FAA approved children's car seats

Hello,

we need to buy our 13 month old a car seat that is "FAA approved" (federal aviation association) in order to take it onto US airlines.

Question: Have any of you purchased a car seat in Germany that is FAA approved (should have a sticker) and if yes, what brand was it?

Thanks.

An FAA-approved seat states in red lettering: "THIS RESTRAINT IS CERTIFIED FOR USE IN MOTOR VEHICLES AND AIRCRAFT" and "This child restraint conforms to all applicable Federal motor vehicle safety standards."

woof.

Hopefully you already have a car seat for your 13 month old and it is more likely than not to be useable on an airplane. If it is not, then you need a new one anyway. I suggest a Romer or now there is a new one available that is rated as high if not higher than a Romer. Remember, buy for size and not age!

thanks for clarifying what the sticker says.

eurovol - thanks for Römer info. Unless the Römer has the above mentioned sticker I'm not getting on that plane with it (according to the airline personnel I talked to today).

Maybe I will see if someone is selling their "FAA approved" carseat on ebay...

Used child seats are not recommended. All you need is a car seat that doesn't require a shoulder strap. Most good seats work with both. The airline is just pulling your chain. See the carseat thread for the links that I have already posted on the subject.

Agree with eurovol. How the hell is any non-American supposed to get their hands on a seat which has a US-only-applicable sticker just to fly to the US? What they mean is that you need a seat which can be secured with a lap-strap, as found on all airline seats. Any CE-labelled seat allowing lap-strap should be fine.

adi - very helpful. can you clarify what "ce labeled" is? european community?
many many thanks.

Hi everyone. We will be traveling to the US in the near future and were wondering if anyone has any new info on car seats for airplanes. Our son will be 15 months old when we go and we have already bought him a seat.

We currently have to Romer car seats. Does anyone know if we can take them on the plane? Thanks!

El Scorcho

Easy..

Look for the FAA and/or EU Approval labels on the seats. Sometimes they are on the labels, other times they are molded/stamped into the plastic.
If it doesn't have the approval stamps, then it can't go on the plane.

Can somebody explain to me why you would need to take a child's car seat on the plane? They are large and bulky, especially for a 15-month-old. Isn't it easier to reserve one here with your rental car package, if you're renting, or have the person picking you up at the airport borrow or buy one for you?

I am seriously puzzled. Our daughter flew 5 times over the Atlantic between 5 months and 16 months, and we never brought a car seat. We flew to San Diego this spring when she was three, and found the seat that went with the rental car to be perfectly adequate.

What am I missing?

The kids are much safer strapped into a car seat than either in their own seat with only a lap belt or on your lap where the seatbelt could do them serious harm if there was an emergency situation.

That said, we never used a car seat on a plane with our two kids (now 13 and 16) because back then it just wasn't the thing to do.

Really? Then why don't the airlines provide something safer for babies and toddlers?

(I don't expect you to answer that, westvan. Just another reason to be irritated at the airlines. )

Actually, some airlines do require a car seat be used (And an extra set bought) for young children.
It varies from airline to airline. So if your traveling with a young'n, consult the carriers rules on
children/babies.

Perhaps because its the parents resp. to check the requirements with the airlines when they book the flight.
They also don't provide you with many of the other things you may need on a flight. (Esp. in this Economy)

DK, obviously it is the parents' responsibility to check the airlines' requirements. I have never come across an airline that requires car seats, but I'll bow to your superior knowledge.

I'm just pointing out that if it is demonstrably hazardous for babies and toddlers to travel without a car seat, the airlines should provide one for parents who don't bring one. (When our daughter was an infant, we didn't own a car and thus had no need for a car seat. We would certainly not have wanted to purchase one for infrequent air travel.)

If the normal arrangements are inadequate safety-wise for a fairly large proportion of the travelling public, the airlines should address it, right? It's their equipment (or lack thereof) that creates the hazard.

Anyway, I'm sure this has been discussed elsewhere on the forum; I vaguely remember a similar thread. Carry on!