Help installing Car Seat on Plane

[Daisy-J&D]

Let me preface this by saying I'm a worrier and need to call my airline and ask as well but I was also hoping for some parent to parent advice.

We're flying on an Airbus A319/A320 and the width of the seats are 17.83 inches. We have 3 booked together. Our car seat is a Britax Boulevard with a base approx. 11 inches that flares up to 19 inches.

Question - Do you normally instally car seats with the arm rests up or is my seat not going to fit because it is a little over 1 inch too big at it's widest? I've read tips about reclining the seat and turning the buckle around but none about the position of the arm rest. Any help would be GREATLY appreciated.

Also, on the off chance, has anyone flown Air Canada with a child in a car seat? Will it have to be window installed?

Thanks!!

 

[crashbb]

I'm not any help on the actual installing, but AC has always made my brother install my nephew's carseat in the window seat (in a single aisle airplane) and I've never seen a carseat installed anywhere else on any of my AC flights.

My last suggestion (not that you asked about it) is to send your husband onto the plane first (with pre-boards, if they do that) to install the seat while you stay in the airport with your child, boarding close to the end of boarding. Or you board with the chair and your husband stays out with your child. This limits how long your child is stuck on the plane but still allows extra time for the installation of the car seat.

 

[wacowgirl]

Are you able to check it at the gate? Or does AC make you use your car seat?

I've never seen anyone use their child's car seat on a plane so thus my confusion.

 

[Dreamingin2010]

It will fit but you will likely need to put the seat at the window and the armrest will be up. If you're installing FFing, you'll need to ask for a belt extender from the FA as you board. Otherwise, the buckle ends up in the belt path and there isn't enough room in the belt path to lift the lever to unbuckle it.Shorten the regular seatbelt and then buckle using the extender It will make buckling and unbuckling much easier. If you can't get the extender then make sure you flip the buckle (so it releases toward the plane seat) around so you can unlock it.

 

[Dreamingin2010]

Use your seat on the plane. Do not gate check or check a carseat. Think about how they handle luggage. They treat your child's carseat the same way.

 

[sam_gordon]

Make sure your carseat has a sticker on it that says it's certified for aircraft use.

I've used car seats on planes twice (ok four times if you count two planes in each direction). Here are my tips...

1) Get a car seat carry bag with wheels (similar to this: )
It will help get the car seat through the airport.
2) Take the car seat out of the bag/put it back in the bag in the gate area (not on the plane or on the jetway).
3) My seat had a "pass thru" so you can put your hand through the seat cushion to help fasten it. I never needed an belt extender.

YMMV

 

[jk2006]

We have Britax Blvds at home, but bought Cosco Sceneras for travel to Disney, it is rated well but is not as plush, is lighter & narrower so works great. And it is super cheap, they go on sale for $40. http://www.target.com/p/Cosco-Scenera-Convertible-Car-Seat-45-Transatlantic/-/A-10977802

Any seat is fairly easy to install, just put the belt through & tighten down. Good for you for taking a carseat on the plane, so much safer that way.

Like PP said, make sure you know where the "FAA approved" sticker is on it. I held up the line once looking all over the darn seat for it, people behind me weren't pleased. We have always had to install the seat in the window spot.

Good Luck!

 

[cel_disney]

We do the following:

DH boards first and installs the seat - only needed the belt extender once but not every time (we've taken them on 8 flights now).

Im pretty sure its the law that the seats go against the window (you are not allowed to block anyone in with a carseat..

We put the arm rest up or the seat install.

We havent used a carseat bag, we've just put the straps on our shoulders like a backpack.

 

[Hannathy]

I've checked car seats plenty of times and they were fine, if you want to check it just put it into some sort of bag so it doesn't get wet or dirty.

 

[sam_gordon]

Im pretty sure its the law that the seats go against the window (you are not allowed to block anyone in with a carseat..

But the FA's may not enforce this. On our trip to MCO in June, when we got to our seats another family had installed a car seat in the middle seat. DD(12) had the window. They offered for the mom (who was in the aisle) to swap with DD but DD wanted the window.

FA's never said anything.

 

[Brian Noble]

FA's never said anything.

They should have. Back when we used them, we were *always* told that it had to be in the window seat.

OP: the FAA has some more information on using seats on the plane:
http://www.faa.gov/passengers/fly_children/crs/

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

Your car seat sounds too big for the seat. You might want to consider a previous poster's suggestion to buy a smaller, cheaper seat for travel.

Arm rests are supposed to be down for take-off and landing. This may or may not be enforced by flight attendants. You also are supposed to put a car seat in the window position on a one aisle plane.

On our trip to MCO in June, when we got to our seats another family had installed a car seat in the middle seat. DD(12) had the window.

This was completely unsafe and as a parent, I would not have allowed my child to remain at that window seat. What if there had been an emergency?

You should only post the same query once:

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2791033

 

[Brian Noble]

Arm rests are supposed to be down for take-off and landing.

I was under the impression this was only arm rests on the aisles, but that interior armrests can be up. Could be wrong about that.

 

[sam_gordon]

This was completely unsafe and as a parent, I would not have allowed my child to remain at that window seat. What if there had been an emergency?

Honestly I went with the odds... the odds of having an emergency where I can't help make sure my soon to be teen DD gets out of her seat (EXTREMELY remote) vs. the odds of having an upset soon to be teen DD because she couldn't have the window seat (DEFINITE).

If the FA would have said something we would have worked something out.

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

I was under the impression this was only arm rests on the aisles, but that interior armrests can be up. Could be wrong about that.

It's all arm rests. Keep in mind that on some planes, the arm rests don't even go up all the way anyway.

On the OP's other thread, she already found out that Air Canada requires the arm rests to be down.

 

[Brian Noble]

Interesting, because I could *swear* that the standard Delta announcement is "aisle armrests"---and I hear that announcement a LOT these days. Sadly, I have already qualified for Gold this year, and may hit Plat by the time the year is out...still have at least one flight to the EU and several more transcontinentals to go.

 

[maciec]

We usually fly Airtran and I cannot tell you that I have ever heard them announce that the arm rests have to be down. Interesting. I wonder about Southwest because that's who we are flying with in October.