First trip on an airplane with 4 month old: need some advice

[Maria2007]

Hi, as you can see from the subject line, we'll be travelling in 10 days or with our 4 month old to another european country to visit family. The trip (airplane) only takes 3 hours, so not too bad. Just wanted some advice about
--take off & landing. Any tips on how to keep my boy calm? I'm bf him, so perhaps I could try that during those times (or is it prohibited)? Do babies usually react badly to take off / landing?

--how to keep him from crying ()... I know, it's the million dollar question

--what to say (so that I have some answers ready!) if people react negatively to my breastfeeding him (if I happen to bf him on board). Note: I say this because the country I'm visiting (which is where I'm originally from) is a bit anti-breastfeeding & also people tend to be a bit rude... so just want to feel prepared.

--I assume I won't be able to carry the pram on board. Shall I bring a sling with me? or just keep him in my arms?

Any other tips / ideas for a relatively happy & at least comfortable journey, much appreciated...
Thanks in advance!

Yes you can (and indeed should) bf during take off and landing as it will stop his ears from getting uncomfortable.

I flew to Spain with my DD when she was 12 weeks and TBH (barring a trip to the loo to change her nappy) she spent the whole flight with her head up my shirt, happy as larry. She dozed off in there a couple of times but was perfectly quiet the whole way (and was usually a very shouty baby). Other than the guy sitting next to me noone noticed that we had a baby.

The airline people might offer you a blanket to bf under, which I always turn down because I feel it is not necessary but if people are going to make you feel uncomfortable a blanket might be a good idea.

I did take a sling for carrying her in the airport but took it off on the plane, because they want you to put the silly baby seatbelt on anyway.

Good luck on your up and coming trip - I'm sure it will be fab.

Don't worry about what you need to say if you receive comments about bf - just smile and say nothing, its more powerful than anything you can say back to a rude comment!

Check out www.travel-baby-travel.com for some helpful hints and tips on flying with a baby.

You will find that most people won't notice what you're up to in your airplane seat, they are quite secluded. But if you are that concerned, just use your baby sling to bf discretely.

From my experience, it is the older toddlers who react badly on planes to landing, not babies.

Have a lovely time.

Take as little as possible onto the plane with you, makes it easier to handle baby as you board plane/go through security and all the faff that goes with it.

Defintely bf as you take off/land, take a blanket/ask for one on the plane if you wish to be discrete, or if like me you dont care either way, just feed as needed...its not like you are waving your boobs around, they will be hidden!

As for crying, do not stress (easier said than done I know. Honestly a 4 month old does not cry that loudly (say compared to a 2.5year old on a flight to US , even if it sounds like it to you! If he cries, just go with it, and do what you would usually do to comfort him.

You can take the pram to the boarding gate/entrance of the plane, and then it has to get checked (or if small enough, they will store it on plane for you). When we flew we requested a baby carrier (like a little bag/holdall) to put DD in, but I think this is only available on longhaul flights. To be honest, DD just slept in my arms/across me under the cushion provided, and got cooed over by lots of people.

Have a great trip.

Hi again Maria - didnt notice this til now - we took our dd on a plane when she was that age and I just bf her for most of the flight and then dp walked up and down for the rest - only to italy so quite short.

The only problem we had was on take off/landing - on BA they give you a lapbelt that fits onto your seatbelt - for this the baby has to really face away from you so you cant bf - or I didnt manage it anyway. I waited until the staff were in their seats and took dd out and bf her for take off though am aware that isnt truly safe - I chose this over wailing though...

You are allowed a buggy and a carseat and the normal luggage allowance for a baby on BA etc and they took the buggy away at the gate - though it was a bit battered by the time we got it back on the carousel (Techno XT).

Def have the sling - you will need that for the other end once you have landed as usually you don't get the buggy back until you get to the baggage hall - much easier to manage the bags, passport control if baby is in a sling.

We used a dummy when they were that age when taking off and landing so they were sucking. This supposedly rebalances the ear pressure. Plus has the added bonus of stopping any crying!

You'll be fine. Just wait until they are about 1.5 years old and can move about. Then it gets difficult!!!

The belt has to be on - not on tightly. For a 4mth baby I am sure the crew would be fine with it being loose enough to BF. Take a blanket/shawl to avoid potential confrontations, and get a window seat in a bulkhead row to give you a bit more space/privacy. Chances are no-one will even notice. If he does cry, remember that the 'white noise' of a 'plane pretty much drowns anything short of a full-on toddler tantrum.

Encouraging potential scenario for you - DS (FF, but all the same) would feed to sleep on take-off no matter what time of day or night - and continued to do so until ~18mths.

Oh yes, I occasionally BF mine when they were this age on both take off and landing. No one noticed. The belt is loose enough to do it

Thanks everyone for all the tips! You'll be glad to know that our trip went very well. We used a dummy for most of take-off & landing, but I also managed to breastfeed my DS a bit at take-off. He only cried during landing, and that was only for about 5 mins, so not too bad at all! He also slept on my partner's lap for more than an hour, so that was great too. In the end we didn't carry a buggy with us, just had him in my ergo carrier, & I would advise anyone travelling with such a small baby to do something like that. Honestly, it made our trip much easier. Unless you REALLY need your own particular buggy at the other end, I would advise against taking it along, for us it was so much easier with the carrier, he just slept on & off in it on the way to airport & back.