

A Sydney mother has lodged a formal complaint with Jetstar after another passenger struck her 12-month-old child "on purpose" with a reclining seat.

Sunny, who requested Fairfax Media withhold her last name, claims the other passenger used her chair to intentionally lash out after becoming irritated with her young daughter, Lily, during a Sunday night flight to Sydney from Melbourne.

Sunny and her daughter Lily.

"It was really vindictive," said Sunny. "My impression was she just wanted [Lily] to shut up."

The incident, which resulted in the two passengers being separated for the rest of the flight, touches on two common causes of mid-air tension – reclining seats and issues with other people's children – that have resulted in air rage incidents on other flights in the past 12 months.