https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Mon, 04 May 2026 22:36:49 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-do-you-do-when-someones-lo-is-kicking-the-back-of-your-airline-seat#post-10126 Sat, 05 Nov 2011 16:19:23 +0000 yourekindapretty 10126@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Last year I was flying back from China (went to see my in-laws) and while getting settled and waiting for the flight to take off (for our 14 hour journey back to nyc) the little boy behind me started banging on my headrest! The individual "tv" sets were stationed right on the back side of our head rests and it was touch screen so the little boy was jabbing at the screen playing one of those free games on the screen. the flight hadnt even taken off yet and i was already annoyed (14 more hours to go!).</p> <p>the first thing i did was turn around to look at the boy and get a guess on his age (if he was a teenager i would have told him directly that i can feel him pounding the screen) but it was a boy probably younger than 5.</p> <p>his dad saw me turn around and look at them so i heard him say something in chinese (which i didnt understand - i'm korean) and the punching stopped. but two minutes later it started again so this time i just turned around - noticebly - and glared at the dad. that didnt do anything. the dirty looks from me and the constant ignoring from them lasted until the flight was in the air and finally the kid fell asleep so all was good in the end.</p> <p>why didnt i just say something? 1. i probably lack some balls and didnt want to get confrontational. 2. i get really nasty really quick (korean hot temper) and i knew i was going to look like a crazy chick on this 14 hour flight that was fully booked. 3. i dont think the parents knew how to speak english so i didnt want it to turn into a beeeetch match btwn me and them ... =( </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-do-you-do-when-someones-lo-is-kicking-the-back-of-your-airline-seat#post-10089 Sat, 05 Nov 2011 14:51:29 +0000 MegWag 10089@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@JBHOPS That is totally appalling. I don't understand people that think their "right" to do whatever they want supersedes other people's rights. It's so selfish!</p> <p>We've been pretty lucky on all our flights back and forth between the US and UK. There are usually little ones, but the parents have seemed prepared and attentive. Maybe they are more prepared and conscientious because it's an international flight. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-do-you-do-when-someones-lo-is-kicking-the-back-of-your-airline-seat#post-10085 Sat, 05 Nov 2011 14:43:34 +0000 looch 10085@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I'd speak first to the purser on the flight privately. If he/she can't or won't do anything, then I would ask the parent if there is any way to address the kicking. </p> <p>I am holding my breath until the time it is my son doing the kicking. For the time being, he will be rear faced in a car seat. I can only imagine what kind of he** is going to break loose when he's old enough to sit without a car seat. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-do-you-do-when-someones-lo-is-kicking-the-back-of-your-airline-seat#post-9687 Fri, 04 Nov 2011 15:39:48 +0000 mediagirl 9687@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I usually can give a look and they'll stop or I'll mention something to them if it's on a long flight. In the past I have had problems with parents playing their iPads out loud - the kid doesn't have headphones in - so everyone within 40 seats of them can hear SpongeBob bugging Squidward about whatever he's up to today. In that case, I ask the flight attendant to tell the person they have to use headphones. The rest of us do, why does this person get a pass?</p> <p>Anyways, there was this one flight I went on where it felt like the child behind me was constantly tugging on my chair. I turned around a couple of times and finally noticed the child wasn't tugging on the chair. The Mom was bouncing the child on her tray table...which is attached to my seat. I held my tongue for a while and finally turned around and asked the lady if she could stop bouncing her child on her table. She sneered at me and told me that "it's a free country, I can do whatever the hell I want with my child on an airplane." I was shocked and just managed to stutter a bit before I got out that it was my seat she was bouncing, as well. She said, "I don't care." I was in a window seat, so I clicked the flight attendant button. I asked the flight attendant for help and the lady got in a yelling match with the flight attendant!! Finally the flight attendant got the lady to strap the child into a seat. I think she threatened her with landing the plane early because of her disruptive behavior!</p> <p>OMG. The audacity of some people. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-do-you-do-when-someones-lo-is-kicking-the-back-of-your-airline-seat#post-9669 Fri, 04 Nov 2011 15:13:42 +0000 mrbee 9669@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Ever had someone's LO kick the back of your airplane seat for hours in a row? I've had this happened to me a few times. Usually, a single plaintive glance at the parent involved will handle it. </p> <p>But a few times, I've had to ask the parent to do something... and they haven't! Or they say something and then it happens again, and they refuse to do anything more.</p> <p>I only ever really fly to LA to visit Bee's parents, which is 5-6 hours of having your back kicked. I can sleep through almost anything, but I can't sleep when my airplane seat is being kicked!</p> <p>Have you ever had this happen to you? Any thoughts on how to handle it next time? </p>