Alaska_Air.jpg
Alaska Airlines said it was a matter of safety, but the boy's dad said it was an overreaction. (AP Photo/File)

Antsy toddler kicked off Alaska Airlines plane

BY Kim Shepard  on May 29, 2012 @ 1:43 pm (Updated: 7:39 am - 5/30/12 )

A cranky 3-year-old was kicked off an Alaska Airlines flight out of Sea-Tac International on Saturday.

The airline said it was a matter of safety, but the boy's dad said it was an overreaction.

"Kids crying, people snoring, large, smelly people, we deal with it, it's normal," said Mark Yanchak of Everett.

Yanchak admits his son was being a little fussy as the flight was preparing for departure.

"He was crying, being cranky," said Yanchak. "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."

Yanchak said when his son didn't want to keep his seatbelt on, he enlisted the help of his wife. She had been seated with the couple's other son and her mother in first class.

After the boy's mother came back with a pacifier and some water, they were eventually able to get the boy to sit still. But by then, the pilot had already ordered the plane back to the gate.

A representative for Alaska Airlines asked Yanchak and his 3-year-old son to get off the plane. Yanchak said he wasn't given an explanation.

"They wouldn't tell us why," said Yanchak.

According to the airline, it was a judgment call. The crew was concerned because the boy did not want to sit upright and keep his seatbelt on. The airline said the pilot would rather deal with the issue on the ground than mid-flight.

Alaska offered to rebook the family on a later flight, but Yanchak says they have no desire to take any flight with the airline again.

He said he will give flying with his kids another shot, but fears this bad experience might stick with them.

"I'm not sure how the kids will feel about flying next time," said Yanchak.

"As soon as we got of the plane he was like, 'Dad, no fly, go home, let's go home," said Yanchak. "I think the whole ordeal just scared him off. He didn't want to fly again."

Kim Shepard, KIRO Radio Reporter
Kim Shepard is a news anchor and reporter for KIRO Radio and the office optimist. She's energetic, quick to laugh and has a positive outlook on life.
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Comments (90)


  • Add A Comment

  • arjaylee54 wrote...
    Switching Carriers?
    May 29, 2012 7:58 pm
    Dad doesn't want to fly Alaska again? This Alaska flier thanks him.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • northwestgirlinexile wrote...
    Agree
    May 30, 2012 8:04 am
    Amen, arjaylee54.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • Ron_Spins wrote...
    A pilot of a plane is the boss
    May 29, 2012 8:18 pm
    That's just the way it is...a pilot has the ultimate say so ...on everything.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • Seattle Dad wrote...
    That's because
    May 30, 2012 9:41 am
    he's ultimately responsible to the FAA, lawyers, and everyone else if something goes wrong.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • kitttheory wrote...
    Just Curious...
    May 29, 2012 8:36 pm
    How exactly the pilot would have dealt with the problem mid-flight...lol
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • Weiser Postban wrote...
    Two Words
    May 29, 2012 8:50 pm
    Buh Bye!
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • itybitybob wrote...
    Antsy toddler
    May 29, 2012 8:58 pm
    Having just experianced the exact same thing I must say it's the parents, not the airline. Our experiance was, the mother sat several rows away and the child and grandmother sat in front of us. The child refused to sit down for the take off. As soon as we were air born he stood on the seat faced us and violently shook the back of the seat. I told him to turn around and sit down with my sternest voice. His grand mother did nothing but she was feeding him soft ice cream which was getting all over the seat. I said to her that she needed to control the child and was ignored. She eventualy changed seats with him so he was seated in the middle. He then proceeded to hit the woman pasasenger who was seated by the window. My solution would have been to have him seated out side of the plane. Yep, this was an alaska airline plane. No help from the stewards. The parents are the problem!!!
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • hpygolkyone wrote...
    My Two Cents...........
    May 29, 2012 10:08 pm
    Another case of self important parents who feel that their little darling is the center of the universe because they can tell time, or take a deuce at the age of three.

    News Flash: your brat is a pain in theass and whenever I took my kids on a plane (at that age, which wasn't often) and their was the SLIGHTEST chance of them becoming....er, unmanageable....three words:

    1. Dime

    2. A

    3. Tap

    Works wonders and all the passengers congratulate you on well behaved your child is.

    I recommend just enough to take the edge off....although some of the littlebstards need the knockout dose!

    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • kcandjc00 wrote...
    Right On!
    May 30, 2012 11:09 am
    Well Put
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • drew (1) wrote...
    For all the parents
    May 29, 2012 10:11 pm
    Try Southwest next time. Open seating and priority boarding for families allow you to sit altogether. It's nearly impossible to arrange seats together on other airlines especially with different prices for every seat. From one parent to another, I feel your pain. ...and let's face it, flying is a miserable experience for EVERYONE... the fat guy, the smelly guy, the sick guy, the talker, the snorer, the hog the armrest guy, the bump your elbow everytime flight attendant, the screaming kid...
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • Aero wrote...
    The law
    May 30, 2012 12:52 pm
    It's a federal law that applies to Southwest too. If you live in reality you will know that these laws apply to all carriers that operate in the united states. The airlines get massive fines for disobeying federal laws. They don't get to pick and choose which laws they abide by.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • Dexter18 wrote...
    Too old...
    May 29, 2012 10:39 pm
    Age 3 is much too old for such behavior. This shows a lack of proper parenting from Day 1. The only exception is if this child is a Special Needs child...and no I am not referring to ADD or ADHD...which only, apparently, came into existence 15 years ago.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • slaggg wrote...
    Goodbye don't come back!
    May 29, 2012 10:42 pm
    I love how this guy takes no responsibility for his jerk son, and blames the airline. Does he realize his family delayed hundreds of people? Good riddance.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • Oly80 wrote...
    that's a GREAT point, slaggg!
    May 30, 2012 6:33 am
    i hadn't gotten that far yet, but yeah! what about the other 100+ or so people? the guy doesn't seem to be phased at all about hassling them!

    as a parent, i'd be MORTIFIED. however, as a parent, my kid wouldn't be ALLOWED to get that "antsy." (cute word to basically say the kid was being a disruptive little snot to the point of TURNING A PLANE AROUND)

    OH, and as a kid, my parents would have DESTROYED me if acted like that! PARENTS! STOP BEING DOORMATES FOR YOU PERFECT LITTLE ANGELS!!! YOU DO THEM NO GOOD SERVICE BOWING TO THEM!!!

    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • Oly80 wrote...
    sorry.
    May 30, 2012 6:34 am
    doormats.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • ron prevost wrote...
    Let's see - the airlines are now charging extra for families to be seated .
    May 30, 2012 4:48 am
    TOGETHER ? And then they wonder why stuff like this happens. A three year old IS a three year old. And there have been tree year olds flying with their parents for over 50 years. ........ Maybe it just hasn't made the news before, but I've never heard of a flight kicking off a three year old before.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }