Written by Jane Park-Dolan
You’ve studied up and gotten thorough pregnancy, labor and birth. Now here unfolds the next chapter in the dog days of parenthood; moving your child about the planet. For most of us that means flying and gone are the days of showing up 30 minutes before your flight with your little bundle of joy in a blanket and four suitcases to check. We live in the “Age of Safety” and it would be in your best interest to spend a little time getting acquainted with the rules of air travel for you and baby in the post 9/11 age.
By now we’ve all heard at least one terrible story about a mother having to pour out (or worse, test drink) her own breast milk when going through airport security. There was a lot of confusion in the beginning of the new restrictions and a lot of angry parents in the air trying to soothe hungry infants. At the time of this article, the Federal Aviation Agency has eased restrictions for the following liquids: medications, baby formula and food, breast milk and juice. They request “reasonable amounts” to be taken on planes whereas all other admissible liquids are limited to no more than 3 ounces. This is wonderful news for parents especially nursing mothers who pump and store breast milk. No more hungry flying babies.
The Federal Aviation Agency (www.faa.gov) strongly recommends using an FAA approved car seat when traveling by air with your child. For children 20 pounds and under, an FAA approved rear-facing infant seat will do and for kids 20-40 pounds, an FAA approved forward-facing car seat is “strongly recommended.” Kids over 40 pounds may use the seatbelt or the FAA approved CARES harness, the only harness accepted. You are still allowed to seat your child (under 2) on your lap and keep them there for the duration of the flight; however, the FAA does not recommend this.
In addition to the safety factor, what the car seat recommendation means is that traveling with your child recently got a lot more expensive and a lot more cumbersome. The “rules” vary from airline to airline. And it is important, no, imperative that you telephone your airline and speak directly with a human about your particular airline’s way of doing things. For example, many airlines will offer discounted fares for seats purchased for children under 2 years of age (up to 50% in some cases), but some do not offer such discounts at all. Should you decide to roll the dice and come to the airport, car seat in hand, 20 month-old child in the other hand, only to find there are no seats left on your sold out flight, you will be holding that squirmy baby on your lap for the duration of your potentially turbulent, interminable flight no matter how dangerous. What to do in the conundrum of comfort versus expense?
Many people feel all children should be in car seats on planes and lap seat privileges should be revoked altogether for safety reasons. These people will purchase tickets for their kids or simply not travel. As long as lap travel is allowed and the purchase of seats for those travelers under 2 is not mandatory, here are some things to consider:
The length of the flight. Is it just a 45 minute jumper or a cross-country haul? Will your child sit comfortably on your lap for 45 minutes or will you have a wildcat on your hands after just 5 minutes? If the answers to these questions make you shiver, you should cough it up for the seat. Halfway to New York while your crazymaker sleeps soundly in his car seat next to you, whatever the airlines charged, will seem like a bargain.
If you’re going to “wing it” and try to get a free seat to put a car seat in for your baby/toddler, travel during off times when flights are apt to have empty seats. Saturday mornings are better than Friday nights. Wednesday late-mornings are better than Sunday afternoons when everyone is coming home from weekend getaways. Try calling the airline before you leave for the airport to find out how full the flight is so you can at least mentally prepare yourself if it’s filling up fast. If no seats are available, you’ll have to gate check your car seat and hold baby on your lap.
Allow a lot of time to get to the airport and check in. No, really, I mean a lot. Forget the time you used to think you needed to select a magazine and a snack for the plane. Traveling with a child means being ready for the unexpected. Getting on and off the parking shuttle with your little one and your bags. The long line at security check culminating in your shoes coming off and your toddler’s shoes coming off – and then back on of course. The explosive diaper ten minutes before boarding. The line for the handicapped bathroom stall so YOU can pee before boarding. The worst thing that happens if you get there too early is you walk your baby around the place and burn off some nervous energy so he/she can sit still for the flight. Furthermore, many airlines have done away with the pre-board feature for families traveling with small children, so if you want that extra time now, you have to be first in line.
