Toddler tantrum grounds jet

This Is London ^ | 12 March 2003 | James Sturcke

[eyespysomething]

Toddler tantrum grounds jet By James Sturcke, Evening Standard 12 March 2003 Like any two-year-old Marcello Ferrand is prone to the occasional tantrum.

So when an aircraft crew tried to make him wear a seatbelt he panicked and sat under the seat - the kind of scene any parent will recognise.

However, for the staff of a British Airways flight from Milan to Heathrow it demanded immediate action - which resulted in the police being called and Marcello, along with his grandparents, being hauled off the plane.

The airline's ground staff then refused to let the elderly couple and Marcello, who lives in Kensal Rise, travel on a later flight. They then had to pay £300 for tickets with Alitalia to get home.

Marcello's grandmother Mariella DeNatale, 70, said the cabin crew had completely overreacted and had been responsible for scaring the toddler in the first place.

She said: "The police came aboard, checked our passports and then took us to a waiting car. I have flown all over the world and never had an experience like this. I felt like a Third World citizen."

The Airbus A319 with about 100 passengers was further delayed while the family's luggage was removed. It arrived at Heathrow 45 minutes behind schedule. Ms DeNatale, a former fashion editor for Vogue in Italy, added: "We were treated like rubbish. The captain told us he was not prepared to take us to London. It was a very bad experience. I will never buy another ticket with BA."

The scene took place as the aircraft was taxiing to the runway on Sunday morning carrying Ms DeNatale, her husband Peter Van Schalwyk and Marcello.

The couple boarded the 11.45am flight with their grandson, who had been staying at their Milan home. Marcello went to Milan with his mother, Margherita Gardella, 39,

deputy fashion editor of Harpers & Queen, who was attending fashion shows. Ms Gardella then flew to France for Paris Fashion Week, leaving the grandparents to bring Marcello back.

Mr Van Schalwyk, 64, a retired advertising director, said: " Marcello was in the seat between Mariella and myself. We had trouble getting him to put on his seatbelt. Three cabin staff crowded round him. They were quite aggressive. When one appeared with a special child seatbelt, Marcello took fright and hid under the seat. He was scared. He cried a bit but he was not screaming madly or anything. It's not like he was Dennis the Menace taking the plane apart."

Marcello's father, Nick Ferrand, 41, who owns an architect and interior design firm, said: "I was waiting in arrivals at Heathrow for over 90 minutes and no one told me anything. As a dad you fear the worse.

"Of course two-year-olds have tantrums but Marcello doesn't have any more than any child his age. Eventually I was informed they had been removed from the flight. I know airlines have to be careful but throwing an elderly couple and a two-year-old off the flight was ridiculous." A British Airways spokeswoman said: "It is absolutely imperative for all passengers to be wearing a seatbelt during take-off, landing and when the fasten seatbelt light is turned on. This is for their safety.

"The captain was called and reinforced the importance of being strapped in the chair. After speaking with the accompanying adults he made the decision to off-load the family."

[Capt.YankeeMike]

your right, Appy, i know a lot of single women with sons, (I coach little league basketball and baseball) and not only are the boys starved for male discipline, but by the time they are two years old, they are TOTALLY in control of mommy. By 7 or 8, the moms have pretty much given up on ANY form of discipline but begging, and are looking 10 years older than they are, and just look plumb worn out.

No fault divorce and the feminazi movement has castrated 5 million boys, with no father (I am NOT talking just inner city here, but the white-flight suburbs) and convinced women that they can raise boys by themselves. We are all suffering, as most of these boys that i see are future felons in the making.

The Capt.

[mitchbert]

I wonder if these were the same parents I encountered on a flight from Amsterdam to Toronto a few years back. They seemed to believe the front section on the plane (747-400) was they're out-of-control-brat's personal playground.

I applaud BA for this. Personally I think any child who can't behave himself on a plane should be sent as cargo.

[Calpernia]

Whether spanking was legal or illegal is irrelevant here. It is a 2 year old. Pick him up, put him in the chair, buckle him in. Unbelievable! (not you, the lack of parental control)

[FourPeas]

Exactly. It's simply not that hard to overpower a two year old and strap them in a seat. I've done it multiple times with my youngest in his carseat and it has a two-piece puzzle-type buckle. You'd think between five (or was it six) adults someone would have thought of this.

[Black Agnes]

A great time for the age old 'I'll GIVE you something to cry about...'. Later, at home. My mother wouldn't have caused such a scene in the grocery store but she'd have spanked me in the car or at home. Also worked...'Stop crying or we go home and I come back WITHOUT you.' That one worked too! Only have to do it once, maybe twice.

[lawgirl]

Exactly. A swat on the butt, with promises of more to come once the plane sets down, should be all it takes. God knows it would've been for me.

[1rudeboy]

And the airlines wonder why they are going bankrupt. They have got to get their act straight. Non refundable, non transferable tickets, harsh treatment, incompetant employees, and yet they complain when they make no money.

The other passengers probably were cheering.

[dennisw]

I like it!!!

[AppyPappy]

Yup. It's a transition from "He's all boy" to "Everybody picks on him cause he ain't got no daddy" to "There ain't nothing I can do with him" to "They gonna make him a trustee".

[dead]

I always like the rolling of the eyes with the accompanying shrug of the shoulders.

They are in sooo over their heads, in a battle with a child. Pathetic.

[eyespysomething]

Yeah, except it became "the look" which said everything without saying a word, and I would then sit up and shut up

[1rudeboy]

What if you are an Italian who speaks English?

[Night Hides Not]

Your common sense is right on! How difficult can it be to pick up a two-year-old, and buckle him in the seat?

Now that my two oldest kids are teenagers, I'm having a much easier time with them in public. When they start acting up (very rarely), I just warn them that I feel a 'Happy Dance' coming on. That warning hits them with MOAB-like force!

As we all know, being embarrassed by your parents in public is like a death sentence to teenagers. I've never had to do the Happy Dance in public...a couple of in-home demonstrations left an indelible mark on their brains.

Picture this--late-40s, grey hair, 30 lbs overweight, doing a poor impersonation of Bluto trying to cheer up Flounder in Animal House (I had to add a stupid little jig to make it a dance).

Guaranteed to work EVERY time!!!

[eyespysomething]

I've always told my husband how lucky I and the boys (3 of 'em) are to have such a good husband/father. And he is. Men have become a side item to many women, who think they can do it all by themselves. Hell, I would if I had to (death) but thank goodness I don't. And I make sure he knows!

[Calpernia]

When they start acting up (very rarely), I just warn them that I feel a 'Happy Dance' coming on. That warning hits them with MOAB-like force!

That is great (may borrow that one!)

I also noticed that the grandparents had no other suggests on how the airlines should have handled this situation. Did they think the entire flight would be canceled? Or did they expect a reprieve for the child to not wear the seat belt?

[GilesB]

It sounds to me like your husband is a lucky man as well.

Our country needs more wives, mothers and women with your attitude.

[AppyPappy]

I know several single moms raising boys and they are doing a good job because they carry a male attribute: The desire to WIN. Single moms(and wimpy dads) that fail IMHO always try to avoid losing or simply ignore the challenge altogether. Men (usually) desire to win challenges, especially from other males. When my son gets up in my grill, I have to win. I'm just built like that.

If you play to win, you will usually win but if you play to simply not lose, you will usually lose.

[SERE_DOC]

"Gee that's an effective way to get the kid to pipe down and sit in his seat -- NOT."

Don't have kids yet, huh.

[L,TOWM]

Just as well, BL. The newer models are difficult to operate, require a whole new learning curve in figuring how they can be operated properly, and require HUGE cash outlay (mostly) to ensure acceptable performance. They are also usually less capable than our current models; as we have gotten a chance to install some of our preferred performance enhancements over the years.

[Wolfie]

I wish restaurants had the same policy. And movie theatres, grocery stores, etc.