#trending: TikToker on flight with crying child calls for 'adults-only flights', sparks outrage

SINGAPORE — For some people, their worst nightmare is to be stuck in a plane with a crying child in their midst.

An American travel vlogger named "Mo" has re-ignited the perennial debate regarding young children on flights, with a TikTok video of herself on a plane, smiling helplessly at the camera as a child screams and cries in the background.

"Why isn't there such a thing as adults-only flights?" she laments in the video. "I would pay so much money (for that)."

She claimed that the child's crying had gone on for the entirety of her three-hour flight.

Posted on Aug 26, the 10-second video has been viewed more than 900,400 times and has received 25,600 comments, with viewers largely divided in their opinions on the matter.

A majority felt that her video simply showed a lack of empathy for the "poor mum" and child. They noted that young children are often uncomfortable and overstimulated when flying for the first time.

As one mother said: "It's not nice but it's something that can't be helped."

Another agreed, saying: "This is why people/parents/mums have anxiety when leaving the house.”

A viewer commented sarcastically: "Guys, you don't get it. Her (Mo's) comfort is more important than anyone else's."

Several people also argued that, travelling on a commercial flight for the masses, she had no room to complain about others and should have prepared her own noise-cancelling headphones or earplugs in advance.

One person said that if Mo wanted to, she could travel on a private plane, while another added that a private plane would be a better option for her since she said in the video that she would pay “so much money” to fly without crying children onboard.

Elaborating on the situation, Mo stated in a pinned comment: "I have noise-cancelling headphones, the child was well over five years old, and (the child) sat directly behind me while kicking my chair as the mother slept."

However, this only invited more negative comments, with many responding in disbelief and saying that it was just Mo’s attempt to mitigate the backlash against her.

On the other hand, there were people who sided with the TikToker.

One declared: "All the commenters are the ones who let their kids scream for five hours like it doesn't stress 200 other people out."

Another said: "I don't understand why parents are upset in the comments. You're (Mo is) not asking them to do anything. You're not even saying children shouldn't fly."

Complaints about crying children on flights are nothing new. Back in October 2018, a Singaporean posted on online forum Reddit a photo of a baby on board the world's longest flight from Singapore to New York. The post had more than 460 upvotes, indicating that it was a topic of much interaction and comments.

One Reddit user reading the 2018 post even joked: "This might be Singapore's new punishment, to replace caning."

In a video posted to Twitter in June this year, popular Twitch streamer “PaymoneyWubby” rolls his eyes at the camera as a baby is heard wailing.

"Five likes and I punch this crying baby on my flight," he wrote in his caption. The tweet amassed more than 6,200 likes.

Later in July, a thread about an "extra considerate" mother went viral on Twitter.

Heading from Seoul in South Korea to San Francisco in the United States with a four-month-old baby, the mother had prepared and distributed goodie bags to more than 200 other passengers on her 10-hour flight.

On the original Facebook post, however, many people expressed sympathy for this young mother.

One person said: "It's the drunk and bad-smelling adults who should be feeling sorry for (causing trouble on board)!

"This post is insane and people should understand — a baby is a baby. Mothers, please never feel guilty for a little baby."

As for Mo, it seems that she is standing by what she said. Two days after her controversial video, she posted one that shows her relaxing in a hot air balloon over Cappadocia, Turkey.

"Found an adult-only flight 😉", she says cheekily in the video caption.