car seat on plane for 2 year old?

[jbrnhrt]

this will be the first time any of us have flown, and we have a 2 yo and a 6 yo. we plan to gate check 6yo's booster car seat, but i'm not clear on regulations for a 2 year old. tsa says they recommend a car seat for children this age, and her seat is approved for use on a plane. i was planning on her sitting in it cuz she knows when she's in that seat she's gotta stay seated and find something quiet to do. but i'm just wondering if a 2 year old has to be in a car seat on the plane? a friend went to wdw 2 years ago with a 3yo and 4 yo twins and she said the twins only used the plane's lap belt andshe held the 3 year old. hasn't that changed? don't all kids have to have their own seat now starting at age 2?we have a rental car for our trip and can rent car seats, but i prefer using our personal seats. also, i see you can buy gate check bags for strollers and car seats but they don't have to.be in a bag, correct? just need the gate check tag?

 

[At World's End]

Children age 2 and up must have their own seat. I would bring your own car seat. Who knows what has happened in the rental seat The TSA does not require you to use a carseat, but as you say, it is recommended. It sounds like your DD will do fine in her own carseat. Just be prepared to install it using the lap belt method, and preboard to give yourself some time.

You can gate check strollers and car seats without putting them in a bag. The gate agent will give you the gate check tag.

 

[Alesia]

Children age 2 and up must have their own seat. I would bring your own car seat. Who knows what has happened in the rental seat The TSA does not require you to use a carseat, but as you say, it is recommended. It sounds like your DD will do fine in her own carseat. Just be prepared to install it using the lap belt method, and preboard to give yourself some time.

You can gate check strollers and car seats without putting them in a bag. The gate agent will give you the gate check tag.

And remember that the car seat will have to go in the window seat.

 

[jbrnhrt]

And remember that the car seat will have to go in the window seat.

thanks! we're planning 2 yo at window, then 6yo, then me at the aisle to keep them in, dh across the aisle

 

[PoohBear]

No, the airlines do not require a car seat for DD just that she has her own ticket if she is 2yo and up. We choose to take our boys' seats for the same reason as you. And I would definitely take your own seat if you are renting a car. I would not want a rental car seat
And as the others have said, must be window seat..no emergency exit row..must have FAA approval sticker on it...and you can gate check the stroller and the booster without bags, no problem there.

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

no emergency exit row

No one under age 15 can sit in an emergency row anyway.

 

[PoohBear]

No one under age 15 can sit in an emergency row anyway.

Sorry.

 

[disneyfaninaz]

I definintely recommend a car seat for your 2 yo, especially if she knows to stay put while she's in it. It will make the flight a lot more enjoyable for all of you.

 

[kaytieeldr]

Some suggestions:
- try to change your husband's seat to the window seat in front of the two-year-old
- if that's not possible, please remove the two-year-old's shoes while in the car seat
- in either case, please try to prevent said child from kicking the seat in front

Some comments:
* Not sure it's the TSA recommending car seats, they don't really care; even the FCC doesn't 'care', but if passengers are going to use car seats, they do need to have that sticker.
* All passengers age two and above need to be ticketed = have seats; children under two should have seats but are able to fly as lap passengers. The OP's friend who held a three-year-old for an entire flight either did so despite purchasing a ticket/seat for that child or, well, lied to the airline about the child's age (highlight 'blank' space to see comment).
* There shouldn't be any charge for the car seat bag, or you could just bring your own heavy-duty trash bag. The contractor trash bags - I know you can get them at Home Depot and Lowes - are SUPER-strong.

 

[Alesia]

thanks! we're planning 2 yo at window, then 6yo, then me at the aisle to keep them in, dh across the aisle

Have you considered two in one row and two in the row in front? Unless your 2 year old is very small, she will be kicking the seat in front of her.

 

[bumbershoot]

DS sat in his carseat until he was well into his 3s; by that time he was a relatively seasoned traveler and knew the deal about airline seats, so I trusted that he would be OK.

If you want to check the seat, I'd haul it through the airport and gate check it. I watched my carseat come crashing down the luggage carousel once (the other time I wasn't there as it came down and didn't realize) and it freaked me out. I will only gate check it now for our travel when we need a carseat.

 

[gina_g]

this will be the first time any of us have flown, and we have a 2 yo and a 6 yo. we plan to gate check 6yo's booster car seat, but i'm not clear on regulations for a 2 year old. tsa says they recommend a car seat for children this age, and her seat is approved for use on a plane. i was planning on her sitting in it cuz she knows when she's in that seat she's gotta stay seated and find something quiet to do. but i'm just wondering if a 2 year old has to be in a car seat on the plane? a friend went to wdw 2 years ago with a 3yo and 4 yo twins and she said the twins only used the plane's lap belt andshe held the 3 year old. hasn't that changed? don't all kids have to have their own seat now starting at age 2?we have a rental car for our trip and can rent car seats, but i prefer using our personal seats. also, i see you can buy gate check bags for strollers and car seats but they don't have to.be in a bag, correct? just need the gate check tag?

I would still put them in a bag, at least a contractor's type bag as a PP suggested. I have heard horror stories of car seats and strollers getting very dirty, even while gate checked. Or wet if it's raining.

 

[luvndizny]

I flew with both of my children (ages 13 mos. and 2 1/2 yrs. at the time) by myself from Germany to Baltimore I think it was? then on to Atlanta (and a 2 hour car drive after that)...and we all arrived fine albeit I think my make-up was a little 'off' afterwards.

I brought the big car seats with me both times flying and never had any problems. It REALLY helped that I had one of those double strollers because I just put their carseats inside the stroller itself and then they sat in those carseats instead of my trying to push a stroller and drag car seats, luggage, etc. around with me.

I always asked before each flight if they were going to be boarding families with young children first. Sometimes it seems like it was routine for them, sometimes you'd think I'd asked them to serve me caviar on a gold plate.... It REALLY helped to board first and I didn't have to feel bad possibly knocking the other passengers in the head with my big, clunky, car seats. Now granted, these flights were upwards of 10 hours long so no way was I going to hold either of them for that long. I liked having my hands free, etc.

I am curious though...I specifically remember not having a window seat at all on one flight (I *think* it was the international one, this was a few years ago) and, in fact, we were in a middle row of about 5 seats. (Pretty sure because of the size of the flight it was the international one.)

Anyways, just wondering if the rules changed recently or was it because I was on the Germany to USA flight that we didn't have to have window seat?

Okay, so here are my tips to help keep little ones occupied/comfortable:

In my carry-on I brought easy to carry snacks pre-packaged in the snack-size ziploc bags- things like Animal crackers, etc.

I bought the mini versions of several games including Etch-a-Sketch, etc. that you can find at Walmart, among other places. I also bought cheapy stickers that they could stick on the seat in front of them. NOTE: I tried them out at home first (by myself) to make sure they would remove easily from plastic, etc. I CERTAINLY don't condone sticking them and leaving them on the seats! I later bought those toys that have the blank scenes and magnetic characters that you can move around to make your own scenes with and those were a hit! I saved all of the above as a surprise for the kids after we'd settled into the plane. (Of course, some cool Disney stickers would be perfect for them. )

We were fortunate to have the tv's in the back of each seat for one of the flights so the kids could pick what they wanted to watch. When I booked the trip I do remember asking for a flight that had it and I managed to get one. Again, this might be only for overseas trips, etc. Another tip is to ask for bulk-head seats. It might to be too late to do that, but I didn't even know about it as an option until an agent there at the airport offered it to me. (This was during that 5 hour layover.) She came up to me and said how great my kids were behaving (again I credit some of that to the mini-toys I'd bought them!!) and asked where in the plane were our seats...I showed her my tickets and she arranged to move us to the bulkheads. You are directly below a TV and behind a wall, but you have so much more legroom since there are no seats directly in front of you. Even during a part of the flight, my son got down on the floor and played and we had no problems!! Loved, loved, LOVED the bulk head seats. Now, granted the view to the TV wasn't all that great, but it didn't matter to us.

The only time my kids cried was during ascent/descent (sp?) of the plane...Mine never took to a pacifier and I nursed so I couldn't offer them a bottle and they, of course, are strapped in during those times. They obviously weren't old enough to chew gum, but your 6 year old can. It does seem to help with the plane pressurizing, etc. With my DD, I just had to bear through it and the crying stopped once we reached altitude. Besides, I don't think anyone could hear her over the sound of the engines, etc...she wasn't that loud.


*I'm sure your trip won't be near as long as mine was, but these things helped ALOT to keep my sanity. If I can fly by myself with two children for that long and still be able to say my ABC's after arriving, them I'm sure you'll do just fine.

Have a great trip!!

 

[Mommb]

I am curious though...I specifically remember not having a window seat at all on one flight (I *think* it was the international one, this was a few years ago) and, in fact, we were in a middle row of about 5 seats. (Pretty sure because of the size of the flight it was the international one.)

Anyways, just wondering if the rules changed recently or was it because I was on the Germany to USA flight that we didn't have to have window seat?

I've never brought a car seat on an international flight, so I don't know for sure about the rules. My guess is that car seats must go in window seat on planes with one aisle (as nearly all domestic flights have) because it would be difficult to get around the seat to exit in an emergency. If there are two aisles, then its possible the rule would not apply because passengers could use the aisle on the other side. As I said, that's just a guess though.

 

[luvndizny]

Oh but I'll bet you're right! When I think back on it, it definitely was the overseas flight and I do remember having the carseats near the windows on the other, shorter flights.

 

[stacy6552]

Airplane seats are shallower than most seats in cars, which is why a smaller child can sit in a plane seat (butt all the way back, knees bent at 90 degrees), without a carseat at a younger age than in cars. However if your 2 year old will sit better in the carseat, then by all means use it.

 

[nemofans]

As the 2 other posters said, we are a family of 4 & also divide into 2. I sit w/our 1 yr old & DH sits w/our 5 yr old in the row in front of us. This way I am not overloaded dealing w/both kids. Also, if my little one kicks the seat, it's Daddy's seat. One flight my 1 yr old was getting fussy & it was nice having DH & DS right in front of us. They did peekaboo w/the baby & did a puppet show too.
DS (5) has his own little backpack that I fill w/stuff for him to do & w/snacks. I keep it a surprise & he doesn't get to see what's in it til we are on the plane. He gets so excited to find out what i put in there & DH is set w/everything for him.
If your DH is in the aisle seat across from you, he can't help you. Keep him & possibly your 6 yr old in front of you.