Cars Seats on Airplane

[sheri4641]

Does anyone know off hand if we are required to bring car seats/booster for the flight? (3/6 year old??)

 

[only1alexa]

Does anyone know off hand if we are required to bring car seats/booster for the flight? (3/6 year old??)

No. You aren't required to bring either and you can't bring a booster if you wanted to. They aren't approved for airline use, though most car seats are. I use an FAA approved restraint that I can use with the plane's seatbelt when I go - it's safer than using only the plane's seatbelts and prevents the hassle of dealing with a car seat on board.

 

[TaraZ]

I always fly with my DD's carseat (though, she is younger-- just 2). It gives her something of her's that she is used to-- and I need it for car travel anyway. I'd guess the 6 y.o. would be okay.

 

[gabriellyn]

We used a car seat for our toddler DS this past trip - necessary due to his wiggly-ness. Our 6yo didn't need one. If your 3yo isn't very wiggly you might consider the C.A.R.E.S. harness - certified for use on aircraft, but a bit pricey if you don't fly often.

The car seat was a bit of hassle but worth it - we used a luggage dolly which made it easy to tote around the airport. It was difficult to scan at the MCO airport though - had no problems on the outbound, bigger machines I guess.

Good luck!

 

[all4fun]

Does anyone know off hand if we are required to bring car seats/booster for the flight? (3/6 year old??)

The FAA does not require car seats but they do recommend them for children under 40lbs.
http://www.faa.gov/passengers/fly_children/crs/

As a pp said, boosters w/out an internal harness are not airline approved so you have to check them.

hth

 

[Minniemouse07]

Here is a great resource w/ info about using car seats on airplanes. We just traveled w/ our 2yo and 6yo. Our 2yo used his car seat but the 6yo just used the seat belt.

Another consideration is what kind of transporation will you be using once you arrive. If you are taking DME and then using WDW transporation... the 6yo won't need anything and you can just store the 3yo's car seat in the room (we found this easy to do). You cannot use any car or booster seats on DME because there are no seat belts.

If you are renting a car, I would take a low back booster ON THE PLANE as a carry on for the 6yo. This will ensure that the booster arrives with you and that it arrives w/o damage.

I volunteer as a car seat technician so I'm a bit anal about car seat usage!

 

[sheri4641]

Thank you all very much.. so much to think about.

 

[_queenie_]

Don't flame me, but I've never put my kids in a carseat on the plane. Less hassle, if someone in the airport said something I would consider/would have considered it though.

 

[sheri4641]

My girls have never been on a plane so never thought about this until now... still not sure what to do - they sit well, it is the safety issue..

 

[tlloftus]

You can rent the Cares unit on Ebay. We will be doing that for our DS in April.

 

[sheri4641]

We leave in 9 days... I can hardly wait, so it may not be shipped in time... any suggestions on what we should do first. I haven't been for 16 years, DH has never been nor have DD's... our flight arrives at 1000 am. I was thinking of going right to MK?

 

[kim_o]

My girls have never been on a plane so never thought about this until now... still not sure what to do - they sit well, it is the safety issue..

Yes, safety is the issue. When I have some spare time I'll try to find the links...

In turbulence, little ones can go flying when not properly restrained. There was a recent case where a canada plane hit some unexpected turbulence and had a huge drop, injuring quite a few people on the plane. The plane seat belts aren't made for children, so they can easily slip out of them in a case like that.

Most plane accidents are on the tarmac. Therefore, the logistics and crash forces are similar to traveling in a vehicle. Again, young children not restrained properly in car seats have a higher chance of injury.

 

[ZeroMyHero]

I agree with the PP. I've read too many articles about lap babies and young children without carseats on planes getting injured (including skull fractures) during turbulence, so there is no way I would ever fly without using a car seat for a child under 40 lbs. They're safer, they have a familiar piece of home with them, and they are better able to see out the window. Also, we made transporting our car seat through the airport easier by purchasing a backpack sort of thing that allows you to carry it on your back (minus your child, of course). To me, safety outweighs convenience every time.

 

[amarberry]

I have a question for the experts. We are taking a long flight in May. In the past, we have always brought a carseat for DD on flights. She will be almost 4 and currently weighs just around 40 pounds. I am leaning towards bringing her Britax Marathon on the plane, but am concerned that she is getting too big to fit in the airline seat with her seat. Any thoughts?

 

[TaraZ]

As long as the Marathon fits (I have a Roundabout, so I think yours *should* fit), I'd say go for it. BUT-- try to get a bulkhead seat. While you will lose underseat storage, the extra room is a godsend with a kiddo. Plus, you do not have to worry about the seat in front of your DD reclining too far back or her kicking it (I've dealt with both!!!)

 

[Minniemouse07]

We just flew w/ a Boulevard in December ...rear facing even!.. and it fit fine in the seats on Southwest. So a Marathon should fit fine as well.

I do NOT recommend the bulkhead seats for two reasons...

First, you cannot raise up the armrests in these seats. Car seats sometimes fit better if you raise up the armrests.

Second, there is nowhere to stash your stuff other than the overhead compartments. I find this difficult to work w/ when flying w/ kids.

When we fly our kids both carry their own (okay I carry ds', he's only 2yo) backpack that holds their "toys" and airplane amusements. This goes under the seat in front of them and it makes it easy to keep them occupied during the flight.

Check out the link I posted above.. it has some great tips about installing the seat on the plane!

HTH!

 

[kim_o]

I have a question for the experts. We are taking a long flight in May. In the past, we have always brought a carseat for DD on flights. She will be almost 4 and currently weighs just around 40 pounds. I am leaning towards bringing her Britax Marathon on the plane, but am concerned that she is getting too big to fit in the airline seat with her seat. Any thoughts?

I have Blvds and can install then on the plane foward facing or rear facing, so a Marathon will definitely fit. I would recommend bringing the car seat, especially on long plane rides. Your DS will have an easier time sleeping/napping in her car seat than without it. AS a pp said, when you check in you can request a bulk head row, which will give you all more room as well as prevent DD from kicking the seat in front of her, or the person in front of her reclining back.

 

[NotUrsula]

There is no official standard for height in the recommendation, but IME, it matters. I found that with most airlines' coach seat pitch, a child who is taller than about 46" will not be comfortable in a carseat. What will happen is that the carseat will raise the angle of his/her lower legs, causing the child's feet to be squashed up against the bottom of the seatback pocket in front. Just not enough room for a long-legged kid at that point. A child who carries most of his/her torso would probably be OK a bit longer, maybe up to 48" or so.