It’s pretty much a rule of thumb that if you’re travelling on a plane there will, at some point, be a crying baby. It’s come to be expected and if anyone complains about the noise as the cabin pressure weighs down on the infant’s fragile ears then they are, notoriously, unreasonable.
But one traveller, Morgan Lee, has gone viral on TikTok for simply suggesting an alternative. ‘Why isn’t there such a thing as adult only flights??’ she asked as a baby screamed in the background of her video. ‘I would pay SO much money’.
Morgan’s suggestion was met with much hostility. ‘This was harder for the mum than it was for you,’ wrote one user. ‘Oh no, I had to share a public space with the public,’ added another. ‘Guys you don’t get it, her comfort is more important than anyone else’s,’ said a third.
In response to the backlash, Morgan then detailed that she’d been wearing noise cancelling headphones for the three-hour flight, that the child was well over five years old and that they sat directly behind her, kicking her chair, while their mother was asleep.
But regardless of the details of Morgan’s specific situation, many other travellers echoed her core desire for an adult only option from airlines. ‘Why are people hating on this video?’ one person questioned. ‘Every sane person wants this.’
In fact, one third of British people have said they would pay more for a child free flight, according to TripAdvisor. And it isn’t only the childless who are championing Morgan’s idea: ‘As a mom, I want an adult only flight too,’ read one comment, while another added: ‘As a parent, I 100% agree. I would love to be on an airplane and not get dirty looks or grunts from angry people that don’t like kids [or] noise.’
Whether parents, carers, nursery school workers or singletons, across TikTok and Twitter hoards of people rushed to express their endorsement of adult only flights. ‘This is genius,’ they said. ‘Certain times is enough. A bit like 8am shopping was reserved for NHS and pensioners. I'd be happy to travel at 2:00am.’ Could this be the future of happy travel?