Most likely is the ear pressure but our 9-month old is a fussy feeder and won't breastfeed or take a bottle or dummy in public 75% of the time...doesn't help that he's smack in the middle of teething too. Our main strategy is just to avoid flying or postpone travelling where possible but this trip was unavoidable unfortunately. No-one likes having a screaming baby on their flight, but I guarantee you that the parents like it even less. As I said, most people were extremely understanding, and the other young mother sitting next to us on the flight home was so helpful also when we were almost at our wits end.
It's actually made me examine my pre-baby attitude, and I curse my younger self for not having more compassion for parents travelling with young children.