Jet Blue Removes Unruly Toddler And Family From Plane: 71% Agree With The Decision
Last month the airline company Jet Blue removed a family of four whose toddler was throwing a tantrum from one of its flights. The family believes the airline overreacted, but Jet Blue defends its decision.
Dr. Colette Vieau and Dr. Mordecai Stolk were traveling with their their two young children when two-year-old Natalie threw a tantrum while on board a Jet Blue flight. The family was flying from Turks and Caicos to Boston on February 18, 2012.
Natalie and her family were seated near the back of the plane near the flight attendants. After the child began throwing a tantrum, the family was told to leave the flight for violating Federal Aviation Administration rules.
Vieau argues that her daughter’s tantrum lasted only five minutes and did not warrant the family’s being removed from the airplane. As she told Matt Lauer while on the Today Show on Monday:
We did our best to comply with FAA regulations. I understand that they have a concern for safety and security of the aircraft. I had it under control so if that was the issue, why kick us off at that point? I don’t quite understand why she’s a risk to the safety and security of the aircraft in general.
The mother of the unruly toddler also does not understand how her young daughter’s tantrum was a safety concern.
Jet Blue issued in a statement that the flight “had customers that did not comply with crew member instructions for a prolonged time period. The captain elected to remove the customers involved for the safety of all customers and crew members on board.”
The family, who were apparently expecting sympathy during their interview on the Today Show, did not get the reaction that they expected. Instead, in a poll of over 60,000 voters, 71 percent of voters sided with the airline in its decision to remove the unruly toddler and her family from the flight.
Do you agree with Jet Blue’s decision to remove a toddler who was throwing a tantrum and her family from one of its airplanes?
