My kids and I were abused by a passenger on a flight

"You're a sh**ty, sh**ty mother with sh**ty, sh**ty kids."

A mum has shared a horrific experience she and her kids had on a recent flight.

Writer Catherine Hufton wrote about what happened, explaining that they were only 20 minutes from landing when a "drunken man" began berating them.

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RELATED: I had to swap from my booked plane seat for a baby

A situation was "brewing"

Hufton explains that her children are two and five, and they are experienced flyers, and "good travellers."

At the time the stranger got stuck in to them, the seat belt sign was on. But just prior to that, there was a brief serious of events that triggered him.

"My two-year-old son, who is naturally more unpredictable than his big brother, threw a small piece of biscuit up into the air. It landed on the floor next to the two teenage girls in front of us who were sat in business class. We were in economy."

After that incident resolved, the main issue evolved:

"Throughout the journey, the couple in front of us were getting louder and louder and I’m almost entirely certain it had something to do with the amount of drink they were served. 

"[I was nervous] because... every time another child on the flight cried, the man would stand up and glare at them aggressively."

The mum-of-two could see that a situation was "brewing."

Image: iStock/Catherine Hufton

RELATED: A parent shamed me for breastfeeding on a plane

"A tirade of abuse"

Hufton admits that upon descent, her toddler threw the flight safety card into the air, and it landed by the teenage girls again. That's when the man decided to speak out.

His "tirade of abuse" included: "God, I hate kids! I hate ‘em. I hate ‘em. Shi**y parents and their f**k*ng shi**y kids."

The family was absolutely shocked.

"I sat there scared and in utterdisbelief. My children started to cry, and my eldest son kept saying that his brother didn’t mean to do it.... my husband told him to stop."

Flight crew finally intervened and apologized for not stepping in sooner.

Hufton reports that, "Once we landed, other families spoke to the crew and told them how unreasonable, abusive and aggressive the couple had been."

After the scary incident, she concluded: "While I understand that some adults may want to enjoy their time in a child-free space, a flight is not one of them, nor should it be.

"Children have as much right to be on a plane as anyone else and, let’s be honest, they’re not the ones drinking heavily and becoming abusive now, are they?"

Who's ready for a long-haul flight and three kids? Source: Jordana Shell

"There are worse people to be stuck on a plane with than kids"

It's a sentiment that has been shared by Aussie mum, Jordana, who wrote for Kidspot: 

"Here's an idea - let's make a playroom by ditching the sky bar!

"The fact that there is space for a full bar on a plane is mind-blowing. Who needs it? Ask the flight attendants if they would prefer parents bringing their children into an open space over policing adults' alcohol consumption.

"Replace that valuable real estate with a soft play area. That way, kids can move and release some energy before they sit. And yes, I get that this would be a hazard during turbulence, but so is a passenger getting drunk at a bar. 

"Think of it this way - if you want to ban kids from flights, maybe you should also ban the adults who think the plane makes them invisible - you know, the ones who remove their shoes, release gas, or clip their nails.

"Just remember; there are worse people to be stuck with at high altitude than children."

Originally published as My kids and I were abused by a passenger on a flight