for the kids to do while up in the air.

Not being a grumpy passenger goes a long way too! have some respect not just instantly judging us for having to fly with kids.

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