Woman Booted From Flight For Refusing To Sit Next To Baby

D
passenger plane cabin with a flight attendant in the aisle
Unsplash | Kenny Eliason

Flying — the act of getting on a plane and using it to get to a new destination — can be fraught territory. Add a baby into the mix and things can get even more stressful.

A TikToker shared a video showing a dramatic meltdown on board a commercial flight. One passenger had evidently had enough with flying and babies, and refused to sit next to an infant.

That's when it really got good.

No one really wants to sit next to a baby.

A mother and a baby sitting in plane seats
Unsplash | Paul Hanaoka

While it'll quickly become apparent that the passenger in question overreacted, let's not call her a Karen.

No one, I repeat no one, is excited when they find out they'll be sitting next to a baby for an hours-long trip.

The passenger found herself in a predicament.

Still from a TikTok video showing a woman getting kicked off a flight for refusing to sit next to a baby
TikTok | @lockedinout

In a TikTok video posted by a user called @lockedinout, a passenger on a commercial flight can be seen and heard loudly complaining about her seating assignment, which placed her next to a baby.

She's offered different options.

Still from a TikTok video showing a woman getting kicked off a flight for refusing to sit next to a baby
TikTok | @lockedinout

The woman was reassured that the baby wouldn't be crying the whole flight and that things would soon calm down. Alternatively, the flight attendant tells her that she can take the next flight if she'd prefer.

The woman then pulls an admittedly Karen move.

Still from a TikTok video showing a woman getting kicked off a flight for refusing to sit next to a baby
TikTok | @lockedinout

Since you can't really ask to see the manager on an airplane, the next best option is to ask for the flight attendant's name. That's exactly what the woman does, and the flight attendant tells her that her name is Tabitha.

Tabitha's job is threatened.

Still from a TikTok video showing a woman getting kicked off a flight for refusing to sit next to a baby
TikTok | @lockedinout

While it's easy to understand the passenger's frustration, threatening the flight attendant's job is a total Karen move, and quite unnecessary. The woman was likely just blowing off steam when she said that Tabitha "may not have a job" soon. But she didn't realize that this would be the final straw for Tabitha.

Fun fact: flight attendants can kick you off the plane.

...
TikTok | @lockedinout

In response to the passenger threatening her job, Tabitha immediately says that the woman will have to get off the plane. You can kind of see in this still that she knows she's messed up badly.

The passenger changes her tune quickly.

Still from a TikTok video showing a woman getting kicked off a flight for refusing to sit next to a baby
TikTok | @lockedinout

Because missing a flight — particularly when it's due to your own lousy attitude — is a major hassle, the woman backs right down. She apologizes, blaming the incident on stress, but it was too late at this point. Tabitha had spoken, and Tabitha said she had to leave.

Commenters weren't sympathetic.

Comments on a TikTok video showing a woman getting kicked off a flight for refusing to sit next to a baby
TikTok | @lockedinout

While I kind of feel bad for the woman's initial situation (being seated next to a baby), she made things worse with her attitude. Viewers gleefully tore her to shreds in the comments section, saying that the only crying baby on the flight was the woman herself, which is a fair point.

The video claims that she lost her job as a result.

Still from a TikTok video showing a woman getting kicked off a flight for refusing to sit next to a baby
TikTok | @lockedinout

The claim that the passenger lost her job at the New York State Council on the Arts should be taken with a grain of salt, as there isn't really any proof given. Additionally, no one has confirmed this claim.

It's a great example of 'mess around and find out.'

Check out the whole video above — the drama plays out in just 35 seconds — and then let us know what you think. How would you have handled this if you were the passenger? What about if you were the flight attendant? Be sure to share your thoughts in the comments.