An Air Canada unaccompanied minor reports that they were pushed and cussed at by another passenger, who demanded their upgraded seat.
The then-13 year old boy would travel to see family a few hundred miles away every few months, and sometimes they’d go on their own as an unaccompanied minor. They found that when there was an empty premium cabin seat, they’d get upgraded on board by the cabin crew who were looking after them. This isn’t something I’ve seen happen often, but they don’t identify the route where this happened.
After the boy was upgraded once the doors had closed, another passenger got moved up as well. A woman and her husband were traveling with two young children, but since they were on opposite sides of the aisle from each other the flight attendant thought they were traveling alone. The woman insisted that her husband be given an upgrade, also – instead of the unaccompanied minor.
EP tries to steal my plane seat because she NEEDS IT!
by u/winyyboi in entitledparents
FA: Mam, there are two seats available would you like the other one?…
EM: Sure! Can my husband come too?
FA turns around and sees husband.
FA: Oh sorry Mam, there’s not enough room for the both of you.
EM: But WHY? You said there was two seats available.
FA: Yes but one of them has to be taken by the UM.
EM turns around and looks at me.
EM: He’s big enough, he doesn’t need those seats!
FA: And you need them?
EM: YES I DO! Do you not know hard it is to raise not one but two children??
FA: Mam, I do know how hard it is, I have kids of my own.
EM: So then you’ll know why I need those seats more than him!
FA: Mam, we will departing very soon and I need to bring this boy to the front of the plane. Now I need you to cooperate and let me bring this kid to his seat.
Then, reportedly, the woman became abusive – cussing at the crewmember and declaring “MY LIFE IS HARD ENOUGH AS IT IS NOW AND I DON’T NEED YOUR INSULTS ON TOP OF THAT! WE DESERVE THOSE SEATS! GIVE THEM TO US NOW!!!”
When the unaccompanied minor moves up to the front, the woman “pushes [him] back down on my seat” and cusses at him. The young passenger says, she “starts pulling on my shirt to bring me back, that’s when I grabbed her arm and threw off of me.” She yells and demands the seat again. And she was kicked off of the flight, delaying the flight.
The reported event happened in the past, and memories have a way of accentuating drama, but they say Canadians are friendly…
Don’t want to be rude, as English is my second language i’m genuinely curious while still learning:
‘The then-13 year old boy’, for the whole story it seems clearly that the story is about one UM, then why: ‘An Air Canada unaccompanied minor reports that they were pushed and cussed at by another passenger’ instead of he.
‘and sometimes they’d go on their own as an unaccompanied minor’ instead of sometimes he’d go.
@ Gary
I also am genuinely curious about the use of “they”. Do we know this boy wishes to be referred to as “they” or is this now the default? I would not like to be “they” as that is not my choice of pronoun.
I find it amazing that so many stories of ‘abuse’ are coming to the surface these days, incidents that sometimes happened years ago.
I’m also curious about using a plural pronoun to describe a singular noun. “The boy was on the plane, and their meal was delicious.” Is this some gender-neutral fad, or just bad editing?
Air Canada does not normally provide complimentary upgrade regardless of destination, flight length, passenger status, or load factor. You have to use eUpgrade provided as part of elite status, or purchase the brutally expensive Latitude flight pass.
Of course it’s possible some gate agents or cabin crews would upgrade outside of policy, but for them to upgrade 2 passengers on 1 flight would be extremely unlikely. I have doubts about this story, sounds like rage bait.
I am a professional editor and, like the three previous comments, wonder about your using a plural term when referring to a single person; in this case, a young man.
This is from a Reddit post, the writer indicated the lady was holding a baby in the aisle seat and her husband and was holding another child on the opposite aisle seat.
He didn’t say but I visualized a 2-2 layout where he was in the window.
He also indicated that the upgrade to first had been received on other flights as an unaccompanied minor.
I also don’t recall him stating this was an Air Canada flight, although if I was ever stuck in economy on AC I’d be fighting mad too. In my experience AC is okay, like a C- when things go right but simply abysmal if any IrrOps
They abusive person should be downgraded to the last row so crew members can keep an eye on them.
@Chuck Lowenstein
You’re clearly not a professional if you think they can only be used for plural.
Haldami: sorry , to me, “they”, “them”, “their”is always plural, UNLESS:
1. The gender of the person is unknown (it was known here); or
2. The person wants to use those.
Some say the problem is that English doesn’t have a third person singular non gender pronoun. English does: “it”. The problem is we don’t like to use that for people as it implies inanimate object.
@Chuck Lowenstein Thank you, and thanks to many of the previous commenters that made clear this wasn’t something I didn’t understand.
If this some gender-neutral fad as the other comment expressed, i’m glad that this stuff hasn’t reached the Spanish language, if you write/speak in plural something that has to be in singular, you will be immediately corrected (if you are a very rookie non native speaker, as it will stand horribly out of place) or labeled as having a mental issue (imagining, having hallucinations that there’s more ppl) or something along those lines.
The last part also will apply If the person is narrating/writing in first person and refers himself as ‘we’, that would trigger a multiple personality disorder alarm immediately.
Who told you canadians are friendly?
They are the biggest most selfish assholes in the planet
It is so confusing. Talking about a boy then afout they. Who is the they in this story?
@Gary When did unconfirmed Reddit postings make the list to be republished?
Are you changing your strategy for this blog and becoming the National Inquirer of Aviation?!
@Gary “The reported event happened in the past, and memories have a way of accentuating drama, but they say Canadians are friendly…” Really????
Gary, you can do better!
Maam, I will see you next Tuesday, because you’re not flyin’ today…
Air Canada flight doesn’t mean they’re Canadian….they could’ve been a family from any nationality.
@gary
Appreciate your normally useful work but the clickbait stories like this are getting old. So there are rude people flying on planes. Thanks, got it.
Doug might want to watch his back. Calling out all Canadians if one is an A**** does not cut it. We know of some less than admirable Americans, but we don’t call all of you out over it. So, chill… We may all yet be friends, at least you can try!