You make a good point that the mother's reaction probably helped escalate the situation. The "I'm not going to drug my child so you can have a pleasant flight" comment did not help. It is very possible that had the mother reacted differently the situation would have been resolved without the removal from the plane. However, (and if and when you have children you will understand this) when someone gets in your face and says "you need to shut your baby up" the reaction is seldom reasoned, rational, and cheery. I guarantee you if a flight attendant said those words to my wife regarding either of our children as an infant or toddler, we would have had to make alternative flight arrangements too.
This flight attendant lacks a professional manner. She isn’t there to trade barbs and snide remarks with her company’s paying customers. If I spoke this way to any of my firm’s clients who might be annoying me, I would most likely find myself looking for another job.
“However, (and if and when you have children you will understand this) when someone gets in your face and says “you need to shut your baby up” the reaction is seldom reasoned, rational, and cheery”
Frankly I think that’s the basis for the reaction on this thread. Unfortunately I’ve seen many instances where the parents wouldn’t have done anything if someone didn’t say something to them, with their children screaming, kicking, jumping, my personal favorite of trying to climb over the seat to the row behind. I’ve been flying every two weeks for the past two years. Many parents seem to think the plane is a built in day care. The kids can do whatever they want while mom or dad sleep or read. The flight attendant’s reaction seems over the top, but as was shown with the sippy cup incident, usually these stories are skewed.
If I had waited 11 hours, I probably would have said something to the effect of not caring if the attendant had a pleasant flight either! lol
I was specifically told not to use Benadryl to sedate my child on flights. Because of possible side effects without being able to get medical attention.