What do baby sits in on a plane? about age 1?

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slimthing

they sit in your lap

annaethereal

As a flight attendant I would have to recommend that you bring a seat and purchase a ticket for your baby. It is true that you have no hope of holding on to your child if the plane hits severe turbulence or has to make an emergency landing.

As far as what flying is like for the baby, just like for you and me. That includes ears needing to be popped and all the other short lived unpleasant sensations caused by altitude changes. You should be certain to have pacifiers, sippy cups and some small toys. Pacifiers and bottles or sippy cups serve to help there ears pop so they are not so uncomfortable.

Good luck and enjoy your travels!

Andy

They usually sit on your lap

gromit801

The safest, is to sit them in an approved car seat. They CAN sit in your lap, but if the plane encounters air turbulence, your baby will become a projectile. There's no way you can hold and protect a child if the plane hit an air pocket.

Shortie1981

When my son was 1 he just sat on my lap but when you by the tickets you should say you have a one year old. you might have to by a seat and take the car seat for your child to put them in.

Eclipsepearl

I'm a former Flight Attendant and I fly a lot with my three children.

We always bring a car seat and I'm almost always alone. This is for the logic you give above. Flying is like driving and babies need to be safe. Why are they allowed in laps if it's not safe? Because the chances of anything going wrong with air travel is so much less that that in a car. Statistically, it's unlikely that anything will happen but if it does, the lap-held child is not protected.

Usually, if the child doesn't have a car seat, they have to be *loose* in your lap. It's dangerous to attach them in any way to either you or your seatbelt. Some airlines still use these "belly belts" but they're to keep the child from flying through the cabin and hurting other passengers. It does nothing to help the child himself and could turn him into a "human air bag" in forward impact. For this reason, they are banned by U.S., Canadian and German aircraft, among others...

So your options are;
1. save money and put your baby in your lap, trusting the safety of flying in general.
2. Buy a ticket for your baby and bring his car seat.
3. Don't buy a ticket and hope you get an empty seat (more on that below)

Before doing anything, be sure that your car seat is approved for use on aircraft. If you're flying on a U.S. company, see the below link for information on if it's approved. Most car seats, including infant buckets, sold in the U.S. are.

http://www.faa.gov/passengers/fly_children/crs/

If you are flying a non-U.S. company, see the information for your airline. If you search with the name of the airline, followed by "children", that will usually give you the right page.

This way, the seat will get to your destination without risking it being damaged or lost in luggage. On my last transatlantic with my kids, three of our four bags didn't make it but since we had the car seat with us, my daughter was safe for the 2 hour drive home (the bags arrived 2 days later). I saw at least two other seats while looking for our luggage. Wonder how they got home?

If you don't have a seat for him, request it nicely at check-in. Ask if the flight is full, and if not, they can "block" the seat next to you, only using it if they really need it. They often do this for families.

Bring the seat to the gate, even if they are unsure that you'll get a seat. Don't give up getting that last seat until you have to board so keep it with you. Also this way, if you don't manage it, they will "gate check" your seat, sending it down with the strollers and wheelchairs. This is gentlier than checking it in at the desk.

I also recommend trying to sit at the bulkhead. These are the seats with the wall in front, located in different places depending on the aircraft. Bulkheads are easier with children since no one is leaning in front of you and there's probably room to crawl on the floor.

If you have a travel system, you can use the stroller until you get to the door of the aircraft and then it'll be "gate checked". If not, use a stroller frame for a infant seat. You'll have it again, by the door of the aircraft when you arrive. If you have a convertible car seat (going to 40lbs), there are a number of contraptions you can use to wheel it around. I simply strap mine to a small metal luggage cart and that works great.

If you do have a stroller, bring a bungee cord and double secure it before leaving it at the door of the plane. They can get damaged if they pop open en route. Make sure the claim ticket can be seen and isn't squished or hidden. Be sure to ask when disembarking where the stroller is.

If you have a car seat for a larger child (as opposed to an infant bucket-style seat), here are some products you can use to get it through the airport;

http://www.gogobabyz.com/products/gogo_kids.html
http://www.amazon.com/Traveling-Toddler-Attach-Rolling-Carry/dp/B000JHN3AS
http://www.onestepahead.com/product/osa/363756.html

I simply strap mine (which is quite heavy) to a small metal luggage cart and use an extra bungee cord. This works great and didn't cost me a dime (since I had the cart from my flying days...)

For more information on flying with children, about 8 years ago I wrote a totally non-commercial article on the subject. Many parents have contributed over the years. I don't want to copy and paste extra information you didn't ask for so please feel free to visit;
http://flyingwithchildren.blogspot.com

My contact info is at the end.

Tell the Flight Attedants that it's your first flight when you board so that they can look out for you, especially since you're flying with a baby. I've been flying since I was a baby myself and did it for a living for 13 years and I never had anything scary happen.

I wish riding in a car were that safe!

Good luck!

Green Party Libris

Melissa gave the best answer. She knows what she is talking about, and I do not know Melissa but I endorse everything she says.

Melissa

There are 2 options for children under the age of 2. The first is that you buy yourself a ticket, and indicate that you will have a lap child. Your ticket must indicate the lap child, or they won't let your child fly with you. In that case, your child just sits in your lap during the flight. They make safety harnesses that you can use to attach the child to your seatbelt, but some people question their safety.

The other option is to buy the baby a ticket. Many carriers will offer half-price tickets for a child under the age of 2. In that case, you would need to bring your carseat on board, strap it into the seat, and strap the child in. This is definitely considered a safer option.

I've done it both ways. When I don't have someone traveling with me, it's hard to get the carseat, stroller, child, etc by myself and I've just taken the child on my lap. But it was far easier with the carseat.

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