Flying with child with special needs

[alysonpeaches]

We have just had our 5yo boy referred for assessment for likely ASD. I dont know whether the appointment will come through before our holiday. I doubt it. When I started to think of the flight alarm bells began to ring. We flew last year and there was a very grumpy man in front who got cross because our little boy kept moving, knocking the seat back and talking. (actually he was just being a 4 year old - nothing extreme). We have a 2 yo as well, 4 of us are flying, to Corfu - 4 hour flight. The plane is usually of the kind that has seats in groups of 3.

Do you usually ask for a seat with no one in front or is there another strategy? Is it best to board first?

Any other flight tips welcome!

You are largely at the mercy of your airline and their individual policy. We've always flown BA with DD1 and they're mostly very good though some things are down to the airport and out of their control.

You call up the airline in advance and ask to be put through to the customer services person who deals with disability. Explain the issues etc. and you are very very likely to get one of those seats with the wall in front. You should be able to split your party so you also get the 2 seats directly behind. The window seat may occupy him somewhat, also. I've never needed any proof of disability so I doubt your pending assessment will be an issue, just don't mention it.

Of course, some of this is dependant on how long the flight is, which can determine when the airline "release" the seats for allocation. Before that time, they can put a note on your boarding info to request certain seating when you check in but it's probably worth finding out when the seats are released and calling them back again then to make sure.

We tend to split our boarding because DD1's tolerance for sitting still is very dependant on how long she does it for. So 1 adult 1 child board first, then all the other passengers while DD1 and carer potter around at the gate, then we board DD1 last of all.

I find that however much prep you do in advance, and however much notes they put on your boarding info, no-one reads them and you have to explain the same story to every person you meet. But as long as you approach it in a calm "this is how it's going to go, OK?" sort of way, everyone goes along with what you suggest.

I bought my ds the usbourne book going on a plane which takes you through every stage of the flying experience, he isnt ASD but has global delay profoundly deaf and adhd. The book really helped!
www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_ss_w_h_/026-9104889-8795625?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=going+on +a+plane

As R3dh3d has said, phone the airline and explain your needs to them.

We flew to Australia last October with our 3 girls including DD2 who at the time was 3.5 with multiple special needs. She can walk but not far, and needs a special diet, as well as other stuff. I spoke to the airline's disability and special needs advisor, and told them our requirements. They were very helpful and whilst our records were flagged up at the airport we still had to explain ourselves a bit.

We asked for bulkhead seats (against the wall) and even though they offer to board families with children first we actually waited until everyone else had boarded. That meant we didn't have to battle with all the other passengers taking 20 minutes to find their seats, put a bag in the overhead locker and sit down and meant less sitting around once boarded.

Hope your flight goes well, don't be afraid to tell them what you want!