Car Seat on Airplane??

[lkaanda]

We are trying to plan a trip for Feb.. We may be flying down and are trying to decide what to do about our youngest. He will be 21 months old when we go and we are not sure if we should get him a seat or have him sit on our laps. If we do get him a seat, we don't know if we should bring his car seat or if at that age he would be better in the plane seat. I am wondering what other poeple have done and what you would recommend. Thanks for the help!

 

[gw_lit]

I would recommend buying the seat for the child. When our children were young, we just treated it like a car ride, they had to be strapped into their car seat. I think in a lot of ways, its more familiar and comforting to them to be in their own seat that they're already used to.

At 21 months old I would definitely use a car seat (assuming it's approved for airplane use, of course!) and not just rely on the plane's seat belts.

 

[Disneyland_Mama]

We're putting our 25 month old in a car seat. Reason being, he is used to it and this is his first airplane trip and the car seat will be familar and also will give him a little height to see out the window.
Our 4 year old is going sans carseat. I think she'll do better with out it and this is not her first flight, so she knows what is going on.
Good luck and have a great trip!

 

[mochabean]

If you will be renting a car or using a towncar, you'll need the carseat anyway for that so it's just as easy to bring it and use it for the plane too. What we've done in the past for our under-2 daughter is to bring the carseat and ask at the gate if the flight is full. If it's not they will usually let you take the carseat on the plane and use an extra seat without charging you. Our success rate with that was about 50/50. The flights home in the afternoon were often full. In those cases we gate-checked the car seat.

If you end up buying him a seat I would strongly suggest bringing the carseat, for safety reasons if nothing else. It will protect him much better than the plane seatbelts in case of turbulence or anything.

 

[beachgrl001]

since Im renting a car I'll need my car seat anyway. I know my 25month old will be more content in his car seat. If I didnt bring it there is no way that he would be sitting still. Although Im definately not looking forward to dragging it through the airport!

 

[HappyCamperToo]

Make sure the seat has the sticker on it for air travel. Many booster-type seats which require the shoulder belt are not safe for airplanes. Those can sometimes be put in the overhead bin.

 

[ducklite]

I can't imagine trying to contain a squirmy 21 month old on an airplane without them repeatedly kicking the seat in front of them or really raising caine and wanting to get down.

Do yourself and everyone else a favor--buy the seat and use the familiar car seat. Your child will be safer and happier, and it will be safer for them.

Anne

 

[lkaanda]

Thanks for all your input. I think we will get him his own seat and bring the car seat. I did not realize about the sticker to see if it is okay on a plane. We were wondering how we would know if it was one of the types that is okay to bring. Hopefully the type we have is right. Thanks again.

 

[katerkat]

If you buy a seat, an under-2 has to be in a carseat. Carseat also has to be in the window seat. I flew with DS on my lap (carrying the carseat and getting about 50/50 luck with scoring a free seat) until he was about 13 months, then he was just too squirmy for me to contain anymore. In December, he'll be 20 months, and he's getting a seat. Most of the typical carseats have the FAA stickers - we have a Evenflo Triumph.

Oh, but don't expect the carseat to prevent seat kicking. The carseat puts their feet up and inches from the tray table, so you get to play the fun game of holding the feetsies down. I'm taking duct tape on our next flight. And if the person in front of you reclines, they recline right into the toddler's feet. THAT'S always fun.