Passengers have accused Wizz Air of humiliating a four-year-old boy after cabin crew refused to let him use the toilet during a flight from Finland to Poland, forcing him to urinate into a bottle in the aisle.
The child's mother, Marianne, reported the incident to Finnish daily newspaper Iltalehti following the Sunday flight from the southwestern Finnish city of Turku to Gdansk in northern Poland.
The journey marked the four-year-old boy's first time flying on an airplane. During the flight, the child was seated with his grandmother a few rows away from the rest of his family when he needed to use the lavatory.
When the boy asked to go to the toilet, his grandmother attempted to walk him down the aisle. Their path was initially blocked by an inflight service trolley, requiring them to wait for some time before they could pass.
As soon as space cleared and they continued walking toward the lavatory, turbulence hit the aircraft. The seatbelt light immediately illuminated, indicating that all passengers were required to remain in their seats.
Cabin Crew Refuse Lavatory Access
According to the mother, flight attendants stopped the child and instructed him and his grandmother to return immediately to their seats. Because the child was unable to wait any longer, a fellow passenger handed the grandmother an empty bottle.
Marianne explained that the family had few alternatives because her son was prone to crying and was at risk of wetting his pants if he did not get immediate relief.
The boy then urinated into the bottle right in the aisle in full view of other passengers. Cabin crew who observed the situation eventually allowed the child and his grandmother to walk to the toilet so they could wash their hands.
Following the incident, the flight attendants refused to take the bottle from the grandmother and instructed both of them to return to their seats.
The grandmother was left carrying the bottle back through the cabin before asking staff a second time where she could dispose of it. Marianne stated that a flight attendant angrily ordered the grandmother to walk back to the lavatory and throw the bottle into the trash bin, despite the seatbelt sign remaining illuminated.
Marianne stated that the flight attendant gave angry orders to the grandmother and treated her as though she had committed a crime.
Distress and Future Travel Concerns
The mother stated that the entire family was shocked by the crew's behavior. She emphasized that their primary concern was the emotional impact on her son, who was visibly embarrassed by what happened during his first flight.
After the aircraft landed in Poland, the boy refused to leave the plane and only stepped off among the very last passengers.
Marianne noted that her son values privacy when using the bathroom and always closes the door behind him at home.
The family now faces having to fly with Wizz Air again for their return journey, as the budget airline operates the only direct route back to Turku. The mother expressed concern that her son may suffer from anxiety and panic over fear of being unable to reach the toilet again.
Airline Defends Safety Protocol
Hungarian newspaper Blikk contacted Wizz Air regarding the incident. The airline defended the actions taken by its flight crew, stating that the decisions were fully justified given the turbulent flight conditions.
In a statement, Wizz Air said it understood and regretted that the situation had caused inconvenience to the family, especially to the young boy. The airline added that it takes pride in its highly trained flight attendants, expecting them to act with maximum empathy in every situation, while emphasizing that compliance with safety rules is not a matter of individual discretion but serves the interests of all passengers.
Wizz Air is a Hungarian ultra-low-cost airline based in Budapest, operating budget flights across European routes.
Recent European Airline Controversy
The incident follows other recent scandals involving European low-cost carriers. In August, Irish budget airline Ryanair faced severe criticism over a flight from Malta to Birmingham, England, where passengers were kept inside a hot plane without air conditioning for over an hour.
During that delay on the tarmac, several passengers became ill and lost consciousness, while the airline failed to provide free drinking water to those trapped on board.
Additionally, British authorities are investigating Ryanair's policy of charging parents extra fees to sit next to their children. Ryanair is the only major airline in the United Kingdom applying such a pricing practice.
