Will Fly to Fish

My little one has outgrown her infant car seat, and now travels in a Britax Roundabout that is quite a bit larger than her infant car seat. Does anyone have any experience with installing a Britax Roundabout seat in coach on Delta Airlines (767-300ER and 757)?

Tsukiji

I have not had any problem with my Roundabout in any Delta plane. I don't know the exact model numbers - but we fly both a small commuter plane and a larger plane (ATL - LAS).

I did however have trouble with trying to face the car seat backwards - it just doesn't fit because it wont' allow the seat in front of you to recline.

Happy flying.

fajimenez

I think I would have a problem not facing my nine month old rear-ward.

I know he exceeds the weight, but his neck hasn't developed enough to forward face him.

JS

Rear-facing guidelines are for cars, not airplanes.

gabbysz

Have u looked at the sit 'n stroll? We just got one and it is fantastic for travelling. Essentially it is a car seat with snap out wheels and handle, you can stroll your child right up to the airplane seat and then belt them in!

IFlySJC

We swear by our sit'n'stroll. We have used it many times, first with our daughter, now with our son, and it is worth every penny. Instead of hauling a car seat, an airplane seat and a stroller, you can just stroll the child right onto the plane and into his/her seat. The design allows you to convert from car seat to stroller to airline seat without waking a sleeping child - critical for maximizing nap times on a long, multi-segment trip. Also, when the child wants to walk, the sit'n'stroll becomes a handy instant hand-baggage carrier.

Sometimes we get questions from airplane staff about whether the stroller needs to be checked, but the sit'n'stroll has an FAA certification on the side, and a quick demonstration of the conversion capabilties immediately impresses the uninitiated.

As I remember, it runs about $150-$200, but as I said, worth every penny in minimized hassle. We've taken the sit'n'stroll across the country a half-dozen times, to Ecuador four times, Puerto Vallarta (PVR run) and to Las Vegas, and it has never shown any sign of wear. We also use the sit'n'stroll as a regular car seat for our second car (which is only used occasionally for transporting kids). Definitely worth the time and energy to track one down and get it.

fajimenez

http://www1.faa.gov/avr/afs/cabinsafety/ACOB's/ACOB949.rtf

If you look at the FAA document above, NHTSA and the FAA are trying to harmonize their advisories. If you'll notice, this document and others, indicate that if other flyers are required to have their seatbelts fastened, then the infant should be strapped into a seat according to the car-seat instructions.

My carseat instructions state that children should be rear facing until either 20 lbs or 1 year old, whichever comes later. I heard on NPR (the parent's journal, I think), that the reason for this is that an infant's neck muscles aren't ready for the stresses of forward facing accidents.

on the following page:
http://www2.faa.gov/index.cfm/apa/12...ence&info=kids

they do indicate forward for 20-40, but in the paragraph before this, they stress to follow the directions for your car seat.

Perhaps you have an older car seat when the directives were different?

JS

The FAA goes on and on about car seats on airplanes because it's a government agency, and their job is to use as many words as possible to describe something fairly simple.

The fact of the matter is that commercial airplanes are much, much, MUCH safer than cars -- so much safer that you can legally hold a baby under two years old on your lap.

Forget the FAA for a moment -- in reality, it does not make any difference whether you use a forward-facing carseat, a rear-facing carseat, or no carseat at all! If you do choose to bring along a carseat, whether it's forward-facing or rear-facing is irrelevant. While incredibly unlikely, should the plane actually crash, you'll probably be killed instantly, rendering the position of the carseat moot.

onedog

The Pupster has used his Brittax on all his flights on AA, both front and rear facing with no problems at all. If you are sitting next to your child, rear facing is so much easier to feed them and keep them occupied than if they are front facing.

As someone else has posted, yes, in the unlikely event of a plane crash, I doubt that the position of your child's car seat (rear or forward facing) is going to make much of a difference. But, in the more likely event of bumpy turbulence or sudden acceleration/deceleration due to turbulence or maneuvering on the tarmac, rear facing would be better for young infants whose neck muscles are not sufficently developed to support their heads.