For most people, air travel is a real pain in the butt. I mean, sure, it gets you where you’re going in a fraction of the time it would if you were to drive, but it’s still quite the process — and not one that tends to be pleasant.
I won’t name names, but there’s one particular airline that I’m convinced has enlisted IKEA as their interior designer, resulting in the tiniest, thinnest, hardest seats you’ve ever placed your behind on. But, I digress.
Whether you fly on a weekly basis for work, or every couple of years to see a new place, I think it’s safe to say that nothing is more daunting than air travel with children.
Some kids are natural travelers. They get on the plane, kick up their feet and get lost in Peppa Pig for hours. But we’ve all been on a plane that has a screaming baby or a kicking toddler that literally takes the stresses of air travel to a whole new level.
It’s human nature to get irritated under high-stress situations, but it’s how you respond that makes all the difference. When it involves kids in a small, cramped space, what’s a person to do?
Here are 9 Airplane Pictures that will restore your faith in humanity today.
1. This exemplifies the meaning of a cheerful giver.
A father who was traveling with his 2-year-old daughter found himself in an overwhelming crunch when he arrived at the ticket counter and realized his miniature traveler was not ready for takeoff.
Most airlines allow children under the age of 2 to fly for free. However, they still need a ticket for travel purposes.
When the father got to the gate and learned he had to purchase a ticket in order for the pair to get on the plane, he was in total distress. He couldn’t afford to rebook, nor could he afford the $749 ticket that his daughter now required to get on the flight.
It turns out the airplane wasn’t the only thing with wings that evening. Another passenger approached the ticketing counter and literally became that father’s angel, pulling out her credit card and spreading generosity with pleasure.
2. This man put a mother’s needs above his own
Rachel Lewis claims to be a master traveler with children. She’s got it down to a tee. Except for the one day that she didn’t. After overestimating her allotted time for packing and preparations, Rachel found herself checking in, with an infant, just 30 minutes before her plane was scheduled to leave.
After scrambling to get herself, her baby, and ALL the things through security in time, Rachel realized her daughter had soiled her diaper over an hour ago, and there had been no time to take care of it.
When she finally got to the gate, boarded the plane and sat down, a flight attendant approached her with an unusual proposition.
3. This Mama who gave up her lap to a child on her kid-free vacation.
While on vacation away from her kids, Kesha Bernard found herself flying with a toddler on her lap for all the right reasons.
After boarding her flight, Kesha, along with the 100+ other passengers became the audience for a 3-year-old’s full-blown meltdown.
It was only a matter of minutes before passengers around her began to chime in, making rude remarks about the mother, and even going as far as grabbing her child’s foot to scold her.
Kesha says she couldn’t take the madness. She stood up, walked a few rows back to where the commotion was taking place and asked the mom how she could help. Immediately, the mother handed over her baby, and Kesha made her way back to her own seat for takeoff.
“Complaining and mumbling” doesn’t do anything for anyone. It just makes the helpless feel even worse than they already do. She says it’s because raising kids takes a village, and having a 3-and-4-year-old of her own, Kesha was happy to lend a hand.
4. This time that Tim Tebow led a full plane of people in prayer for a fellow passenger.
While traveling to Phoenix from Atlanta, airplane passenger Richard V Gotti witnessed something absolutely wonderful. An older gentleman on board began experiencing heart problems, which soon resulted in a medical emergency at 30,000 feet.
“ I watched strangers from all over the world and every ethnicity come to the help of this man for over an hour!”
As strangers took turns doing everything in their power to keep this passenger alive, one fellow flyer took it upon himself to comfort the family. Turns out that good Samaritan was none other than Tim Tebow.
Known for his faith, it’s no surprise that Tebow lent a shoulder to cry on before leading an entire section of the plane in prayer for their fellow passenger.
When the plane landed in Phoenix, they were finally able to get a pulse for the first time the entire flight. It just goes to show the POWER of prayer when brothers and sisters lift each other up.
5. This flight attendant who gave a single and desperate mama a helping hand.
Babies and planes often do NOT go well together, and unfortunately, some strangers are not so understanding of the unrelenting crying fits that can ensue after takeoff. That was especially the case on Rachel Yuen’s Hawaiian Airlines flight to LAX.
A single mother was traveling on Rachel’s flight with all three of her kiddos under the age of five. She tried relentlessly to calm her toddler for 45 minutes, and it was clear to Rachel that other passengers were getting irritated with the helpless mother.
“A couple in front of her kept turning around; giving her a stink eye. As if she was purposely trying to inconvenience them. I watched the woman in front turn around and snicker something at her children and all I could think of was ‘you wait until this seatbelt sign comes off…’”
Rachel was appalled by the reaction of other flyers. She was prepared to go offer the mama a helping hand as soon as the pilot gave passengers the “okay” to move around the cabin. But before that time came, the flight attendant did the unthinkable.
She asked if she could hold her son! Within minutes, she became the toddler whisperer, and all was good on the flight.
6. This time a Southwest Flight gave an angel her wings.
Often times, we think of airplane travel as something we do for fun — like going on a vacation or visiting grandma. But Rex Ridenour was boarding a plane for very different reasons. He was headed to say goodbye to his only sister, LouAnn who was about to die of pancreatic cancer.
LouAnn was a Southwest flight attendant for several decades. In an effort to brighten her spirits, Rex asked the flight attendant at his gate for a set of the little plastic Southwest airline wings that they hand out to kids on the flight.
“Yes,” she said. “What do you plan to do with the wings?”
Rex explained that his sister was a Southwest Airlines flight attendant, and she had become very ill.
“Are you LouAnn’s brother?” she asked with surprise.
Turns out the flight attendant knew LouAnn and had just sent her a card that morning. She then went out of her way to help Rex make his final flight to go see his sister be the very best memory for both of them.
7. This time that FedEx transported a 2-year-old and her family so she could receive her liver transplant.
After adopting their daughter Brooklyn from China, Jesse and Nick Faris finally got the second call they had been waiting for — Brooklyn had been moved to the #1 recipient on the transplant list, and there was a liver waiting for her in Chicago.
However, also waiting in Chicago was a terrible blizzard that had shut down all roads and airports leading them from Memphis to this long-awaited liver.
Having been connected with St. Jude’s through a friend, the world-renowned research hospital reached out to FedEx on the family’s behalf, and within 30 minutes they had boarded one of the delivery service’s private jets!
Only 11 days after the life-saving operation, Jesse and Nick were ecstatic to learn that their baby girl was healthy enough to be discharged. It was absolutely a dream come true!!!
8. This flyer who soaked up some sweet cuddles while dad took a nap.
Everyone knows it’s stressful enough to fly the skies as it is. Throw a dad flying solo at Christmas with an 8-month-old into the mix, and you’re looking at the kind of stress that would make someone curl up into a ball and cry.
Little man was doing well on his second flight ever, hanging out on dad’s lap. But it wasn’t long before he decided he was more interested in his neighbor sitting in the window seat than he was in cuddling with dad.
“After brief introductions and him fighting me trying to crawl over to her, she opens her arms and says ‘oh just give him to me!’” The dad wrote on Facebook.
And her offer was all it took!
“Not 60 seconds later he puts his head down on her chest and falls asleep!”
She then proceeded to tell the dad that if he wanted to take a quick nap, she would hold the child so he could catch up on some sleep.
9. This toddler making friends with a macho man.
When they first boarded the plane, this mother traveling with her two young kids was concerned when she realized her toddler had been seated next to “a big, macho-looking guy in probably his late twenties,” she writes on Facebook.
“I was worried that you wouldn’t take kindly to and would be off-put by sitting beside a small child. I was completely wrong, and for that, I am so grateful.
The seatbelt sign remained on for quite a good portion of our flight for turbulence, which meant instead of sitting and being comforted on mine or grandpa’s lap, he had to be belted in beside you instead.”
The grateful mother says her worries immediately faded as she watched the man engage with her son. He entertained his conversation, helped soothe his ears when the altitude began to hurt them, and even made sure to point his overhead light away from the little traveler when he finally did fall asleep.
“Thank you for making our flight experience a lesson in compassion and empathy for others. That little boy will grow into a man one day (hopefully like you) and he will get a lot more out of your simple actions than you realize. You will make a wonderful father someday if you so choose.”
It doesn’t cost much to be a decent human being. Maybe an hour of your time here, or $5 there, but at the end of it all, being kind to others doesn’t cost a thing, and never fails to be rewarding.
Hopefully, these inspiring airplane pictures serve as an uplifting reminder that there are still wonderful people in the world.
