Guide to FAA-Approved Toddler Car Seats
How to Recognize FAA Approved Toddler Car Seats
What makes the difference for the airline is the width of the seat and its harness system. In many cases, even an approved seat may be turned away at the airline gate if it is missing one thing: a sticker.
Recognizing FAA Approved Toddler Car Seats
Check the side of your toddler's car seat for the safety sticker. It contains a sentence-usually in red-that says the seat is authorized for use in a motor vehicle as well as in an aircraft. The Car Seat site offers a consistently maintained list that tips you off to the best seats or the makes and models of those that carry the FAA approved sticker.
On this list you will find names such as Chicco, Graco, Britax, Evenflo, Sunshine and many others. Make sure you check out each model because it is not the brand name that guarantees the FAA approval but the presence of the harness and the appropriate width of the base.
Keep the Sticker Intact
Do not obstruct the sticker or peel it off. As long as it is in place and denotes certification for use in an aircraft, the toddler car seat is considered FAA approved. This very same car seat will not be useful to you without the sticker. Gate personnel and flight attendants who check your toddler's seat for compliance cannot let you on the plane simply because you say the sticker was there when you bought the seat. It is impossible to verify.
FAA Approval Does Not Extend To Booster Seats
Booster seats, which rely on the child to use the car's belt system for buckling in, may not be used on a plane. A toddler car seat that is FAA approved must have its own belt and harness system to keep the child safely in the seat. A great example of an approved seat is the Radian 80, which accommodates toddlers weighing up to 80 pounds in a five-point harness seat. Since it is only 17 inches wide, it is easily placed into an airline seat.
Tip for Parents: Work With Your Travel Agent to Get a Good Seat
Book a window seat for your child. This helps relieve boredom and also puts the child farthest away from the aisle, where his or her arm may get tangled in the attendant's cart. Request the bulkhead seat, which has the most room of the rows in the cabin.
Sources
http://www.carseatsite.com/recommended_car_seats.htm; http://www.jetwithkids.com/blog/infant-toddler-car-seat-faa-approval; http://www.mypreciouskid.com/car-seat-safety-radian80.html
Published by Sylvia Cochran - Featured Contributor in Automotive
Sylvia Cochran works out of sunny Southern California and has been freelance writing -- full-time -- since 2005. SEO-optimized Internet copy includes news analysis, political Op/Ed and parenting as well as a... View profile
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7 Comments
Post a CommentI only realized the importance of the sticker on the side of most baby car seats just recently; but it's definitely one of the best buying-aids! Very useful, especially if you air-travel a lot.
Antonio (webmaster of Best Baby Car Seat )
aircraft is plural itself. what about flying your own plane?
very good informative information, safety is paramount.
http://www.faaapprovedcarseats.com
TY TY TY TY. I need this since I'm having a baby in March and feel very paranoid since we lost a baby last year.
There is often confusion regarding FAA Approved Toddler Car Seats...tx for clearing it up ;-)
We bought one for our trip to Orlando a year ago. We were renting a car, so we checked our booster for our older child and bought an FAA approved carseat for our 3 year old. I would also add that you should try to get a seat toward the front of the plane. Many aisles are just not wide enough and people tend to stick their legs out. I know I hit 10 people trying to reach our seat - all the way in the back by the bathrooms! And yes, they definitely looked for that sticker you mentioned. We made sure we did not remove it.
I think taking the list along and buying the one recommended is the best plan. Our hospital will also check out a used car seat to see if it passes muster and is approved.