An angry plane passenger argued with the grandmother of a rowdy child in the middle of a flight.

The male flier was furious when the four-year-old allegedly kept banging and scratching on his chair before an argument ensued between him and the boy's guardian in Hainan, China.

Footage shows the traveller shouting at the grandmother and grandson 20 minutes after the GX Airlines plane took off from Haikou Meilan International Airport on February 3.

He allegedly asked the kid to stop but without success so he turned around to confront them onboard the Airbus A320.

He said: 'Can you still? You have been causing trouble since we took off.'

However, the preschooler ignored the passenger and then shouted back at him, ordering him to get out of the plane instead.

The boy's grandmother did not apologise and was angry at the passenger.

She said: 'You should be ashamed arguing with a child like that. You have no manners at all.'

The passenger retorted: 'Your grandson has been disturbing me this whole time, and you did nothing. If you will not discipline him, someone has to.'

The argument continued, with cabin crew members starting to intervene.

The kid's grandmother said: 'He is just a child. You are a grown man. Are you really comparing yourself to him?'

A flight attendant finally came between them and asked the male passenger if he would like to move to another seat.

The crew member said: 'Sir, we can arrange a different seat for you.'

The offer was declined, and the furious passenger said: 'Why should I move? He was the one bothering me. If anyone needs to switch seats, it should be them.'

The flight went on without any of them changing seats but the boy went quiet after the argument.

Han, who witnessed the scene from the back row, said: 'Should we tolerate or discipline children who make trouble in the plane? It was a stressful flight.'