Child Safety on Airplanes: Inconvenience Is No Excuse!

The infant lap child option on airplanes is appealing to many parents – who doesn’t want to get a “free” option in life? However, this option is not free – in fact, it is risking the safety of the most vulnerable and innocent of all passengers. What price do we set for the safety of our children?

When the FAA, the National Transportation Safety Board, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and all the airlines state ALL passengers under two should be restrained in a FAA-approved child restraint system (CRS) for safety, what makes us think an unrestrained lap held infant should even be an option?

Stop and think about it.

NOBODY says it is safe to hold our infants in flight. Sure there are inconveniences. Budget, breastfeeding, burping, entertaining, diaper changing -the list goes on.

But nothing overrides the fact that holding an infant while vaulting through the air at 500 mph in a metal tube is not safe. Period.

Below are some of the comments I have heard when parents hear every passenger (including infants) should be properly secured in a FAA Approved Child Restraint System on airplanes. I have added my own suggestions or comments in response.

“But I need to breastfeed my baby. I can’t do that if they are in the carseat.”

Pump and feed with a bottle. We are taking a form of transportation that requires restraint for safety. This means creativity in feeding our breastfed babies.

We don’t breastfeed our babies in the car on the freeways because we are educated about the dangers of doing so. Is it inconvenient we can’t do so? Yes, but we make do. Flying for the entire day means we need to feed our babies multiple times. Plan ahead for this and be creative… or don’t fly.

“They sleep better in my arms.”

Flying is not convenient or easy with kids. This means flexibility and creativity. Traveling does disrupt routine and convenience. Recognize what helps to calm your baby and implement comfort measures to help them sleep. I used a blanket draped over the carseat to make it darker and my hand on my son for comfort. I also used noise-canceling headphones if he was overstimulated. Soft, quiet, soothing music is better than the overstimulating noises on an airplane. Would you rather have an overtired baby or an injured one?

“The airlines should not charge my infant or at least give me a big discount.”

Hmmm… the airline charges by seat. Not weight, height, age, gender or girth. Every seat reserved is worth a certain amount of money to them. As passengers, we rent that space. Whether the seat is filled with a car seat and child, elderly grandma, or obese passenger- that seat is occupied. It also eliminates the possibility for the airlines to get last minute fares from a business traveler if there is someone sitting in that seat. We choose to have children and travel with them. We must also be creative and find a way to pay for them.

“This is just one more way the airlines can take money from us!”

Really? I understand the anger over hidden fees, non-existent customer service, and increasing headaches. But safety is safety and it has nothing to do with what airlines charge. Read paragraph above. Why do we feel as though we deserve a free ride? The airlines provide a mode of transportation. We decide to travel by that mode of transportation. They charge for each seat that is carried conveniently through the air to a destination. If we decide to travel with our infants, they deserve to be counted simply so they can have protection while on that plane by sitting in a seat and riding secured through the air at 500mph.

“I can’t afford it.”

Then maybe flying is not an option. The free or inexpensive option is not always safe. Maybe it’s time the relatives came to visit the new baby. Or put off the trip until enough can be saved. Start a fund that relatives can contribute to for the infant’s ticket.

“How can I keep a toddler or infant occupied in a car seat that long?”

Flying is a more convenient way of getting from point A to point B, but it is not ranked high on comfort or entertainment for toddlers. Flying with toddlers means being creative and flexible and usually not very comfortable (as the entertaining parent). Children are more likely to sit still in a carseat than on our laps because they are familiar with sitting in carseats in our cars. On our laps they just want to get down, stand up, pull on the seat in front of us or walk down the aisle. Establish the rules like in a car – we don’t let them walk around just to entertain them on the freeway!
Here are some tips for keeping toddlers entertained in flight:

http://www.jetwithkids.com/blog/flying-with-kids-7-tips-for-in-flight-entertainment

“I’m not hauling that big car seat onto the airplane!”

For children weighing 22-44lbs. and at least one year of age, the 1 lb. CARES harness is a fantastic product designed for use in airplanes only. I recommend parents purchase this with a friend and share it (most people don’t travel the same week). I have traveled all over the world with our 1 lb. harness and it actually proved to be more comfortable for my son as he could move his legs and stretch out (= easier to nap, less trying to kick seat in front of him). Inventor Louise Stoll recognized that car seats were not designed to be portable and for use on airplanes. She worked hard for years to design a FAA approved product that can be used in ALL phases of flight and during turbulence- but was small enough to fit in a pocket!

For those children under 22lbs., a car seat is the only option. However, there is help for parents hauling these bulky seats! From GoGo Kidz to the Traveling Toddler and the fabulous narrow and foldable Radian car seats, transporting car seats doesn’t need to be painful. I have listed helpful products and links at the Jet With Kids site http://www.jetwithkids.com/product_car_seats.html

“But most passengers get out of their seats in flight and are unbuckled when using the restroom.”

The fact is anytime we unbuckle our airplane seatbelts to get more comfortable, walk the aisle to stretch our legs, or use the restroom, or burp our infant after feeding them, we are taking a risk of being injured by unexpected turbulence. Just ask flight attendants who have personally experienced or witnessed how unexpected and severe turbulence can be!

We just returned from Asia. Our flight to Hong Kong was 15 hours long. Yes, we all got up out of our seats at various times during the flight- including my son. But each time it was to stretch our legs (prevent DVTs and sore bodies) or to use the restroom. We were always quick to get back in our seat and buckle in as we realized there was always a risk of unexpected turbulence.

Removing a baby from the car seat means removing them from safety. Change diapers, burp them or do what you have to do and then return them quickly to the safety of their seat. Also consider using “flight pants”. This has saved us several times when my son needed to use the restroom and the seat belt light was illuminated.

“Is turbulence really that bad? I never have felt anything more than a bit of shaking.”

Ask any veteran flight attendant. Many have told me of their personal experience with turbulence. One was knocked unconscious, one hit the overhead, and they all can tell you stories of colleagues or passengers who have been injured in flight. Just ask the flight attendant from United Flight 935 last week who received a compound fracture in flight during severe turbulence. Her bone was sticking out of her leg for 4 hours until the plane could land in Montreal on a flight heading from Los Angeles from London. That was just the latest in many, many undocumented injuries from turbulence.

“What are the chances of surviving a crash anyway? Do restraints really matter?”

Ask three mothers who did survive. And who all lost their children when they couldn’t hold them in their “loving arms”. Ask the surviving flight attendants who witnessed injuries and death caused by turbulence, aborted take-offs, and crash landings. Ask former NTSB Investigator John Goglia who was the lead scene investigator for the IAM (US Airs Mechanic Union) at the 1994 Charlotte crash where he witnessed the remains of a deceased toddler being carried out of the crash site. Read his article here: Torqued: No Child Left Unbuckled

Ask United Flight #232 Chief Flight Attendant and Crash Survivor Jan Brown who has spent the last 20+ years lobbying in Washington D.C. to promote the safety of children, asking that federal regulations require all children to have a seatbelt on every flight. Jan will never forget instructing 22 month old Evan’s mother to place him on the floor in the brace position prior to the inevitable crash in Sioux City, IA. She also will never forget little Evan- who died that day because “loving arms” were unable to hold him in the crash.