to expect my child to be able to have an in flight meal

[Staceroo]

So we're flying to Turkey in a couple of weeks. I have paid for in flight meals for me, my husband and our 3 year old daughter. Thomas Cook will not allow me to purchase an in flight meal for our 11 month old.

It's a real case of 'computer says no!'

Save all the jokes about airplane food because Thomas cook have a range of James Martin meals which are pretty tasty and nutritious.

11 month old is baby led, and never eaten out of a jar in her life.

Solutions proposed by TC are...

1. "You are permitted to take baby food on to Thomas Cook Airlines aircraft if you are travelling with an infant or small child ,Most UK Airports have a Boots where you can purchase baby food and formula after the security screening point. These can be purchased and brought on board providing you do exceed you hand luggage restrictions. I Hope this Helps - Stef"

2. "book a separate seat for her she will be able to get an inflight meal, however then she will be booked as a child and will lose her infant luggage allowance and will need to pay the full flight price" (That's a very expensive in flight meal!!!!)

3. There are a range of snack and other meals available on the flight but they can't tell me what those will be, but they're not the James Martin meals.

My ten year old would eat a kids meal as a starter. He is the same height as me. Child meals vary massively and in-flight meals are not known for being generous portions. Also if OP is strictly following BLW the child is controlling how much is eaten not the parent.

Arf at 75:25
Glad you have a solution OP. I hope James Martin hand delivers baby's food to your seat after all this

My 11yo still east kids meals in restaurants, he'd never finish an adult one, although he usually has some garlic bread alongside it. They do vary in size a lot though.

Thank goodness. OP for PM. Although she's not very good at maths.

I don't understand the latest update. So TC were wrong all along?

It's not that there is anything wrong with puréed food. It's just messy if your child is feeding themselves.

(And honestly it's a bit disgusting if you haven't gradually acclimatised yourself to the thought of beef stew in a jar).

At 11 months my blw son would have been happy with an egg sandwich from boots and a couple of rice cakes or a biscuit and milk. He had flown 3 times before he was 2 without a seat but mostly with budget airlines so no meals. We either eat at the airport and get snacks on the plane or buy sandwiches and crisps airside to take on board. He is 8 now and has never had an inflight meal. Went to morrocco when he was 3 which was about 4 hours and we still took food on board. Yes it can be trickier coming back but their is usually something (and I am/he was veggie) which reduces the options.

I see you have now booked a meal OP. Enjoy your hol.

And we all lived happily ever after.

Nearly 250 posts, then suddenly TC made a mistake anyway?

What fresh hell is this?

11m and never fed a jar meal in her LIFE

Weaned, what 5 months? Like 5m without feeding a particular kind of thing is an achievement.

My son made it to at least 3 before having any kind of fast food... Do I get a medal?

You are making a massive fuss over nothing. Seriously. It's just a flight. Not very long one either. Take snacks and easy finger food for your child, give her drinks etc on board as and when required. Even if she doesn't eat hardly anything, she won't starve in that length of time, relax she'll snack on something.

If overseas travel is too stressful, seriously hand your passport back.

Your comment about "what about food in Turkey" is just

They eat better than we do in the UK!

Then I would suggest that those people have not actually read the rules WizardofSnoz foods that are smooth are fine for BLW, porridge, mashed potato, mashed swede, soup, yoghurt all 'allowed' foods because all food is allowed (taking salt levels etc into account).
That is the appeal for many that the babies eat exactly the same food as everybody else and they feed it to themselves.
Which is where any issue with a packet of puréed food may lie.
I wouldn't buy myself a packet of puréed cottage pie just because I'm going on a plane even though it might be convenient and long lasting. I can chew and swallow, I don't need to slurp mushed up food from a pouch and at 11 month neither did any of my children either.

The OP didn't say anything negative about the food in Turkey

My sister in law is ex TC cabin crew and now works in their reservations. She says they don't provide infant meals.
Perhaps they have made an exception in this case to keep the OP happy.

Glad you are all sorted and hope baby enjoys their delightful in-flight meal.

As for BLW, it's overrated I did it and have the fussiest eater I have ever encountered

Given the OP somehow worked out 25% of the posts on this thread agreed she should damn well be entitled to a meal for her daughter when actually no one else agreed- I'm somewhat skeptical that TC called at 7.45pm on a Friday night to say she was right all along

That sounds more like it Fookin. Pester power at work.

Same here Totality22

How impressive. Bloody good on TC for calling at this time of the evening over the matter.

Hmmmmm......

Notso, that's exactly what I mean. You find mashed potato and carrot and swede, soup, porridge and yogurt okay. But you reject a pureed meal because you 'can chew and swallow' (although I think you swallow purees too). So why do you eat mash and porridge then? Because that doesn't require chewing either so surely you should reject that too by the same logic?

And anyway cottage pie is essentially a rough puree anyway, it's ground up meat and mashed up potato. So you probably shouldn't eat a cottage pie either because that's ingredients have been mashed up too and you don't need to chew it much if at all. It's just been stirred up a bit in the pouches for older children really.

I'm sure for an 11 month old there are far nicer things to eat. But if the OP objects to anything being out of the fridge for more than half an hour and doesn't want to buy anything in the lounge then I don't see why taking a pouch on this one occasion would lead to something so traumatic it's worth a 10 page thread on Mumsnet.

Thomas Cook have just called... My arse

Where are you flying from? The moon? What is the flight time to Turkey? 3 hours? And you need a meal for your baby? Just take sandwiches.

That was a good read.

You would have loved our bemybaby flight! We had left a 2 week cruise (think LOTS of food) to catch a 3 hour flight home. The plane had NO Food!!! Apparently they were unable to top up before they left. Very, very fortunately we had fed our daughter at the airport so she slept all the way back. We, on the other hand were ravenous, so had to make do with pringles washed down with champagne!!!