Dad who let flight attendant spoon-feed kid on an airplane speaks out

Their first-class treatment is getting poor reviews.

After footage of a flight attendant spoon-feeding a child sparked outrage online, the father has spoken out in defense of the good-natured gesture.

Despite critics calling him “entitled,” Michael Rutherford, 43, said the Singapore Airlines stewardess provided “amazing service” and helped his five-year-old son Jett “have a good flight.”

“The flight attendant was the nicest sweetest lady ever,” he told NeedToKnow, explaining that she asked to help and talk with Jett, to which Michael obliged.

The culture of Singapore Airlines, he added, “is just next level.”

“It’s amazing, people who’ve not experienced it wouldn’t have anything to compare it to,” he said. “It’s incredible.”

A representative from Singapore Airlines told Jam Press that the company was “heartened” to witness the crew’s “warm service” towards the father and son, and “look forward to welcoming them onboard again soon.”

In the viral clip, the attendant was kneeling on the ground in her uniform, gloves on, helping the youngster nibble at his in-flight meal on the family’s way to Tokyo from Los Angeles earlier this month.

“He [Jett] was sitting behind me, and when I turned I noticed the flight attendant kneeling down next to my son Jett holding his hand and feeding him a few bites of his food,” Michael said.

But her kindness was met with vitriol online after a video of the attendant spoon-feeding Jett began to circulate.

Some critics argued that Jett is “old enough to feed himself” and snarked that “flight attendants are not babysitters,” while others applauded the “sweet” attendant’s actions.

“Probably would rather feed the sweet kid than deal with adult passengers,” quipped one person.

Despite claims of Michael being a so-called “inattentive dad” and Jett a “spoiled brat kid unwilling to feed himself,” neither is “accurate,” Michael said.

“Negative people saw a negative experience, positive people saw a positive, healthy, good fun experience,” he said, adding that the aircraft crew “enjoyed” interacting with his son.

“The purpose of the video was to show love and gratitude to the cabin crew for taking such good care of us.”