Passengers back child-free zone on planes

LONDON - Three in five air passengers would like to see family-only sections on planes, a poll shows.

Whether it be a screaming baby, or the oafish man who downs three alcoholic drinks before take-off, they can turn a flight into a living nightmare.

The survey, by travel research site Skyscanner, could lead to a new, “stress-free” type of travel where adult passengers can enjoy a peaceful flight, and families with youngsters can avoid the pungent fumes of the drunken backpackers across the aisle, Daily Mail reported on its website Monday citing the study.

As many as 25 percent of people without children said they would like to see child-free flights, the survey found, with the biggest support (68 percent) for family-only sections on flights coming from non-parents among the 2,000 people surveyed.

Only eight percent of those without children reckoned people should be able to sit where they like on planes, with nearly 70 percent wanting to sit “as far away as possible from children”.

Of those who were parents, 45 percent said they did not want a families-only section because they preferred not to sit next to “other people’s horrors” while 24 percent disagreed with the idea because they felt that people should be able to “sit where they liked”.

Just 31 percent of parents were in favour of an allocated section for families.

Skyscanner public relations manager Mary Porter said: “As a relatively new mum myself I can still remember that feeling of dread when you found yourself seated next to a baby on a long flight.

“However, since regularly flying with my one-year-old, I am much more aware of what a stressful, and often embarrassing, situation it can be for parents.”