FAA and Car Seats: Flying with Children

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With summer upon us and all our fun trips we have planned, we are going to talk a little about flying with children and the importance of using child restraints on airplanes (including personal aircraft).

Airlines allow parents to fly with children younger than two years old in their arms. This is known as flying with a “lap baby”. Some of you have or know someone who has flown with a lap baby. After all, it can be viewed as a cost savings for a family going on vacation. Some simply can’t afford the extra seat at the time.

But many parents don’t understand the seriousness of flying with a lap baby. Simply holding a baby is not sufficient to ensure their safety in cases of severe turbulence. “We’ve seen airplanes go through turbulence recently and drop 4,000 feet in a split second,” said Sara Nelson, international president of the Association of Flight Attendants. “The G-forces are not something even the most loving mother or father can guard against and hold their child. It’s just physically impossible.”

Many flights experience turbulence at some point. There is no 100 percent way of knowing how severe the turbulence will be. If your child is on your lap, you will not be able to keep them there in such events. This would result in your baby flying through the aircraft hitting the hard surfaces such as the ceiling. This could cause serious injury or could even be fatal. Or the rare — but possible — cases of chunks of a plane’s bodywork being ripped away, leaving a gaping hole in the plane. An incident that reignited the argument for not allowing lap babies.

In order to prevent any potential injuries, please always remember to bring and use your car seat on the airplane.

FAA recommendations for flying with children

Although airlines allow for children under 2 to sit on a parents lap, the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) recommends for all young children to sit in a FAA approved car seat at all times during a flight. Flight attendants with the AFA are pushing for FAA to update safety regulations to not allow lap babies.

The National Transportation Safety Board has recommended the FAA require child restraints for children under 2 on airplanes since 1979. But FAA analyses found, if forced to buy an extra airline ticket, many families would drive instead of fly. And driving, they point out, is a far more dangerous way to travel.

If the child is under the age of 2 years old, it is recommended for a child to be rear facing in their child restraint seat (CRS). If you are a parent like me that practices extended rear facing (rear facing over the minimum age requirements) then you can rear face to 3 or even 4 years old as long as your seat is approved to do so.

The FAA recommends children older than age 2 and under 40 pounds also use a car seat on the airplane. You need to purchase an airline seat for them anyway, so bringing their car seat on the plane makes sense. FAA recommends children over 40 pounds use the seat belt on the airplane seat.

Be Airline Ready

When purchasing your airline ticket be sure to purchase a ticket for your baby or toddler so you will have that extra seat. Reserve the window seat for your child’s car seat. Many airlines require this placement for emergency exit procedures.

For children under age two, you can ask the airline about discounts for young children or unoccupied available seats on the flight. Though unoccupied seats are becoming more and more rare. Many times airlines will offer unoccupied seats for little to no cost so that your child may ride safely.

Always make sure the car seat being used has an approved FAA sticker on it. Otherwise you will NEED to purchase a car seat for the flight. Most car seats to date have this sticker. Most — not all. Booster seats on the other hand are not FAA approved since they require a lap-shoulder seat belt and, obviously, airlines only have lap belt.

Along with making sure you have a seat and your car seat is FAA approved, check with the airlines to make sure your seat will fit their seat. Just because a car seat is approved for use on aircraft, it may not may not fit the airline seat. Many car seats are between 17 and 21 inches wide, too wide to secure in a narrow airline seat. The FAA recently released a ruling that requires air carriers to provide information online so passengers can check before flying and confirm their child restraint will fit the airline’s seat.

Travel easier, travel with a RideSafer travel car seat.

The Federal Aviation Administration’s Advisory Circular says no airline “may prohibit a child from using an approved* CRS (Child Restraint System) when the parent/guardian purchases a ticket for the child.” It also states that if the child restraint doesn’t fit in the specific seat assigned to the child, the airline needs to try to accommodate it in different seat within the same service class.

The Circular also says “CRSs must be installed in forward-facing aircraft seats, in accordance with instructions on the label. This includes placing the CRS in the appropriate forward or aft-facing direction as indicated on the label for the size of the child.” This means you must use the seat in a forward-facing airplane seat. Not, dear flight attendants, that the car seat has to be forward facing. The car seat should be installed in the forward-facing airplane seat in either a forward facing or rear facing direction, which is dependent on the seat’s specifications for the child’s size.

Another form of restraint for the airplane is the CARES harness system. (CARES can only be used on airplanes and cannot be used in a car.) Some airlines will provide one for children forward facing from 22lbs – 40lbs. They also offer one for disabled preteens, teen and adults 58” or taller.

Baggage check your car seat?

Most, if not all, airlines offer complimentary car seat check-in. If you do check your car seat on the airplane:

• bring an inexpensive, lightweight car seat instead of your everyday seat to keep that one safe and ready for your return
• bag it either in a travel bag or plastic bag to keep from losing parts
• put a baggage tag on the car seat
• gate checking may provide slightly better handling and get your car seat back faster to put in the stroller, if you have that type

That said, keep in mind that airlines do not handle your luggage with care. Your luggage is ripped off the plane and thrown on the conveyor belt then thrown on the next plane. Sometimes with such force it has pretty much the same effect as a vehicle crash. You may never want to use your car seat again after watching a typical luggage gate check.

If you don’t believe me feel free to hop on over to YouTube and type in “airline and gate checking baggage“. The airlines do not pay employees to make your child’s car seat top priority. They are paid to get the luggage changed over as quickly as possible. I know that sounds harsh, but it’s the truth. You want this seat to protect your child’s life, therefore you need to treat it in such a way for it to do so.

That in itself is a pretty good reason to bring the seat on the plane with you to use for your child. Don’t you think?

Other options for safety when flying with children

Don’t think that if you have a little baby you can babywear on the airplane as a way of saving on the cost of a seat and keeping your baby safer — not depending on your arms to hold them down in turbulence. Regulations dictate that babies must be removed from carriers like the Ergobaby or Baby Bjorn during take off and landing.

If your child is big enough to do so (around 4 years and 40 lbs), you can have them sit buckled on the airplane seat. Bring a belt positioning device such as the RideSafer Travel Vest or BubbleBum in your carry-on bag for your car travels once you land.

I still would not trust for it to be in my luggage. I would definitely rather it be in my carry on bag and not thrown around like an old rag doll. And then I’ll be absolutely sure I have it, even if something happens to my luggage.

All in all, you want to do what’s best for your child. And safety is key when it comes to your child’s safety and life!

(SR4K note: The RideSafer is not FAA approved at this time. However, the manufacturer is working with the FAA to be able to allow the RideSafer to be used on the airplane as well as the car.)

We want to know, have/do you always use a car seat when flying with children? Share your comments below.

Guest post: Lacey Haynes is a stay at home mom and a CPST (Child Passenger Safety Technician). She has six children, two of which are disabled. As if that doesn’t keep her busy enough, she suffers from Lupus, which leaves her very sick a lot of the time. Her husband works with the mines. He is gone a lot, sometimes for weeks or even months at a time.

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We originally published this post in June 2017. We updated the article for accuracy and comprehensiveness.