Confronting Annoying Airplane Passengers

Q: Peter, I fly pretty frequently for business and personal travel, but I just had possibly the worst flight of my entire life. My husband and I were flying from Chicago to Los Angeles, and we were sitting near two families. Each family had a little girl, about 3 years old, who periodically let out piercing shrieks. Nobody said or did anything about it while we were in the air, but we heard several people grumbling about it as we got off the plane. I know even the best children have their bad days, but it shouldn't come at the expense of everyone else on the plane. What suggestions do you have for dealing with such situations?

–Chris, Naperville, Ill.

A: Chris, we've all been there at some point. Whether it's a kicking and screaming child, an armrest hog or a person emitting some nasty odors, flying often puts us in close quarters with annoying seatmates.
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