Teething trouble? Couple leaves baby on conveyor belt at airport after refusing to buy a ticket for the infant
TEL AVIV, ISRAEL: On Tuesday, January 31, a couple tried to board a Ryanair aircraft after leaving their baby at an Israeli airport check-in counter. The parents, who had previously skipped buying their child's ticket, refused to buy a plane ticket required for the infant to travel with them.
The couple with Belgian passports reportedly arrived at Ben-Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv in order to take a Ryanair aircraft to Brussels, Belgium. When airport employees learned what had happened, they alerted the police, who then tracked down the parents and brought them in for questioning, as reported by Jerusalem Post. Authorities claimed that the couple arrived at Terminal 1 after the check-in counter had closed due to their delayed arrival. They allegedly left their infant on the check-in area conveyor belt because they needed to go deal with security.
READ MORE
Imogen Lennon: Trolls attack devastated family of 5-year-old who died choking on her favorite snack
The manager of the Ryanair desk reportedly said that everyone was in a state of disbelief. The manager stated, "We've never seen anything like this. We couldn't believe what we were seeing."
A very brief "round trip"
Traveling with a baby is undoubtedly challenging, as has been observed in previously documented cases. One such incident occurred on a Saudia Airlines trip when a woman accidentally left her child at the airport, causing the pilot to fly back to the airport. Newsweek reported that the mother left her toddler at King Abdulaziz International Airport's boarding area and did not realize it until the plane took off. Fortunately, the pilot was able turn the aircraft around.
'This is a totally new one for us!'
"May God be with us. Can we come back or what?" the pilot asked the air control operators, as reported by the LittleThings, adding "This flight is requesting to come back… a passenger forgot her baby in the waiting area, the poor thing." The befuddled controllers then asked the pilot to validate the statement.
The pilot acknowledged, "We told you, a passenger left her baby in the terminal and refuses to continue the flight." The air control operators eventually decided to allow the pilot as they stated, "OK, head back to the gate. This is a totally new one for us!"
The plane successfully turned around and landed at the airport after receiving the go-ahead, much to the dismay of many on board. Fortunately, the mother and her baby were reunited at the airport when the plane arrived.