Fight Onboard My Airplane: Who Was Right? You Decide!

I flew to Toronto yesterday morning on what I thought would be a normal run of the mill flight…however things turned-out to be a bit different than I expected.

First my flight was delayed 2.5 hours (no surprise with American Airlines!) due to the fact that the plane was missing a part. The part had to be FLOWN IN, yes – they actually flew the part in and we had to wait two hours for the flight to arrive with the part and then fifteen minutes to install it.

When we got on the plane the captain indicated this was a brand-new airplane and we were some of the first to fly in it. If that’s the case…why the heck is it missing a part – okay I digress.

About two hours into the flight suddenly the sound of a Children’s television show started blaring through the airplane. Passengers started to look around – it wasn’t coming from the TV’s…what was going on?

The sound was so loud that people began to get-up and look for the source of the noise. I saw a few people wake-up from their sleep dazed and confused trying to figure-out what was happening.

It turns out that a family (Mom, Dad and two young kids) were watching a movie on a portable DVD player. The person sitting in front of them turned around and asked if they could turn the volume down a bit since it was obviously disturbing the plane.

At almost the same time the Stewardess came-by as well since a number of other passengers had complained. The Mom then stands-up and starts screaming at the Stewardess and the passenger.

“If my kids don’t watch a movie they will cry – so which would you rather have, a crying baby or a movie?”

The Stewardess responded by saying – “I notice you have headphones over there…do you think maybe they could put those on?”

The Mom responded by saying, “My kids don’t like to wear headphones so it’s this or crying – you pick!”

Now the passenger chimes in again to which the Mom says, “You Jerk – we switched seats when I got on the plane – I want my seat back – go find another seat.”

The man stood dumbfounded for a second and then picked-up his stuff and began searching for a new seat. He had originally given her his seat so the family could sit together.

I’m not a parent and don’t want to begin to say that I know what it’s like to have kids on an airplane so I can definitely see both sides of this story.

So that’s why I thought I’d reach-out to you – my readers and get your opinion! Should the Mom have tried to get her child to wear headphones or stop crying another way or is it her right to play a movie as loudly as she wants if it helps her kids stop crying?

You be the judge!

Morgan Linton

Morgan Linton