I’m actually not one of these people who gets super frustrated and freaks out when a baby by me is crying hysterically on a plane. That’s why you always bring earplugs AND headphones when you travel, so you don’t really have to hear anything at all except the music you’re listening to. (Pro tip: this means you also don’t have to talk to anyone, which is always nice).
But let’s get to the point of the story. Some people really do get upset about screaming, fussy kids on their flights. So leave it to the innovative Japanese to come up with this idea.
Japan Airlines unveiled a booking system that allows customers to see exactly where babies are seated on flights. Genius!
https://www.instagram.com/p/B24JUzunVUw/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=dlfix
Once you’ve booked a flight on Japan Airlines and it’s time to check in, you’ll see a seating chart of the plane with baby icons showing where little ones are seated on that particular flight. The airline’s website says: “Passengers traveling with children between eight days and two years old who select their seats on the JAL website will have a child icon displayed on their seats on the seat selection screen. This lets other passengers know a child may be sitting there.”
https://www.instagram.com/p/B1g5tKlnCxw/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=dlfix
That means you need to select your seats as early as possible to avoid sitting next to screaming, puking children, if that kind of thing bothers you.
One other thing to keep in mind: sometimes the baby icon might not appear on seating charts. Examples include if a block of seats is booked for a tour or with award tickets, if tickets were selected in places other than the Japan Airlines website, or if for some reason the aircraft was changed at the last minute.
Still, that’s progress, right?
I have a feeling this feature will become very popular and other airlines will start doing this and they’ll make it even more streamlined. Hooray for innovation!
And remember: don’t forget your earplugs and headphones.
