Posted on 01/23/2007 10:25:48 AM PST by presidio9
AirTran Airways on Tuesday defended its decision to remove a Massachusetts couple from a flight after their crying 3-year-old daughter refused to take her seat before takeoff.
AirTran officials said they followed Federal Aviation Administration rules that children age 2 and above must have their own seat and be wearing a seat belt upon takeoff.
"The flight was already delayed 15 minutes and in fairness to the other 112 passengers on the plane, the crew made an operational decision to remove the family," AirTran spokeswoman Judy Graham-Weaver said.
Julie and Gerry Kulesza, who were headed home to Boston on Jan. 14 from Fort Myers, said they just needed a little more time to calm their daughter, Elly.
"We weren't given an opportunity to hold her, console her or anything," Julie Kulesza said in a telephone interview Tuesday.
The Kuleszas said they told a flight attendant they had paid for their daughter's seat, but asked whether she could sit in her mother's lap. The request was denied.
She was removed because "she was climbing under the seat and hitting the parents and wouldn't get in her seat" during boarding, Graham-Weaver said.
The Orlando-based carrier reimbursed the family $595.80, the cost of the three tickets, and the Kuleszas flew home the next day.
They also were offered three roundtrip tickets anywhere the airline flies, Graham-Weaver said.
The father said his family would never fly AirTran again.
The couple looked annoyed at him, because he told them he does the one thing they didn't have the brains and guts to do.
Never threaten the kid with anything you aren't willing to do.
Never fail to do what you've promised.
Yelling and screaming is counter-productive ... it shows that you're out of control.
Foul language is even more counter-productive ... little kids learn to use the words even though they haven't a clue what the words mean.
Been there done that. Never had a bit of trouble with any of my kids. So it's either genetics or parenting.
I'd agree, had I not been blessed with an extremely strong-willed daughter of my own. To have forced her into a seat, would have required us to risk physical injury.... AND it wouldn't have solved the problem of her screaming.
She's become a pretty great young lady now, though -- and now that she's gained a good measure of control over it, her strong will is going to be a definite asset.
Sometimes a kid just gets too worked up for anything to get them under control ... and then you have to be able to leave them alone someplace, which clearly was not an option on the airplane.
As noted above, I think the airline was right in removing the family from the plane. Given the airline's subsequent offers, the family should have accepted it with good grace.
But how would they breathe? ;-)
Amen!
...you missed my point....the point is...some parents do not have control over their kids...
"Never threaten the kid with anything you aren't willing to do."
"Never fail to do what you've promised."
You, sir, are a good parent. Because those two sentences, in a nutshell, are the keys to effective parenting. Mean what you say and carry through. Works every time it's tried.
As the father of a 4 year old and a two year old, I can say first hand my wife and I have made a concerted effort to avoid just these kinds of situations. We don't put our kids on long flights or any flights frankly. I dont want to be responsible for a tantrum at the gate or at 40k feet. Its not fair to the kid or the other passengers.
Same holds true for most restaurants and movie theaters.
Wait till they are 5 and older, you'll find they are pretty much good to go.
It's both. And also the day of the week, and tomorrow's weather forecast. And whether they've slept well, or are ill, or have an ear infection. Or if their schedule's all messed up.
Fact is, some kids are easier than others, and some are just downright difficult.
And what exactly would that be? A good spanking in public? These days that could get you a visit from Social Services or worse, jail time.
--Based upon my own experience with his random, uncontrollable bouts of crying in public places, I think the airline should be ashamed of itself and deserves every bit of the criticism that will be forthcoming on the web.--
Spoiled kid, huh?
No doubt true, but I don't recall any of the "parents" who are criticizing the Airline writing and asking me permission to download a kid, so why should I be subject the the annoyance or disruption (of a possible missed connection) because they can't control their offspring?
The pets in cages don't have a problem.....a little chilly and cramped, but hey it's not my problem!.......
I have kids and I can handle them. If you can't handle them you have no right to disrupt others. The airlind did wht they should have, except they should have never given the so called parents free tickets.
Nope...teething.
That's right..I forgot about pets.
I never suggested you should.
I just distrust most comments made by parents about how well they controlled their own kids. There are too many factors that govern a little kid's behavior on any given day, of which parenting is only one (albeit very important) part.
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