From Singapore, it will take you 18 ½ hours to reach Los Angeles. You want nothing but a peaceful and convenient flight because it is indeed a long one. There is nothing wrong with that. You can demand peace, quiet and convenience because in the first place you paid for it. But you were troubled seeing a baby or toddler near you.
Sure babies or toddlers are adorable but wait until the flight takes off. It is in their nature that their attention is short. If they cannot roam around or find something interesting to do in few minutes, expect tantrums and noise. You can either endure the ruckus in the hopes that they will eventually get tired and finally sleep calmly all throughout the journey or demand a change of seat.
You are not being selfish and you do not mean to offend the parents but you deserve a quiet flight. The good news is that there are airline companies who try to resolve this. Passengers now can enjoy a “Quiet Zone” where there is no presence of babies or toddlers. For example, IndiGo, an Indian budget airline, now ban passengers below 12 years old in certain sections of the planes.
There is another good news – other airline companies have considered this system in the likes of Thai Airways, Malaysian airlines, Air Asia and Scoot. These airline companies already introduced this paediatric ban for their passengers. This is to show that comfort and convenience are the core of their services.
To get the pulse of the passengers, LateDeals.co.uk made a survey. According to their findings, 7 in 10 Brits are displeased flying with babies. These Brits are very encouraging of the new prohibition. In fact, 39% of the respondents think that child-free lights are compulsory especially on long-haul flights. Silent spaces during long-haul flights for non-parents will be stress-free.
However not all people are pleased and happy of this move. One camp of parents expressed their dismay for the ‘discrimination’ saying that people who wanted to ban kids are ‘child-haters’ while another camp totally embraced the move saying that it will be easier to deal with kids if other parents or kids are around. If there is a dedicated space for them, free from other passengers, parents will not constantly worry about offending other passengers that way they can relax more.
Would you choose a child-free flight? It is time that you should think about it. At the end of the day, whatever camp you are in, it is about your choice.