A British mother said that she was told to stop breastfeeding her baby during a Ryanair flight, expressing shock and embarrassment over what happened.
Rachel Duffy, 40, said she, her baby, and her 14-year-old son were flying from Portugal to Manchester recently after a vacation.
Duffy said she had researched how and when to breastfeed during flights and found advice recommending to feed during take-off or landing to help with ear pain in babies.
So she began breastfeeding her baby before the plane took off—something she said she’d done on the flight to Portugal.
This time, a flight attendant came over and told her to stop.
Mum who was told to stop breastfeeding on Ryanair flight left ‘angry and embarrassed’ https://t.co/XSd8Li6Qg7
— The Sun (@TheSun) May 27, 2019
“The steward stood and watched while I struggled to sit my baby up—who started to cry—and continued to stand there until I had re-dressed myself,” she told the Independent.
Duffy later tried breastfeeding her child again during landing, but staff members came over and ordered her to desist.
“I was really shocked, angry and embarrassed by the situation—I continued to breastfeed during the rest of the flight, but I was told to stop again before landing,” she said. “It’s left me incredibly anxious and nervous to fly again—and I won’t be doing so with Ryanair.”
She told Metro that she was left alone during her first flight.
“When I flew to Portugal from Manchester, on a Ryanair flight, I was allowed to breastfeed during take-off and landing. No one said anything to me, even when they were doing the seatbelt checks,” she said.
“It’s made me very angry and others that I have spoken to are disgusted with Ryanair. It made our flight very difficult and uncomfortable.”
A spokesperson for Ryanair responded by stating: “Breastfeeding mothers are very welcome onboard our flights.”
Mum ‘ordered to stop breastfeeding baby’ by staff on Ryanair flight https://t.co/saVPfJnx9T
— The Independent (@Independent) May 28, 2019
Mother Slams Air Canada
Another situation played out in March, with a mother alleging an Air Canada representative said that mothers should only breastfeed on planes if they’re in the bathroom.
“Dear @AirCanada: It is never okay to recommend a woman breastfeed her infant in an airplane lavatory. Nor would I like to be referred to your medical line to discuss this further,” Twitter user Stephanie VandenBerg wrote in a missive she later deleted.
“If you would like to eat your dinner there, by all means, but my infant son will not be joining you.”
After Air Canada responded asking for details and saying “we support breastfeeding onboard our aircraft and you are welcome to nurse your baby wherever you feel comfortable onboard,” VandenBerg said she had spoken to the representative over the phone.
Thank you Max. To clarify, this was a telephone conversation with an Air Canada Representative to arrange flying with an infant. I have reached out to Air Canada on multiple fronts (direct through website, facebook direct message and Twitter DM) and am waiting to be contacted
— Stephanie VandenBerg (@StephVDBG) March 6, 2019
“To clarify, this was a telephone conversation with an Air Canada Representative to arrange flying with an infant,” she said. “I have reached out to Air Canada on multiple fronts (direct through website, facebook direct message and Twitter DM) and am waiting to be contacted.”
Air Canada spokesperson Peter Fitzpatrick later told USA Today that the airline doesn’t limit breastfeeding on its planes and it sent instructions to call center employees about the policy.
“We have a longstanding policy of supporting breastfeeding onboard our aircraft wherever mothers feel comfortable,” the statement read. “To be clear, this incident did not occur onboard a flight. The customer spoke to a Call Centre agent who was fairly new and was not aware of our policy; we have since reminded all Call Centre employees of it.”
