A Las Vegas dad sparked outrage after he shared a video of a Singapore Airlines crew member spoon-feeding his child.
In the clip, 5-year-old Jett Rutherford is seen kicked back in a business class seat watching a movie while a flight attendant kneels in the aisle and feeds him dinner.
“We’re having the greatest flight ever and this just made it more perfect,” Jett’s father, Michael Rutherford, captioned his now-viral Instagram reel.
The internet, however, didn’t see it that way.
“I never expected this kind of backlash,” Rutherford, 43, tells TODAY.com. “I mean I got a kick out of it. I remember watching her kneeling there next to Jett and and thinking, ‘This is the best thing I’ve ever seen.’ She was going out of her way to make sure my kid had a good experience. I made the video to show how amazing she was. But some people will find negative in everything."
“Flight attendants are not babysitters. They are there for the safety of the passengers,” one person wrote on Rutherford's page.
Added another, “Excellent service but totally unnecessary. Parents should be ashamed of themselves.”
Other reactions included both positive and negative comments:
- “That is absolutely ridiculous. That kid is way too old for that crap.”
- “Little man is living his best life! Kudos to the awesome flight attendant!”
- "I’d be embarrassed, thank the attendant and get my old enough child to get off his device and feed himself. There’s love and attention and then there’s raising a kid with ZERO self-awareness."
- “She probably misses her children. This is sweet of her to let the parent sleep."
- “You’re showing the whole world you’re a shameful parent…”
Several commenters felt that, at the very least, Rutherford should have encouraged Jett to remove his headphones.
Rutherford says people are making judgements based on a 13-second clip.
“We were on that flight to Japan for 12 hours and I looked after my son the entire time. We played lots of games and we cuddled,” Rutherford shares. “So when the flight attendant pointed at Jett and said, ‘Can I help him?' I was like, ‘Sure!’”
A spokesperson for Singapore Airlines tells TODAY.com that cabin crew "undergo extensive training on how to cater to different customer groups, including children, seniors, and mobility-challenged individuals."
Airline reviewer and YouTuber Dan Goz aka Nonstop Dan tells TODAY.com that he isn't at all surprised by how the flight attendant treated Jett.
“Singapore Airlines is known for having some of the best cabin crew in the world,” Goz explains. "Particularly in first class, it’s a given that the crew will address passengers by the name throughout the flight, kneel when interacting with them and refresh lavatories after every use."