Any experience of requested and actually getting bulkhead + bassinet with BA?

[Poncherello]

Hello - we're travelling on a 12 hour flight on Sunday, have reserved bulkheads with bassinet/Britax seat for 18 month old with BA but have been told they aren't confirmed until check in / boarding for the Britax

Starting to panic about being squashed on plane with busy toddler! Any help / advice / experience greatly appreciated!

Just make sure you get there early.

Actually if your LO is 18m they might not fit into the bassinet as they are more like Moses baskets iicrc.

A very kind dad and his 6 year old son gave up their space for us one trip many moons ago ( for which I am eternally grateful) when our reservation was not confirmed and we were herded into one off the 6 seater aisles ((shudder))

I had a bassinet last year when I flew virgin atlantic. My baby was 7 months old and only just fitted into it, length and width wise. I never knew they were available for little ones of 18 months. On a previous flight with a toddler, I got bulk head seats and was able to make her a little nest on the floor when she wanted to sleep. That worked like a dream so still try and get those seats.

Thanks for your responses ... the Britax seat BA offer is for when the little ones have outgrown a sky cot. I had a search on line and they look a bit like a bouncy chair, the angle can be changed so they can sit up or recline. It's positioned onto the drop down tray from the bulkhead. They are usually suitable up to the age of 2 or when the toddler weights up to 12kg.

Fingers crossed they have enough on board ... although they can't take up that much space so not sure why they don't just keep plenty available!

We've always got it when we've requested it. Just make sure you check in in good time.

We used the BA car seat a year or so ago when DD was about 10 months and too big for the 'normal' bassinet and also last summer when she was around 21 months and although we didn't actually use the car seat, they would have let us if we wanted to.
We'd booked in advance and confirmed and again and check in but when we boarded they'd put us in the wrong row. We were business class and they had assumed that the bassinet fixing space was in row 1 but it wasn't, it was row 3 and 11 (I think)
Like others have said, get there early and double check again on check in that you have the bulkhead seats.

We've always had it too - travelled several times. The Britax is great.

Hello - thanks for your responses. Just got back and can report that we got our reserved seats plus the Britax seat for dd on both flights. Massive sigh of relief, was great to have the space although she was really unsettled on night flight coming home, felt very conscious of disturbing everyone's sleep - fell asleep on Dad in the end xx

Have only done it once on BA from London to LA and had no probs getting a skycot - which is brilliant btw, a proper padded fabric-sided moses basket-sized cot with high sides, not like the hard 'tray' with 4inch high fold-up sides that you have to pad with blankets that Virgin, JAL and other airlines (inc. Emirates I think) give you!

Have heard the bouncy chair thing for older babies is also v. good. I think BA is the best airline to fly with babies in terms of the equipment they have for them and the attitude of the staff who invited us for early boarding and couldn't do enough for us once onboard. SO SO SO much better than Virgin!

hi we've flown with BA with both our children to Phoenix and back and always requested and got the bassinet/britax seat.

They are only available on the bulkhead seats - so that is what you really need to request - those seats!
Request when booking and double check at check in and at check in gate.

Bulkhead seats are for families and people who need extra room (not just want it). Lady next to us had a bandaged leg.

Also request for for dc to have their meal before you.

We have also always got it when we request it, flying to USA (flown to pheonix too atigercametotea!) Its fab, as you get more leg room, time without baby on your lap and more space to put cups and rubbish on the little table they pull out. Your baby will be fine in the britax seat at 18 months.

I echo what everyone said, get there early to ensure you get it, but if it reserved, families get priority seating so you will get the bulkhead seats, unless their is some one else who takes priority over you booking in early, but unlikely. And remind them when you get onto the plane too, although they should know by then (I remind everyone I see, just in case as I am a panicker!)

I have flown with BA, United Airlines and Virgin, and BA has come out on top for us in terms of family friendliness.

Is the britax seat the canvas sort of blue seat that attaches to the pull down table type thing on the wall at the bulkhead. Similarly a moses basket type thing can also go there?

yes the britax seat is the canvas blue seat. it's wonderful and we've decided we're only flying BA now so we get it as other airlines don't seem to offer things beyond the sky cot which they grow out of very quickly. we just booked with BA for a longhaul flight and our bulkhead seats have already been booked and confirmed. They do always say that they are first come, first served but realistically I think they always have enough of the seats for the bulkhead positions.

We're flying BA to Canada at the end of the month with 7 monther and have bulkhead seats requested, would you say to check in online to guarantee the seats rather than waiting til the airport? And can you request the Britax seats at that point, or do you do it when you board?

Thanks!

I would check in online and then you request the seat or cot once on board. Although usually they see you have a baby and ask you if you'd like a cot or baby seat. IME (at Heathrow) we were also asked to board early which was also very considerate as it gave us time and room to get sorted and room to put our carry-on bags away etc. We couldn't fault BA when we travelled with a baby, so much better than Virgin.

Hi jumpjockey - definitely check in online - we did it literally within ten minutes of it opening! We requested the Britax seat when we boarded ... they usually keep a few available on the plane.

We made our booking over the phone so I would routinely ring them up to make sure they had the bulkhead request outbound and return on the reservation. You can also ask them how many of the other bulkhead positions have been requested to get an idea of how many little ones will be traveling on your flights.

Thanks for the suggestions - our booking was done online so I have periodically been checking that we've still got the seats we asked for It's great that they board families first, am just a bit worried in case all the other families get there first! I guess we're lucky in that dd will only be 7 months and she's not a huge baby so if they don't have one of the britax seats she would probably still fit fine in the bassinet.

I'm flying on saturday and ds is 8 weeks. When I phoned up to add him to my ticket they booked me the sky cot then and there (doesnt seem to be bulkhead though (seat 11a) so I'm surprised they wouldn't do it straight away.
I'm goign to double check mine now as worried about legroom mainly if I have to have him on my lap as I'm tall too.

Gah. Phoned up and had the guy check our seats are definitely booked bulkhead and asked about the seats/cots anmd he said they would only do it at the airport as they can't guarantee the seats will actually be on the plane (eg if they got damaged on the flight over). Why the different stories?! We're 10A and 10B and definitely bulkhead seats.

ok my flights only 3 hours ish so apparently the first guy told me wrong and there is no skycot. Also apparently you don't get bulkhead anyway as only certain seats have extra oxygen masks and the bulkheads don't. Plus they won't put me in the aisle so I'll either have to keep going past someone or have to change nappies etc on my very squashed lap as I'll have no extra legroom. Not looking forward to this at all.
Not sure hot that works for longhaul though as surely bulkhead are the only ones that have enough room for skycot/kidsseat but then they dont have the mask?

Boo. That sounds like a bit of a nightmare bronze. I don't know about the bulkhead thing - is your flight maybe in a smaller plane so the masks are different to on a 747? Will be mightily pissed off if we end up being moved - the guy has assured me that's the right place for a cot.

he's probably right. I think the bulkheads are in the rich peoples bit on this plane. I suspect yours is bigger and arranged differently

We did flying to SA. I checked our seat reservation online and saw we had the bulkhead then on the plane they asked if we preferred the bassinet or seat-we took the seat.

Have you tried looking up the seats on seatguru? If you know the type of plane you're flying on you can see the class sections and which row the bulkheads are in (as opposed to emergency exits) Good luck!