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Original poster

Children in economy with parents in first class

122 replies

Birdsbeesandtrees · 13/04/2017 08:18

Seen a quote from Gordon Ramsey this morning saying he does this.

The quote is "He added that they don’t even allow their children sit with them in first class on family holidays because they “haven’t worked hard enough” to afford it yet.
“I turn left with Tana and they turn right and I say to the chief stewardess, ‘Make sure those little f–kers don’t come anywhere near us, I want to sleep on this plane.’

I worked my f–king ass off to sit that close to the pilot and you appreciate it more when you’ve grafted for it.”

I was really shocked. Is this normal ? I've never flown first class by the way so I honestly have no idea.

Do people do this ?

OP posts:
littlefrog3 · 13/04/2017 08:42

I really hope he is joking, because that is a horrible way to speak about your children.

Also, no way in hell would I shove my children in second class, whilst I sat in first class. That's mean and tight IMO. What's more, I like to spend time with my children! Clearly he doesn't! Confused

roundaboutthetown · 13/04/2017 08:43

What does he spend his money on? It must get so boring to only spend it on yourself, because nobody else works hard enough.

IfYouGoDownToTheWoodsToday · 13/04/2017 08:44

The way he supposedly speaks to air crew is what shocks me and I doubt any aircrew would actually do as he says. They aren't nannys for gods sake and have more important things to do than "make sure those little fuckers don't come anywhere near us". I call bullshit.

rookiemere · 13/04/2017 08:46

Kind of cements my already low view of the man.

Plus I hate parents who think it's funny to refer to their DC in demeaning terms, particularly swearing. I have a friend on FB and I do judge her for referring to her DCs as "the brats" constantly in her posts.

MrsSchadenfreude · 13/04/2017 08:46

I used to work with a couple who did this. They were highly unpleasant anyway, but used to boast about putting their son, who was around 8 at the time, in economy on long haul flights.

alltouchedout · 13/04/2017 08:47

He is a twat. Any parent who does this is a twat. Wasn't there a post on here last year from someone intending to fly first whilst her dc and nanny went economy? Twat.

IfYouGoDownToTheWoodsToday · 13/04/2017 08:49

I actually think it's ok to do this if there's a nanny or another adult with them. It's the whole "the air crew will look after my kids" attitude which ducks me off. Lazy twats.

IfYouGoDownToTheWoodsToday · 13/04/2017 08:50

*fucks!

Wellthatsit · 13/04/2017 08:50

He's good at getting publicity isn't he? Look how we're all talking about him.

nannyuk · 13/04/2017 08:50

As a nanny it's completely normal that we would travel in a separate class to the parents

thatdearoctopus · 13/04/2017 08:50

When they were younger, he probably made his wife sit in Coach with them.
I think Ramsay looks like a nasty piece of work all round. I pity his wife and kids, although she elected to stay with him (after all those shenanigans a few years back), presumably for the money and lifestyle. After all, no one speaks to his staff the way he does and then comes home and is delightful to his wife, surely?

lizzyj4 · 13/04/2017 08:51

What alltouchedout said, exactly.

smilingsarahb · 13/04/2017 08:52

If you watch his daughters cooking show he comes across very very differently than the persona he has for his own cooking shows. I know it's all TV but he seems very warm and loving towards them and that's hard to fake. His kids are older..The youngest must be 14. I think tone is probably everything as well, if he is laughing as he says it etc it give a very different impression to a cold hard instruction.

herethereandeverywhere · 13/04/2017 08:52

I worked with a partner at a law firm who did this.

His kids were teenagers and actually quite liked the freedom of being away from mum and dad - they didn't particularly care for the trappings of business class but enjoyed flying a whole long-haul journey away from their parents. So far as I know they just watched movies/played computer games/ate.

Totally different to having needy kids/pre-teens who need supervision and are being abandoned though!

Glitterspy · 13/04/2017 08:55

If the kids are late teens/20s surely the fact he's paying for their travel is pretty generous? Whatever class they're put in? Getting my holiday paid for and not having to sit with my parents would have seemed a total bonus if I was 18/19 or older!

Glitterspy · 13/04/2017 08:56

(He's a nasty man and a twat for various reasons I agree but remember his kids are older and could be paying for their own holidays!)

underneaththeash · 13/04/2017 08:58

I'm sure we'll do that when the children are over 18 - they can have the option of coming away with us (which we'll pay for), but I don't see any reason why they can't sit in economy. I sat in economy for years and it didn't do me any harm!

I do think one of his children is too young though to be separated from them, I also think he's being a bit mean not passing on his money to them.

I'd much rather sit in business.

illegitimateMortificadospawn · 13/04/2017 08:58

This reminds me of an interview with the actor James Marsden that I read. He and his wife want to protect their kids from the showboz lifestyle craziness, so they always fly economy together (kids & parents). It me like him even more.

DandelionAndBedrock · 13/04/2017 08:58

One thing I don't understand - surely one of the advantages of not being economy is fast track security, lounges, getting luggage back more promptly, being first off the plane when you land... surely you en dip hanging around waiting for your children? Do they just wave goodbye at check in?

I can understand the logic if you have teens who would enjoy the independence, but you seem to lose some of the practical benefits either side of the flight.

Aeroflotgirl · 13/04/2017 08:59

Just looked, the oldest is 17,16, then he has two early teen kids.

5moreminutes · 13/04/2017 09:01

If they're older teens or adults then it's weird but I guess meh - the dynamic he's creating (more by what he said than what he paid for, and the assumption it is representative of their every day dynamic) may come back to bite him when nobody but paid staff come near him in his old age.

If they are kids though these days it could create a problem on a practical level - I've just flown with my 3 kids on a flight with seats in rows of 3, so I sat with one and the other two sat behind. They were behaving well and perfectly competent, the seat next to them was free. Before take off the stewerdess picked a random bloke and asked him to sit with my children for take off and landing!

So if that's coming in as a rule accross the board other adults are being randomly assigned to sit with the economy class children of rich twunts who chose to sit in a different part of the plane to their kids!

Luckily the man was travelling alone and I thanked him and he claimed not to mind - but how annoying (and odd - never had that happen before!)

itsmine · 13/04/2017 09:02

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Original poster
Birdsbeesandtrees · 13/04/2017 09:03

Presumably though he's paying for the older 2 to come so that they can holiday together as a family. They may well pay for their own holidays separately.

I've not been invited on holiday with my parents since I was 18 but I know many who have and generally if the parents invite the kids on a family holiday the parents pay.

OP posts:
thatdearoctopus · 13/04/2017 09:06

Well, his oldest must be 18 at least, as she's at the same Uni as my dd.

SpringerS · 13/04/2017 09:07

If parents never did this Home Alone would have ended at the airport when Mrs McCallister would have looked at the four children sitting next to her and realised her youngest was missing before the plane took off. She'd have gone back for him, joined their family in Paris the next day, the Wet Bandits would have continued their crime spree unhindered. But poor old James Cromwell would never have reunited with his son.