Bratty Toddler Kicked Off Plane After iPad Tantrum

A bratty toddler and his parents were taught a valuable lesson in how to behave in public after a tantrum got them all thrown off of an Alaska Airlines flight. Mike Yanchak of Washington State was aboard the plane with his three-year-old son, wife, mother-in-law and another child on a trip to St. Martin Island. Before the flight was even able to take off, trouble ensued.

In these modern times, parents are far too inclined to let technology raise their children for them. It's much easier to sit a child in front of a stimulating television program to keep them quiet than it is to take them outside for actual quality time. Passive parenting of this nature often leads to the situation that unraveled on the Alaska Airlines flight before the captain was even able to leave the runway.

The unnamed toddler belonging to Yanchak and his wife was playing with an iPad while awaiting takeoff, but as it's well-known that electronics must be powered down and seatbelts must be fastened before the captain can begin the flight! It seems that the parents of this child had a hard time getting that point across to him, because the moment the iPad was taken away he unleashed a temper tantrum that disrupted all of the passengers on the plane.

Alaska Airlines describes the child's behavior as "concerning" and claimed that the child absolutely would not sit up or allow his seatbelt to be fastened. He also wouldn't keep the seatbelt on after it had been fastened. What's pathetic is that this child's father was unable to even begin to keep him in line, so the mother had to come from First Class to Coach to try to control the child. Keep in mind that this is while the captain is trying to get everything in order so he could take off and begin the flight. They were already moving down the runway. So you have two parents who just could not get this child to behave without the use of an iPad to babysit him and soothe him. Dependency on electronics is a growing problem with young children as passive parents pass the items to them as substitutes for being taught how to behave and conduct themselves. How many of you have known a parent that sits their young children in front of cartoons for hours on end to keep them quiet and "out of her hair"? It's ever-so-common.

Anyway, the captain had to turn the plane around on the runway and the family was kicked off of the plane. Their child was far too unruly and they were unable to get him in order so that the flight could proceed. Alaska Airlines did a good thing. Flying is not cheap and to be late for your arrival somewhere because of someone's poor parenting is just not fair after you've paid to get from point a to point b.

As for Yanchak, he's downplaying this whole thing and is rather angry at the airline.

"He was crying, being cranky. I started putting him in his seat. I put his seatbelt on. But he was being cranky, trying to be close to me, so he wasn't fully fastened yet," he said.

When it came to him being removed from the flight, his reaction wasn't surprising whether or not he was to blame:

"Kids crying, people snoring, large, smelly people, we deal with it, it's normal."

Well, yes it's normal to deal with a little discomfort, but when your children are so out of control that an airline has to consider kicking them off a plane you've got a problem. This is what the airline said about the child's behavior:

"We regret the inconvenience to the Yanchuk family, however, our flight crew made the necessary decision to direct them to take another flight after the parents were unable to ensure their son complied with FAA regulations to sit properly in his seat with his seat belt fastened. The fact that the child repeatedly laid across the seat with the seat belt at his throat was particularly concerning to our crew."

So there you have it: Yanchak thinks that dealing with snorers or "large smelly people" is comparable to a toddler creating a safety hazard and disruption. It's that kind of bratty attitude that doesn't make it the least bit surprising that his son got them kicked off a flight. The tantrum apple didn't fall far from the tree, and the maturity level displayed by the father in his comments are complete proof of that.

The moral of the story: Raise your kids. That means raise them, not sit them in front of an iPad anytime you want peace and quiet. And most importantly, don't expect the entire world to put up with your bratty kids -- especially after paying for a flight.

Crime analyst and profiler Chelsea Hoffman can be found on The Huffington Post, Chelsea Hoffman: Case to Case and many other outlets. Follow @TheRealChelseaHon Twitter or click here to contact Chelsea directly.

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