Car seat "behind" exit row?

GoingtoWDWagain

All because two people fell in love.....
Joined
Jan 6, 2003
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Hi Again, I have 4 seats reserved on AA "behind the exit row", while traveling w/ a car seat, is this okay? I checked the seats on-line and there are no seats remaining. I do not want to be seperated.

Thanks in advance for any information!
 
Originally posted by GoingtoWDWagain
Hi Again, I have 4 seats reserved on AA "behind the exit row", while traveling w/ a car seat, is this okay? I checked the seats on-line and there are no seats remaining. I do not want to be seperated.

Thanks in advance for any information!

I would suggest you call AA and ask.
 
This just happened to us on our trip in January on Delta. The flight attendant wouldn't allow the car seat in the seats behind the exit row but there were some nice passengers who switched with us so it wouldn't be a problem.
 
Same thing happened to us on USAir. The stewardess found a couple willing to switch. We did end up split 2 and 2, not a big deal for us.
 

It's a forbidden position for a carseat. Tell the airline now that you need to use a carseat in the window position, and they *might* be able to switch you 1 for 1 with the passengers directly behind you; it would depend on the size of the party. Failing that, notify the gate agent when you arrive at the airport that you will be using a carseat and that the seats have to be changed. The gate agent might be able to switch you with another party, but if that doesn't work, the FA *will* do it, as the other posters have pointed out. It's much easier on everyone concerned if you can get it done before you board, though.

Generally it isn't difficult to get another party to take these seats as long as you have the whole row. If you had been seated in *front* of the exit row it would be a much bigger problem; those seats don't recline, so no one wants to sit there.
 
We've switched a couple times with people who were put into exit rows (etc.) with car seats or children. We recently got free headsets and drinks on a flight for pointing out that exact problem and volunteering to take the exit seats before the FA even got to the row! It was a row for row switch, so everyone was happy--especially us for the extra legroom! (The free drinks didn't hurt either LOL!)

Anne
 
I picked my own seats on Travelocity. I knew not to pick the actual exit row. What's the issue with 'behind the exit row'? Sorry if this is a dumb question, I just don't see why it would be a problem....Thanks
 
I have sat behind and in front of the exit row with car seats and not had a problem. The car seat has to be in the window and if you have more than one car seat depending on the carrier they will not allow both in the same row.
 
Technically, the exit row *and* the rows directly before and behind it are normally forbidden rows for carseat installation on US carriers. Some airlines may not enforce the rule about the row behind the exit row, and to be honest, I've never been able to find an explanation about why carseats should not be in that row. However, the FAA definitely requires that carseats not be directly in front of an exit row, b/c it could interfere with being able to open the door. The row of seats in front of the exit row has seatbacks which are set to be able to collapse forward in an emergency, so as to widen the crawlspace out of the exit, and to provide better maneuvering room to open the door. If there is a carseat strapped in there, you can't collapse it forward.

Carseats must be positioned where they do not impede egress from the plane (translate that as "where no adult would have to crawl over it to get out of the row.") In practical terms this means that on a widebody, the seat can go in the middle seat of a row in the middle section, otherwise, and on all single-aisle aircraft, the seat has to go in a window position, *UNLESS* you have more than one seat and only one adult, in which case the seats should be installed as window and center, with the accompanying adult on the aisle. (I've never seen anyone attempt to put more than 2 carseats in one row, but I suppose you could do it on a widebody if you had an adult at either side. I don't think more than 2 with only one adult is allowed.)

Also, though carriers won't tell you this, a word of warning about using a carseat in a row directly in front of a fixed bulkhead; try hard to avoid it! Very often, the only way to release a strapped-in toddler carseat when the buckle is behind it, is to reach in between the seat cushions from the back, which is pretty impossible if there is a wall behind it. TWA assigned me that spot once, and I had to wait for a mechanic to come & disassemble the seat so that I could get the carseat out. Beware of getting assigned that last non-reclining row.

BTW, There is also a rule about how many lap-babies may be seated in an otherwise completely occupied row. The limit is one lap baby per row section. The reason for this rule is the oxygen masks, b/c there is only one extra mask per row section. If you had two adults and two lap babies (say, a couple w/ infant twins) the parents could not be seated in the same row unless they split across an aisle.
 
The reason the car seats are forbidden has to do with stowing the door in the event of an emergency. Look at the diagram. On most planes you are to open the door and toss it into another row. Logically the people behind you woud move, but if it is a child stuck in the car seat!
 
(sound of hand striking forehead) Of course, why didn't I think of that? I've read that darn diagram a hundred times, but I didn't think of that; I suppose I just assumed that if I had to move that door I'd be pushing it out of the plane. I don't think I'd be strong enough to heave it back over a row of seats.
 
Originally posted by CarolA
The reason the car seats are forbidden has to do with stowing the door in the event of an emergency. Look at the diagram. On most planes you are to open the door and toss it into another row. Logically the people behind you woud move, but if it is a child stuck in the car seat!


I think the door is designed to open out and you toss it away from the plane.
 
Not always. Look at the diagram. Some of them go out, but in almost ALL instances you actually pull the door towards you to open it and you could easily put in in the row ahead of or behind you. (I have acutally opened one of these years ago. It was not an emergency, I was allowed to tour an airline training facility.)
 














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