I was flying in business class with my baby when a passenger ‘verbally abused’ me – am I in the wrong?
Charlotte Heinrich was flying business class with her baby boy when a disgruntled passenger confronted her about his crying.
The mum-of-two was travelling to Singapore with her one-year-old son Freddie in her lap when he began feeling a ‘little bit unsettled’ during the flight.
‘Freddie was crying a bit, and this lady took it upon herself to scream across the cabin at the top of her lungs, “Shut up!”,’ Charlotte explained in an Instagram video.
‘Then that same lady stood up and stared me down and I said, “Is everything OK?” And she said, “No, your baby has been crying and I’m in business class”.’
‘I said to this lady, “Well you obviously haven’t had kids, otherwise you would understand what it’s like to have a child, and unfortunately this comes with having a baby,” and she said, “I have five”.’
The jewellery designer, who splits her time between Singapore and Australia, claimed the passenger then ‘verbally abused’ her for travelling in business class with a baby.
‘She proceeded to say that because she had paid for her business class tickets, a mother and a child should never be in business class, they should always be in economy,’ Charlotte said.
‘Freddie is one, so he travels on my lap. We quite literally come as a package deal.’
Charlotte Heinrich (pictured) was flying business class with her baby boy when a disgruntled passenger confronted her about his crying
The mum-of-two was travelling to Singapore with her one-year-old son Freddie in her lap when he began feeling a ‘little bit unsettled’ during the flight
Stunned by the response, Charlotte said she was shocked the woman believed she didn’t ‘deserve’ to fly business class with her baby.
‘I completely understand that a crying baby can be frustrating. I’ve been that passenger too. But children are part of life, and parents are usually far more stressed and anxious about disturbing the cabin than anyone else,’ she said.
Charlotte said she didn’t understand why the woman wasn’t more understanding of her situation given she’d had five kids of her own.
‘Had she not in her past life travelled with one of those kids and experienced a crying baby before?’ the mum asked.
‘Screaming at the top of her lungs across the cabin at me… A mother with a crying child already feels hypersensitive, anxious, upset, you name it, they’re feeling it.
‘I guarantee every mother with a crying child is trying everything she can to soothe their child.’
Charlotte said it wasn’t the first time she’d felt unwelcome when travelling with a child.
‘If Mimi (daughter) is running up and down the aisles or disrupting some passenger, I guarantee other mothers and families have been through exactly the same feeling of being unwelcome,’ she said.
The jewellery designer, who splits her time between Singapore and Australia, claimed the passenger then ‘verbally abused’ her for travelling in business class with a baby
The encounter with the angry passenger left her questioning whether mothers are ‘allowed’ to fly business class with their babies
The encounter left her questioning whether mothers with babies are truly welcome in business class.
‘Should mothers with babies have to fly economy, or are they just as entitled to fly business class as everyone else?’ she said.
Her video has been viewed more than 135,000 times, with many defending Charlotte’s decision to fly with her baby in business class.
‘From a travel agent who is constantly on a plane (and who used to be long-haul crew) I have had more issues with loudly snoring men in business class than I ever have with babies, can we get rid of them first,’ one said, laughing.
‘Instead of yelling she should have poured you a champagne and told you you’re doing a good job,’ another suggested.
‘She sounds miserable – I always say you’re entitled to a child free life, not a child free world,’ one shared.
‘I’m a flight attendant (internationally). If people don’t like the fact that a baby is crying in the business cabin, pay for a private jet then Karen – with no children,’ another said.
Charlotte (pictured) is the younger sister of former Bachelor star Anna Heinrich (left)
However, not everyone agreed, with one saying: ‘So devil’s advocate here, I’m not saying you can’t fly business or first class with children, however people who pay for business/first class pay for the luxury and to be comfortable.
‘If a baby is being disruptive then it’s going to make for a disruptive and uncomfortable flight. I completely get it that some kids on planes are not the perfect angels you wish them to be,’ the woman explained.
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Should parents with babies be made to feel unwelcome in business class or are they equally entitled?
‘Whilst this lady really needs to work on her communication and the way she handled herself and the situation, I can also see her point.
‘You deserve to fly business but I also feel that you need to be mindful of everyone else that is also flying business class.’
Another added: ‘Some people can’t afford business class until retirement… So when I’m done raising my kids and choose to fly business, I wouldn’t want other people’s kids ruining my flight.’
