Should children be BANNED from flying business class? Yes says Sarah Hartley, no says Ted Thornhill

Turning left on a plane is an expensive experience, often costing thousands of pounds.

Those who pay for it expect tranquility and relaxation. So should airlines make it an adults-only treat? Here, two of the Mail’s travel editors go head-to-head on the issue, with The Mail on Sunday’s Sarah Hartley arguing that children should be banned from the pointy end of planes, and MailOnline’s Ted Thornhill arguing that Adults shouldn’t throw their toys out of the stroller if children fly in the fancy seats. Let them in, he says.

BAN THEM, SAYS SARAH HARTLEY

Children should be banned from business class, says Mail on Sunday travel editor Sarah Hartley (file image)

Have I flown business class and first class? Hell yeah, but years before I was a travel editor or a mom. What a delight to turn left and disconnect from the outside world. What bliss to be waited on hand and foot in the cocoon of a cabin where business travelers logged on to their spreadsheets and I tucked into a good read and champagne. Throwing the kids into this heady mix of adult relaxation? What? Why?

On a gruesome flight from California, a mother had refrained from all her obligations, reclined, wrapped in blankets and wearing an eye mask.

Sitting in the back (actually rarely sitting) were the three-year-old twins and the nanny. Did the engine noise cancel out his squeals? Or their little feet pounding down the hall as they waved their arms like they were on a roller coaster? No. Were they having the time of their lives? your bet

The hot-cheeked nanny took it in stride. The crew went out of their way to beg and my fellow passengers were irritable, verbal and unable to relax.

My favorite airline still calls it ‘the best way to travel’.

Today’s price for that flight? £5,840. It was literally inescapable misery. My blood boiled. Not because of the kids, not because of the babysitter, not because of the mother who doesn’t bother, but because of the ridiculous policy of the airline. Keep the kids in economy and don’t treat business class like a flying boys club (please).

DON’T BAN THEM, SAYS TED THORNHILL

‘Why frame the economy like daycare, where it’s harder for parents to deal with setbacks?’ argues Ted Thornhill

You should have seen the look on the face of the man across the street: utter horror.

So my partner told me after flying first class on a British Airways 747 with our 18-month-old daughter (I was in economy and lent him my first-class press ticket). She was clearly panicking that the extremely expensive cocoon of hers would be compromised by a vortex of chaos instigated by our munchkin.

What happened? Nothing happened. Well, she quietly pooped in her diaper, but then she fell asleep for the rest of the flight in the bassinet.

Business and first class is probably the best place on a plane for little ones: they can’t kick the seat in front, because their legs won’t reach, and there are a host of built-in distractions for them, from seat buttons to huge entertainment screens. And there’s a higher crew-to-passenger ratio, so more help is available.

Parents just need to be prepared, that’s all, and come armed with their children’s favorite toys, books, and foods. And in an emergency, there is always the option to remove them from the cabin. Most people in business class are in their own worlds anyway, watching movies with complimentary noise-cancelling headphones and oblivious to everything going on around them.

As for the argument that people could have paid a lot of money for business class and are therefore entitled to a zen-like temple experience… Well, as a proportion of their wealth, those at the bottom behind may have spent the same amount. – So why fence off your space like the nursery, where it’s harder for parents to deal with mishaps?

Kids in business class? Let’s not throw our toys out of the stroller for that.