Do infants have to have their own seat on a plane?

[ReneeQ]

I thought I heard somewhere that a law about this had recently been passed? Brother and sister in law are flying home for Christmas with new baby and we're wondering if baby needs her own seat? I know all the REASONS why a baby SHOULD have their own seat, but I'm JUST wanting to know what's LEGALLY required. Thanks.

 

[Jenn]

My understanding is that a child under 2 can ride on a lap.

 

[BounceyOne]

Children under 2 can be lap riders. Yu can bring along an FAA approved car seat and IF there is an extra seat available they will allow you to use it for your infant.

 

[cgcw]

If they chose to purchase a seat for the little one, it would be at the infant rate (1/2 price).

 

[joshua4]

Also, I just booked a flight for my 18 mos old and was told that we had to have a birth certificate with us to prove that she is under two.

 

[hellokitty]

I heard it was the same price for all tickets, doesnt matter how old, that is what my sister in law paid
a seat is a seat doenst matter who is sitting in it. she paid the same for her 15 mo. old.

 

[tjmw2727]

We have paid discounted fares and as much as 1/2 off for a seat for our daughters when they were under 2. It probably depends on the airline, agent and flights purchases. Always worth checking IMHO!
TJ

 

[GoofyJim]

We have always gotten 50% off the fare for children under two. However, it does not apply to certain discounted fares. For example, I got $75 roundtrip from Hartford to Orlando via Southwest website but the infant fare was 50% off the regular rate of 225. So obviously, it made more sense to purchase the internet adult fare for our daughter. I do believe all airlinres offer the 50% discounted fare.

 

[Gillian]

we were able to get 50% off for our infant (under 2) on all fares except the internet-only ones. We had a great phone reservation person who got us 2 adults at very low internet fare and 50% off another, non-internet but still discounted fare for the baby. It did come out to be less for the baby, even though it was not 50% off the cheapest rate.

 

[phins_jazy]

We're traveling home for DD's 3rd birthday. Texas to Minnesota. We're flying American and unfortunately they DO NOT have discounted fares for her. I was dissapointed as her ticket alone cost $350!! Fortunately DH's and mine were free. (Won them at his xmas party)

 

[SandraC]

When our ds was 15 months old, we flew to WDW from Toronto. I pre-booked our seats to get the bulkhead. We flew Air Transat. I went to their web site and found out the plane we were taking. I clicked on the lay out and picked our seats. It cost $10.00 (CDN) each way per seat. We did not buy ds a ticket because we knew about the bassinette for babies that attach to the wall in front of us. It was GREAT! We got three seats (me, dd (8) and dh), we had a wall in front of us, lots of leg room and the BIG movie screen, not those tiny TV's. The flight attendants hooked up the bassinette for us. ds sat in it the ENTIRE way to Florida! It was so great to have TWO hands to eat. On the way home, the bassinette was different, sort of a hammock, the first one was a very stable box. ds didn't like the second one, so he sat with me, played on the floor in front (again a bulkhead) or we walked the aisles happily a couple times. We played in the bathroom for 5 minutes too. He fell asleep about half way home. The entire flight is about 2.5 hours. Flying with kids is only tough when the parents don't look after their own children. You just have to be inventive, think ahead of time, be patient, and be ready to change course at anytime. We are going again April 2002. ds will be 2 years and 4 months, he'll have his own seat for that flight and we'll bring his car seat for the plane and rental car. We saved a ton of money last trip on ds, no plan ticket $400.00, all meals were free ~ at Disney FREE is good, that saved about $100.00, no park tickets $300.00! Next trip the only cost we have will be his plane ticket, he's still free in the parks and meals. He is a BIG Disney fan! We still watches the vacation video and looks at pictures. He points to airplanes all the time. We told the kids we are going back! They are thrilled! Even baby! S

 

[akasleepingbeauty]

Misty,

American does offer discounted fares but they are only for children under 2. Since your dd was almost 3, she would not be eligible for any kind of discounted fare. Hope your trip was fun just the same!!

Rhonda

 

[phins_jazy]

We haven't taken our trip yet. This just goes to show how often I fly. (Flown once before with dd) I was under the impression that children under 2 were free. (She was 6 months old when we flew and she was free but we were on United) I then thought children over 2 got a discounted childs fare. Guess I was wrong. Oh well.....

 

[KirstenB]

Totally off-topic, but Misty I love that photo of your daughter!!! It's the cutest picture I've seen in a long time. I need to get more photos of our daughter on "her level", which is why I like yours so much.

 

[akasleepingbeauty]

Misty,

You are correct that children under 2 are free but only if they are riding in your lap. If you want a separate seat for them (which is optional), then they offer a discounted fare of 50% (only a 10% discount on most international flights). Unfortunately, once the child is over 2, there are no discounts offered since you do not have the option of having them sit on your lap. I believe that airlines offer the under-2 discounts to encourage parents to buy the seat since at full price almost everyone would go with the free-on-the-lap option. I sure do wish that they offered some kind of break for kids over 2 - it would be a nice thing to have but since I know they won't I am determined to get the most 50% trips I can before she turns 2 - lol!!

Hope you have a great trip,
Rhonda

 

[jiminyfan]

No law, but in my opinion I would NEVER travel with my child on my lap. I experienced bad drops in the plane, if a child is on your lap during a fast 5-10K drop - you will be a parent of an injured child.

Safety overweighs the cost of the seat