Mary2Go

Maybe our perspective here is colored by the fact that most of us fly frequently and have had our fill of rude passengers. On one of my last flights an older woman I assumed was the grandmother let her toddler wander up and down the aisles, including during the approach to landing, causing the FA to get out of her jumper seat and grab the kid and give her back to Granny!

TTess

We were having our car washed while we watched this on the big plasma of the car washers. The family was pure trailer trash. I said that as I watched it and my teenager shushed me in embarrassment. I kept envisioning some ambulance chaser headed their way for a quick and easy lawsuit/settlement. Disgusting.

Anonymous

That's one reason the airline was so quick to offer their money back; accepting it probably undermines their case for any other settlement.

RoseH

I am so tired of people that CAN NOT watch their own kids, and make it everyones elses problem!!1 I have been on flights, in rest., or @ the movies etc., where the parents did not do a darn thing to control their kids.. my hats off to the airline,, and I agree that family looked like they had a lot of other problems... plus how cuold you travel with No $$$ , give me a break! It makes no sense @ all, and i have worked with Autistic kids of all ages, and they have sat fine.. but you have to bring things that will help them...
We just may well be reading that this family won a huge law suit for tons of $$$$$ , I sure hope not though!!!!!!!!!!!!
Should prove interesting to see what does happen?

tracys2cents

If the children were physically handicapped, the airline and its employees would have to go out of their way to accomodate them because it's the law.

For mentally handicapped, seems the way we deal with it is rude comments on Fodors? Some of you should really be ashamed.

The parenting skills in this family may be lacking....but from a few of the comments made on this thread, there are people here with much worse ideas of how a decent parent behaves.
And if you're an airline employee, "the riff raff should just stay home" is not a good state of mind to be in as you welcome people aboard. Maybe if the Southwest employees weren't so concerned with telling jokes and singing songs, they could have nipped this behavior in the first 5 minutes of the flight.

coldkelly

Well, the story indicated that "children" -plural- were out of control. So that includes more than just the son with autism. No matter what the case, I cannot believe that 2 adults of average intelligence could not control 4 kids during that flight. I suspect a video would show nearly no effort by the 2 women to do much of anything about the kids' behavior. Too bad that there isn't one. Seems to me like another case of people not taking personal responsibility, then claiming to be the victims. I find it very annoying.

NeoPatrick

OK, I for one am willing to listen. How would they have nipped the behavior in the first 5 minutes of the flight? It's been made very clear that the parents were totally unable to control the little monsters for the entire flight. Do you have an idea that would have worked coming from the employees? Rope and duct tape perhaps?

There is a point at which too much is too much. This was clearly a case of that. I applaud the airline. Regarding rude comments about the "mentally handicapped" -- please. It wasn't a case of the one autistic child causing disturbances. In fact it sounds like that was NOT an issue.

I wonder if those who think the little brats had every right to ruin everyone else's flight while the parents were totally unable (or unwilling) to control them would feel the same if they were the one being surrounded by them.

cd

I also applaud the airline. It is not the job of the staff to "nip bad behavior" in children. I'm just sorry Southwest returned their money.

mcnyc

Good for Southwest! I wonder if this will be on Airlines?

missypie

First, let me say that the video is priceless and could be an SNL sketch.

Second, yes, it would be quite difficult for a mom to fly with 4 little kids..LOTS of people choose to wait to take vacations involving airplanes until the kids are a lot older.

polaris

Does anyone remember the days of dressing up, even wearing white gloves and being pampered by the airlines with full food service served on linen cloths? No ugly tank tops shorts and flip flops worn by some sweaty person squeezed in the narrow seat next to you!

I have a friend who has been flying to the Far East for years and she said the passengers have really changed. She says among other things, lack of respect and a feeling of entitlement are common. Snapping their fingers and pointing at her for a drink etc. is common, among other rude behavior. She graduated with honors, speaks several languages and is an expert on China.

NeoPatrick

polaris, that makes me laugh. I always remember in the late 1960's when my partner and I flew from Ohio to Ft. Lauderdale to spend a few days with his parents there. We arrived wearing dress slacks, long sleeve dress shirts, and nice shoes. But we did not have ties or sport coats. We both got the scolding of our lives for dressing like "riff raff" when flying!

missypie

When these situations happen, I can never figure out why the parents aren't apologizing up and down. I'm sure every parent has had a child who has misbehaved in public. Yes, I've been the one with the baby who screamed when the plane was descending. And I've said, "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry" to everyone around me.

Probably most people are like me, so they don't call the media when they have to live with the consequences of their kids' bad behavior.

Anonymous

We do kind-of wonder who called the media on this one. I doubt it was the banished adults, who just don't seem to have their act together enough to figure out who to call in a strange city. That leaves the crew, other passengers, or anybody at the airport who witnessed them being greeted by the local constabulary.

TC

How did the family get to Detroit in the first place? The mother says this was the first time the children had ever flown. Did they walk to Detroit?

Hurray for SW!

5alive

I suspect the news station heard on a police skanner that there was a call to the airport and went on their own.

dmlove

Seems to me like another case of people not taking personal responsibility, then claiming to be the victims. I find it very annoying.

Ditto. However, I must say I also agree that the very vocal "name-calling" in this thread is a little distasteful.

BTW, I was once on a flight and a kid in the last row (across the aisle and one row back of me) continuously kicked the seat of the person in front of him. That person nicely (several times) asked the mother to put an end to that problem, but it continued. He then raised his voice to her, and her response was along the lines of - he's a kid, I'm not the one kicking your seat, what am I supposed to do? Hey, you are the mother ---- TAKE SOME RESPONSIBILITY!!

candygrrl

Well, at first I too cringed at some of the remarks on the board. But after lurking on some others, I find the comments on this one to be pretty kind and intelligent.

I think we've just all had enough of unruly kids. And especially since flying is already a somewhat traumatic experience these days, we don't need some incident like this making it dangerous.

I'm thinking we're all just feeling justifiable anger and resentment.

I say adults need to take back the world!

vjpblovesitaly

An amusing article from MSNBC this morning.

"When being rude doesn't pay
While it is true that kindness can be contagious, it seems that in the air, rudeness has become an epidemic. Here are 10 times when being impolite didn't pay for airline passengers."
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25588076/

321go

Amusing stories vjplovesitaly. I still like my mom's story. She was a stewardess back in the early 50's. In training they told her that as long as she smiled brightly she could say almost anything to a passenger. One day as she was greeting passengers boarding the aircraft she said "Good morning!" to a man who grumbled back, "what's good about it?" With her best big, bright smile she replied, "There could have been two of you."