Flying with 1 year old

[Penny128]

I need a front facing car seat for a plane journey for my one year old. Any idea what seats would be suitable? I already have a cybex cloud z and cabriofix but presuming both are only rear facing?

Why do you want them to sit in a car seat? What airline is it?
Just asking because there are no airline approved toddler seats currently on sale in the UK unfortunately. Depending on why you want the seat and what airline it is you might be able to find a seat that isn’t airline approved but will be accepted if it meets specific dimensions. You could try sourcing an airline approved seat from the US as it’s a common feature there. A CARES harness is another alternative but you may need to sit in specific seats to use it. They could just sit extra seat without any sort of restraint- if the airline is US based there’s no restriction on that, if it’s EU based they’ll want them to be held as a lap infant whenever the seatbelt sign is on, if it’s another country you may want to check their rules.

@InTheRainOnATrain 's post is accurate according to my understanding. I've never seen a car seat in use on a plane in or out of Europe (and I have flown a lot).

Yes you can only use those seats on board if the airline accepts rear facing seats.

There are some forward facing seats on the market which physically fit in airline seats but none of them have lap belt approval so it's down to the individual discretion of the airline whether they let you use it. Officially they shouldn't, but I have seen a few photos on FB where people have managed to use a car seat on board. Joie tilt, steadi or Graco extend. Cozy n safe Fitzroy may also fit. Preferably the R44 versions since most airline policies haven't updated to include R129 car seats yet. But OTOH the R44 versions are harder to buy now. Joie stages is most likely too wide.

Are You sure you need one?

the usual approach in europe is to check them in and child sits on your lap for take off and landing.

American car seats have totally different standards

Hi OP,
Is there a particular reason that you need them to be in a car seat? The only reason I ask is that if you have a car seat on their seat then when they’re not in it you’ll have very little room / space to manoeuvre.
I’ve flown (8 hours +) with my then 15m, 17m and 19m and they travelled as a lap infant each time. One flight we were lucky and had a spare seat next to us, which was great for us to be able to spread out when the seat belt signs were off. They were on my lap during take off and landing.
If you have already booked them a seat, I’d have them on your lap for take off and landing and then let them have their seat during the rest of the flight.

@BertieBotts thank you for providing a direct and clear answer. Exactly what I needed.

You need a car seat that can be fitted with a lap belt only as that is all you have to attach it to the airplane seat. They are common in the US but very hard to get in the UK. We looked into this a few years ago and did eventually find one, second hand on eBay but it cost over £300.00 which was more than the return airfare for DS seat so we decided not to bother. DS sat on my lap for take off and landing and had the window seat for the rest of the flight.

To inform all. I just flied very easily with my 1 year old child in a Joie Tilt. No ludicrous £300+ cost for a car seat from the US. Just £25 for a second hand Tilt. If someone asks a question and you feel compelled to answer, maybe don’t answer with a question. Of course I knew I could travel with my daughter on my lap. And yes, going to the extra length to take time out of my day to post on a forum, I was sure I needed one. Hence the question. Thanks @BertieBotts for recommending Joie Tilt. Simple question, simple answer.

How bloody rude.

PS It is “flew”.