Hi folks --

I don't fly CO much (I'm an AA guy most of the time), so I don't know how this works or what the official rules are. But here's the scenario.

My wife wants to travel alone with our toddler on a transcon this summer (I'll be with them one way but not both ways). Her parents are booked on the same flight in first class, while she and the kiddo don't have enough miles or $$ to sit upfront. She'd really rather not handle the kid for six-plus hours on her own and her parents would like to help her in-flight.

So our questions are these:

1) Will the flight crew get upset if my wife and her parents swap seats every hour or so, so everyone can take turns entertaining the kiddo in back? Can people in first freely swap with people in coach whenever they want in flight, however much they want?

2) The kiddo is under two, so she's technically allowed to sit on a lap. She will have her own seat in coach. But if she wants to go sit in first-class with grandma and grandpa for a while on their laps, will they allow that? (I realize many of you think kids shouldn't sit upfront at all, but if we could avoid that debate in this thread I'd be grateful).

Thanks for any insight you can offer... I realize that there may be official rules that don't always get enforced (but that we can't count on them not being enforced... sigh)

Ron

The only thing I can caution you of is that there are generally limits to lap babies based on the availability of the oxygen masks. Assuming that grandma and grandpa are sitting next to each other in F, there probably won't be another baby in that row, so they should be OK.

There have been posts here before about the swapping, specifically on flights to Hawaii, but yours isn't much different. The general concensus then was to do it, but be polite, and warn the FA in advance so they don't freak out.

I've swapped seats with my husband on 2 different flights to Hawaii without any problems.

The Policy & Procedures manual specifically says that it is allowed as long as it does not disrupt the "integrity" of the BF or F cabin. I don't believe there was a mention of how often you can swap.

As I said, we didn't have any problems and on our last flight, the BF attendant, upon hearing I was in cattle, brought me back a sundae

I would advise the F or BF attendant of your plans when boarding. If they give you a hard time, tell them to read the Policy manual

The manual also states that numerous switches are not acceptable, and that the switch is to be done, once, inflight, discreetly and with as little disruption as possible. I wouldn't mind a one time switch, but once an hour? I also don't think that bringing the child up front is a good idea, as it could cause the other pax to complain if she becomes fussy. Now, if the child was up front to begin with, that's a different story.

Maintaining the integrity of the cabin is important to CO and customers. I'd limit the transfering to a minimium with as little impact as possible. As mentioned earlier, be sure to alert the crew with your intent.

I agree once an hour is excessive.

BUT, my experience when doing the switch is that the children upfront are far more disruptive to the cabin than my husband & I switching seats, particularly since we make sure to have aisles.

Both times we did it there were toddlers running up & down the aisle in BF, and my last flight, a kid in the seat behind me kept on kicking it... on the HNL BF flight, you have to really try to kick the seat And no, I didn't say anything.

If the baby is under 2, why not just buy one seat in F for your wife and child? It's probably not much more money than two seats in the back, and would eliminate any problem with switching.

thanks everyone, this is helpful

climbermom -- we don't think it's a good idea to have no seat for the toddler on a six-hour flight, even if she is sharing a big (first-class) seat with her mom. letting her hang out on grandma and grandpa's lap for a while would be fine as a break from her coach seat, but no seat at all (whether in coach or first) seems like a bad idea (makes it hard to nap for one thing).

ron

Once an hour is absurd. Once per flight can be tolerated. Would you mind identifying the specific flight? I want to make sure I'm not on same plane as you with your hourly rotation.

You should have said something about that kid kicking your seat, or ask to crew to say something. I have no problem at all asking a parent to keep their child from kicking the seat in front of them. I would not tolerate kids running up and down the aisle either. It's an airplane, not a playground.

Agreed, however, it doesn't bother me unless I'm trying to sleep.

My point was that there are far more bothersome things in F or BF than a couple of adults switching aisle seats. This leads me to wonder just how bothered they are by the FAs walking constantly between the 2 cabins.

Probably as bothered as they are when they come on here complaining that all we do is hang out in the galley, and are not out in the aisles enough. A couple of adults switching seats once is not bothersome, IMO.

Wow...that'd just be the end of your life huh?

I did something like this two years ago on CO 62, EWR to MAD. I was upfront with an upgrade and wife and three children in the back. No, I'm not a selfish pig, I got an Op-Up and my wife said "take it." Because it wasn't right to leave her in cattle class with three little ones, after takeoff I took my smaller daughter, age 3, with me in 7D on the 764. That's the seat by itself in the middle, closest to coach.

Children being what they are, the others wanted a turn with daddy and after the meal, each got about an hour in the big seat with me. We did the switches very quietly and there was no running in the aisle, shouting or even discussion.

The only comment from the FA was as we were approaching MAD, that my son would have to go back to his own seat for landing.

Based on my experience I think if grandma and grandpa sit in row 6 or 7 of BF, and your little one is not all over the place, you should have no problem.

We are going to do something simlilar this weekend. My wife and toddler son will be in F (2 seats) and I will be in Y (1 seat) if my EUA doesn't happen. They are in the last row of F and I am in the first row of Y, so any disruption should be minimal.

Last time we flew I was in F and they were in Y. The FA up front teased me and sent back a glass of wine for her. Again, she was in the front of Y and I was in the back of F.