Behaviour on aeroplanes

[Stuart C 12]

Just back from a fantastic Christmas/New Year on Azura, flying to New Orleans, sailing over to Florida and then down into the Caribbean ...... brilliant all the way.  Now, the bad bit: on the plane flying back from Barbados I was sat behind the family from Hell.  The child, around seven years old, had Tourettes, or something similar: his language and behaviour were dreadful for the first part of the flight but then the medication he had been given by his mother put him to sleep for around six hours.  The last two hours, once he woke up, were equally embarrassing for all those seated around him except, strangely, his parents.  On landing he physically attacked his mother, yet the father sat and did nothing.  He was pushing the seat back into the gentleman behind him, then he began to tear up one of the in-flight magazines and threw paper over the seat.  Showing remarkable restraint, the gentleman sat behind him gave the papers back to the child's mother and told them to hang on to their own rubbish.  It being a Christmas and New Year cruise there were many young families sat within earshot of this child, including one girl sat directly in front of him, who was around ten years old.   Surely there must be some way of shielding other families, particularly those with children, from behaviour like this?  It is something I have never witnessed on a plane before, but it isn't something I would want to see or hear again.  Is it me ....???

[Furby 441]

Sensitive subject, should the child not be allowed to fly due to his disability/medical condition? As you stated he was given medication so I assume it was not simply bad manners.

[EMALIZ07 35]

Its you, definitely you. Anyone with any form of disability on an 8 hour fight would obviously find the journey stressful. I feel for the poor child and his family not narrow minded folk like you!

[HLM 519]

2 hours ago, Stuart C said:

Just back from a fantastic Christmas/New Year on Azura, flying to New Orleans, sailing over to Florida and then down into the Caribbean ...... brilliant all the way.  Now, the bad bit: on the plane flying back from Barbados I was sat behind the family from Hell.  The child, around seven years old, had Tourettes, or something similar: his language and behaviour were dreadful for the first part of the flight but then the medication he had been given by his mother put him to sleep for around six hours.  The last two hours, once he woke up, were equally embarrassing for all those seated around him except, strangely, his parents.  On landing he physically attacked his mother, yet the father sat and did nothing.  He was pushing the seat back into the gentleman behind him, then he began to tear up one of the in-flight magazines and threw paper over the seat.  Showing remarkable restraint, the gentleman sat behind him gave the papers back to the child's mother and told them to hang on to their own rubbish.  It being a Christmas and New Year cruise there were many young families sat within earshot of this child, including one girl sat directly in front of him, who was around ten years old.   Surely there must be some way of shielding other families, particularly those with children, from behaviour like this?  It is something I have never witnessed on a plane before, but it isn't something I would want to see or hear again.  Is it me ....???

Obviously not knowing the child's condition it's hard to make a reasonable comment, however the child could be autistic or ADHD and if this is the case it's very difficult situation to deal with.

I understand that on a long haul flight it could be annoying, but what should parents in this situation do, lock the child up? Of course not, I actually take my hat off to them for not letting society dictate to them, I congratulate them for having the guts to take the child away in this situation.

I hope you don't find yourself in a similar situation in the future.

HLM.

[Davybe 529]

My Grandson suffers with Autism/ADHD  and can get really noisy  at times ,and can be hard to control if the mood takes him.

So I do have some sympathy with the parents ,but do wonder why they took him on a long flight knowing how he could behave? Were they hoping for a miracle to happen and his behavour change. 

I did once have a kid who was a seat kicker sat behind me on a flight into Florida, I asked his mum to stop him, I had been traveling for nearly 15hours  ,His mum said"he's just playing " I suggested he played outside??He stopped after I shouted at him ...Davybe