Five people on planes who are way worse to fly with than my kids Even the inflight safety videos can be so much more fun when flying with children. IT'S my job to travel with children. So when someone declares they "hate my kids" in a rant about flying, I have to hit back. Travelling with kids can be tiring - but brings many memorable moments. Kids' tickets have to be paid for, just like everyone else on the plane, and they deserve to fly just as much as a businessman, a bogan or Brian Crisp. Sure, we pay less for a kid's airfare. But where on the ticket does it say that by daring to take our kids on a plane, we're actually paying for the privilege of receiving parenting advice from people like you? It's not as if we're bringing children on board with the aim of irritating other passengers - on the contrary, we're doing our darnedest to try to make sure we go unnoticed until we can finally breathe a sigh of relief leaving the airport at the other end. The best bits of travelling with the family Our our travelling brood - four of them, aged 3 to 14 - usually toe the line, but flying with kids takes hard work, preparation, luck - and arsenal of weapons of mass distraction. I've been doing it since the youngest was 10 months old, so I have mastered the art of bribery with Mentos and my iPad is filled with 46 episodes of Peppa Pig. But even the best behaved children, appropriately fed and watered prior to boarding, can suddenly become banshees when they are buckled up on a plane. Mostly, they're scared, bored or overexcited and frankly don't understand the etiquette rules of flying because it's not something they do often. Airlines rule out kid-free flights Don't forget, they are KIDS - to whom flying is an exciting (or very boring) new adventure and a lesson in life they have to experience and learn from. Let's face it: Children's tantrums are by no means the worst passenger interactions you can face on a plane. What's your worst flying gripe? Share your pet plane peeve Those who complain about them (Brian Crisp I'm looking at you) need to show some compassion and empathy for parents who are doing the best job they can at the time - and realise things could be much worse. There are way worse people to sit next to on a plane than my kids. Here are the five types of passengers who are far more awful to fly with than my kids: Smelly Men Applying deodorant, brushing your teeth and showering should be compulsory prior to boarding a plane. Actually, there should be some sort of security standard sniff-off as you check-in. I recently sat next to man who spent the best half of the flight telling me about his new landscaping; frankly he didn't need to utter a word the stench horse manure and three days of sweat gave it away... and don't get me started on the garlic breath. Intead of metal detectors, airports should install body-odour monitors If you've sat next to this guy, I'm guessing my kids aren't looking (or smelling) so bad right now. Overweight Travellers I boarded a plane in Philadelphia for a 30-plus hour journey back home to find my row of four seats already occupied with two men. There was about 25cm of seat fabric left between them. This miniature space was the remnants of my seat allocation. The trip home was a form of slow and uncomfortable torture which had me literally fighting for air. A tight squeeze can get even more awkward when the tray tables come out. Boozed Bogans Steveo and Davo always seem to be on my flight at the end of a long work day when I need to sleep. They are easy to identify as they are wearing Ed Hardy clothing and order "black rats cans love" from the air hostess each time she walks past. They also speak loudly about their hotted up cars and high-five each other across the aisle about recent female conquests such as "Sasha who works behind the bar down at the Leagues Club." Babies might annoy some passengers but the real bottle-fed bothers are guys like these. Stranger Talkers I'm sure you are a very nice person but I.just.dont.care. Oh, and I don't know you so I can't offer sound advice about what you should do about that incident at the work Christmas party. Shut up. Could I offer you a Mentos to please, just zip it? Experts Those people who ask what you do and then tell you what's wrong with your profession and the people who work in it. The people who've travelled absolutely everywhere and make sure you know it. And, the worst kind of expert as far as parents are concerned, those people who tell you how to manage your children's behaviour, who take it upon themselves to discipline your children or who judge and look at you like you've bred the devil himself when your child loses it mid-flight. These people hate your kids for just being kids. Yes, Brian Crisp, this is you. And to save us both the pain of sitting next to each other on our next flight, if you could move a few seats along, that would be great. Donna Kramer is Escape's family holiday writer. More plane hates and tips: The Numb Bum Index: Plane comfort ratings Five secrets to finding cheap airline tickets The worst bits of flying - BO, babies and big blokes Flight etiquette: What not to do on a plane