Read Kristen Hilderman's letter here.

===

A Vancouver mother who felt shamed by a flight attendant after breastfeeding her son on an airplane says she's overwhelmed by the outpouring of support after she posted a complaint on social media Tuesday night.

Kristen Hilderman was on a United Airlines flight from Houston to Vancouver on Sunday evening when a male flight attendant approached her while she was breastfeeding her five-month-old son, according to her statement on Twitter.

She claims the flight attendant named Keith came up to her husband and in a loud voice asked him: "Are you two together?"

When her husband replied "yes," she said the flight attendant "tossed a blanket at him and said tersely: 'Then here, help her out.' "

Hilderman said she went beet red and asked him, "Help me out with what?" She said the flight attendant ignored her and so she continued to feed her son.

Her complaint on Twitter had gone viral by Wednesday afternoon, receiving more than 1,800 retweets and 880 favourites. Her story has been picked up by news agencies around the world.

She said United called her on Tuesday night and apologized for her "frustrating experience" and said that the airline would follow up with her in 48 hours about the incident.

"I really didn't think it was going to blow up like this," she said in an interview Wednesday. "I asked United what the followup would be and how they would handle it with the flight attendant and how they would handle it companywide, but I don't think they understood that this was turning into a big deal."

It is already difficult to feed a baby in the tight seating on airplanes, she said, so "it was frustrating to have that added judgment."

Hilderman said most people on the plane, and on social media, told her they support what she was doing and that she has a right to feed her baby in public places.

"He made me feel like I was doing something wrong by not having something over my son's head. Some people say, 'Oh you should just cover up,' but it's not that easy. Anyone who has tried to feed a baby at this age knows it is very difficult. I've tried to use a blanket just to see and it's not happening. He tears it off, he tries to put it in his mouth, and if he's trying to rip off the cover, he's not feeding," she said.

Her flight was diverted from Vancouver to Seattle due to fog. When passengers once again boarded the plane, Hilderman said, she found a blanket folded up on her seat.

"I am so furious about this entire incident," she said. "I've been breastfeeding my son in a myriad of public places since he was born and never has anyone made me feel so uncomfortable and ashamed for feeding my baby without putting a cover on his head."

She told The Sun she doesn't think the man should be fired from his job, but she does want to know what the airline's policy is on breastfeeding, and she hopes the company will allow women to feed their babies without having to cover their heads with blankets.

United Airlines has not yet returned a call requesting information about the incident and its policy on breastfeeding on United planes.

It's not uncommon for airlines to have a policy on breastfeeding. WestJet, for example, says in its flight attendant manual that mothers have the right to nurse their infants in a public place and says if a passenger expresses discomfort at the sight of a mother feeding her baby then flight attendants should move that person to another seat.

"The nursing mother does not need to be re-accommodated unless she requests to do so," the manual states. "It is unacceptable to suggest that a mother use a blanket to cover up or move to the lavatory to nurse."

ticrawford@vancouversun.com

===

Read the letter here:

Letter goes viral

===

Click here to report a typo or visit vancouversun.com/typo.

Is there more to this story? We'd like to hear from you about this or any other stories you think we should know about. CLICK HERE or go to vancouversun.com/moretothestory