Car seats on aeroplanes

[travellingfamily]

Does anyone have information on which airlines accept which car seats? Booking a holiday and travel agent can't tell us till nearer the time whether the airline will allow us to use a car seat. Really want to as will have a wriggly just 2 year old, and it is likely to mean the difference between sleeping and pacing the floor!

Again, fair enough carve, thank you. I was not thinking ( selfishly) about the safety of other passengers and I can see that while a lap belt may not save a baby it does stop it bumping into other people.

But (coming back to the point of this thread) does every European airline allow a certain type of seat? You say 'as long as it complies with the airlines regulations'. But isn't it true that airlines are allowed not to allow any seat? (Baby seats seem to be more prevalent in the approval categories, toddler seats seem to be very tricky).

carve but how would baby be safer in a lap belt (compared to a wrap)? It'd still be squashed? And how do you brace with baby in a lap belt ?

And, for more minor turbulence / forces, if baby can't support its own head yet, surely a wrap is better?

Finally, in the case of evacuation, it's safer for it to already be in a wrap than simply carried, surely? (I appreciate evacuation on water could be an issue if baby needs to be put into the little floating rescue things I'm assured are available for infants if needed)

Sorry, going back to the hijack - I was told DS could stay in the sling for takeoff if I could turn him so his legs wernt either side of my hips. Basically they didn't want me and him facing each other, because if I'd been thrown forward, I'd have seriously dammaged his hips.
They were happy with him slung across my body or facing forward.

travelling back to your question, no. Every airline has their own rules, and even once you've had confirmation in writing, the cabin crew normally has a different idea.... (sorry). If you are flying European and the seat is TUV approved (I think that's the abbreviation!) you probably have more chance. The short haul Air France cabin crew looked at me as if I was nuts and tried to stop me (and then tutted about the amount of hand baggage we had, which was both within the rules and needed for our connecting long-haul Air France flight!); the long haul Air France cabin crew had no issues at all.

You may also find that the check in staff tag the car seat expecting you to gate check it (or to give you the option of gate checking should cabin crew refuse it onboard). If they do this, the cabin crew will think it has to be gate checked, and another discussion will ensue. (This also happened, twice.)