Flying is hardly ever “the friendly skies” for a lone parent with more than one child and a stroller.
Yes, their situation is the fault of neither other passengers nor the flight staff. Regardless, if flight staff approached the situation as one would their neighbor, and not an enforcer of rules, they’d, without complaint, lend a hand helping get the family seated. Why? Helping the lone parent will make it not just easier for them, but faster for everyone.
I agree with you. I’m not saying the mother was frazzled, navigating TSA, check in, etc., with two babies, traveling by herself. Because I wasn’t there. But, it would be understandable if she were frazzled. She is not the enemy. She is a valued customer. She needed some help and maybe some sympathy. On the other hand, the aisle is narrow. It could be she was bumped by the flight attendant while he was trying to help her. She shouldn’t have taken that personally, if it wasn’t anything seriously. But, she’s not the professional. The flight attendant is the professional.
Now comes the real challenge. Shifting gears from helping and being sympathetic to a passenger that is maybe frazzled, to responding to a physical threat from another passenger. There are limits to what can be expected of a flight attendant. So, at this point, I wonder, where were the other members of the flight crew? Well, you could say the members of the flight crew were separated from each other by the passengers navigating the narrow aisle.
This is why passengers with small children, and others needing special assistance, are asked to board the plane prior to the other passengers. Why was the big guy even on the plane prior to this mother and her babies being seated?