Car seats for longhaul flights

[Blissbird]

Does anyone know which car seats are approved for use on airplanes?
We are flying with Eremites to Australia with a 2 year old and I don't like the idea of him sleeping on my lap!!!

One important thing to bear in mind is that UK carseats are not legal in Australia so you won't be able to use it when you get there - they have strict regulations there.

I'm about to fly to Australia with 2 year old and 4 year old and I opted to get them both a seat as I don't want them sleeping on my lap - with my airline, it wasn't that expensive for a child ticket.

We went with Singapore Airlines this time last year and were able to use our Maxi Cosi for our 2 year old. We also used it when we where in Australia as a car seat - You won't have problems using a UK car seat there... Good luck! And enjoy - wish I was going too!

It's a few years since I flew to the US with our car seat, but I wish I'd just hired one over there as I hadn't thought about how it would push 2 year old up higher and further forward - so she couldn't use the drop down tray for her and every time she moved her legs she kicked the man in front He didn't speak any English so although I apologised I'm not sure if he knew what I was blathering on about.

Thank you guys.
We have purchased a separate seat for our 2 YO but he won't sleep on a plane seat which is why we are wanting to take a car seat.
We will be renting a car in Perth with a fitted seat so its just for the 4 plane's we will be taking!!!
We fly regularly in Europe but the last time I went to OZ with him he was 4 months old. Apart from the stuff we needed to take with us to cover 26 hours it was a breeze using the bassinet. Now he is almost a meter long and 14.5kg's I'm guessing it will be a different story.

You cannot use the UK car seat in Australia; their rules are very strict and UK car seats do not have the fittings they require by law.

I would seriously consider taking a small bean bag cushion/pillow for your DS to use instead. Far easier to carry around than a car seat which may not fit into the aircraft seat anyway.

Also if you have to get a bus out to the plane (a common occurence at Heathrow's T5) carrying a car seat to the plane will be even more problematic!.

Hello AttilatheMeerkat
As stated in my thread I will not be using the car seat in OZ as the rental car will have one pre-fitted.
Good idea about the bean bag but he will not be allowed to sit on one and then were his safety belt.
I am happy with lugging the seat about as it will give me the easiest time when on the 4 flights we will be taking.
Also everything I have read has a common theme which is children who are in a car seat are much safer if there is an accident. Also the majority of flight crew seam to favor this option.

Thank you for taking your time to reply.
I will post my experience on this tread when I return in 3 weeks time.

Good luck on the flight bliss - I am sure you will have a lovely time here. Just one little thing to consider before taking a car seat all this way - there won't be anywhere else for it to be stored so it is in the seat and that's it. No where for your child to lie out, play a little or stand up. Pretty restrictive in an already restricted space. That said, if your mind is made up then fair enough. Would you not may be consider a caress harness instead?

Cabin crewe actually don't like having seats onboard as enevitably a parent will asked for it to be stored (my experience anyway)

Not pointing at you but at the comment above by santiagosmum - you cannot legally use a UK car seat in Australia. It does not have the Australian equivalent of a kite mark. If you were involved in an accident your insurance would be invalid.

I would still think twice about taking a seat on board. Do ensure that the seat you are taking will actually fit the airplane seat beforehand otherwise you're going to be in a right old pickle.

The bean bag cushion I was referring to is a small sausage shaped cushion and not actually used to sit on. My son leans against such a thing for sleeping on in flight and it works well.

Have a nice holiday and I look forward to reading an update.

blissbird - how did you get on?

i am facing a similar dilemma. i fly to hong kong in january and ideally would like to take my maxi cosi cabriofix on plane but cathay says only allow forward facing seats on plane so looks like will have to buy a new one.

what car seat did you buy? was it easy to fit? was it a lot of work lugging it and baby around while transitting? did airline offer you any help?

Hi kt09
We arrived on Saturday night so still a bit jetlagged.
We bought the Britax Eclipse from Kiddicare and the extra play/foodtray, without which our son would have struggled to eat his food. So I would say a must, as his plane seat tray was too low for him to use.
The seat was easy and quick to install on the seat and a perfect fit.
It is forward facing but I have to say doesn't recline very far so I bought a head hugger for our 2.5 yr old which did the job stopping his head from falling to the side.
It is bulky to carry so I bought a car seat bag also from kiddicare which has straps so you can carry it like a ruck sack.
We planned to have two carry on bags plus the car seat then our boy. I guessed carrying 4 things was our limit and I was correct.
We changed at Dubai and although they have complimentary buggies they never have enough.
One thing to note is that if you are taking a seat then get confirmation from the airline in writing and take a copy with you to the airport.
It felt like we were the first to ever do this with the reaction of airport staff. Plus the seat is too big for the security scanners so expect a delay there. They were not impressed and made quite a stand with us about checking it in. They can not refuse you so stand your ground firmly but calmly.
The other thing to note is that you will need bulk head seats. We tried to pre-book these but Emirates would not let us so when we check-in we told them about the seat. That if we do not get a bulk head seat then the passenger in front of our son will not be able to recline their seat. The lady moved three passengers from their seats and gave the bulk head seats to us. We did get to the airport 3 hours before the flight to at least show willing in getting in first with the request but still they were taken. I'm guessing everyone want leg room.

I hope this is of some help to you. Long winded I know but I wanted to cover everything.
Please come back to me if you have any further questions.
Good luck

I just want to add that without the seat the flight for us would have been a nightmare.
We didn't move the car seat off the plane seat the whole way there. He played happily in the seat with the tray and equally as happy in the foot well and in the aisles.
Our son would have had to sleep on us or the floor without the seat. Instead he had a familiar place to sleep which was designed perfectly for him to do so.
He is a meter long and too big to hold in anyway that would not compromise his comfort and posture. And the floor would have been too cramped also as where would we put our feet.
Both me and my husband are around the 6 foot mark so no space at all.
We actually used the bean bag cushions to lean against his seat which was a perfect height and fit for us to sleep. We slept when he did which would not have been the case had he been on us.
I know everyone is different but for us this was the only option and it worked perfectly. So much so we are now not buying business class tickets for our trip to Thailand in January but taking the car seat again. Saving us a couple of grand in the process.
We booked a hire car with a child seat as the law is very strict in OZ about child safety and it is correct that the insurance would be void if we had an accident.