Question 1

Do you need a car seat on a plane for a 1 year old?

Accepted Answer

No US regulation requires it. A child under two may fly as a lap infant, and the FAA strongly discourages that, saying the safest place for a child under two is an approved child restraint system in their own seat rather than your lap. At one year old, an aircraft-certified car seat in a bought seat is the FAA's recommendation; a CARES harness is only an option once the child is at least 22 lb and can sit upright unassisted facing forward.

Question 2

Do you need a car seat on a plane for a 2 year old?

Accepted Answer

At two, your child needs their own ticketed seat — lap travel is only permitted for children who have not reached their second birthday. What goes in that seat is your call: an aircraft-certified car seat, a CARES harness if they are between 22 and 44 lb and 40 inches or under, or the aircraft's own lap belt. Airlines must allow a child under 18 to use an approved, properly labelled restraint appropriate for their weight.

Question 3

Do you need a car seat on a plane for a 3 or 4 year old?

Accepted Answer

Not as a rule, and many families stop bringing one around here. FAA guidance describes aircraft restraint users as children typically weighing 40 pounds or less, and notes that a child large enough for a booster can be properly restrained by the normal passenger seat lap belt. Below roughly 40 lb an approved car seat or a CARES harness is still the safer option; above it, the aircraft belt is what's left, because no booster is approved for takeoff and landing.

Question 4

Can a car seat be rear-facing on a plane?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Install the seat in whichever direction its own label specifies for the size of your child — the FAA's instruction is to place the restraint in the appropriate forward- or aft-facing direction as indicated on the label. What the rule actually requires is that the aircraft seat itself be forward-facing and the restraint be secured per its manual. Rear-facing installs are routine; give yourself extra room by taking a window seat, and expect the seat in front to have less recline.

Question 5

What is Southwest's car seat policy?

Accepted Answer

Southwest lets each ticketed customer travelling with a child check one stroller and one car seat free of charge, at the curb, the ticket counter or the gate. If you have purchased a ticket for your child, Southwest says an FAA-approved child restraint system that will be used during the flight can be carried on and will not count toward your carry-on limit. Portable cribs and pack-and-plays are treated as regular bags instead.

Question 6

Do the rules change on an international flight?

Accepted Answer

The FAA's own requirement travels with the US carrier: a restraint must be certified for use in aircraft, and a seat approved by a foreign government bearing the required label or marking is also accepted. On a non-US carrier the operating airline's home regulator sets the rules, and some carriers accept far fewer devices — check the airline before you fly. Destination car-seat law is a separate question again from what you may use in the air.

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Car seat on a plane: what parents ask