If you are planning to travel with your little one by air, you’d want to ensure your child is safe throughout the trip. Using a car seat is the safest and most appropriate way to travel by air with your little one.
According to flight safety experts, kids that are not well restrained are the unsafest passengers on the plane. Using a plane’s lap belt or holding your child in your arms is not the best.
Now, while some brands of car seats are FAA-approved, others are not. If you own a Doona car seat, you need to be sure that you can use the car seat on a plane. That’s our focus in this short write-up!
Related: Are Doona car seats worth it? (Read this first!)
Table of Contents
Are Doona Car Seats Airline Approved?
Yes, Doona car seats are FAA approved. The US and European bodies have certified the use of Doona car seats for air travel. Doona car seats have stickers with a plane image in red color that show they are certified for air travel.
However, having an airline-approved car seat is not all you need to know. Airlines have policies, and some of these airlines may not permit the use of car seats on their planes.
Therefore, it is always advisable to contact the airline prior to your flight to confirm if car seats are allowed. In most cases, they should allow it, but contacting them would give you the best information such as seat assignment, etc.
Recommended: Is Doona car seat hospital approved? (Read this first!)
Why You Should Use A Car Seat For Your Child When Traveling By Air
Oftentimes, some parents try to avoid the burden of carrying a car seat for their little ones when traveling by air. While it might look like a burden to you, there are benefits to using an FAA-approved car seat for your child.
Turbulence Or Emergency Landing
In case of an emergency landing or turbulence, having your child in your arms is unlikely to be the safest way to restrain your child. Also, using the plane’s lap belt can’t fully restrain a child.
Your best bet is to use an airline-approved car seat to secure your child. Doona and most other car seats have 5-point harness systems to ensure your child is well-secure during any flight turbulence.
You don’t need the car seat base to install your car seat in a plane (Doona car seats can be installed with or without a base). You can contact the airline to know the best seat for you and your child.
The Stress Of Having Your Baby In Your Arms Or Laps
You don’t want to go through the stress of having your baby on your lap throughout your air travel. Make your trip an interesting one by using a car seat for your child. It is the best thing to do!
Recommended: Is the Doona car seat safe? (Read this first!)
Summary – Things To Do When Traveling With A Car Seat
If you intend to travel by air with a Doona car seat or any other brand of airline-approved car seats, there are things you need to do for a smooth flight.
Get in touch with the airline
Before traveling by air with a car seat, it is always recommended to contact the airline prior to your trip. It could be that the airline doesn’t permit car seats, so to avoid any inconvenience, put a call through.
Choose the right seat
While it is a good thing to use a car seat for your little one during a flight, you must not inconvenience other passengers by obstructing the walkway.
The best seat to choose for your child on a plane is the window seat (that’s the likely seat for car seats, anyways).
Confirm ticket requirements
Typically, children under two years old are allowed to fly free. However, every airline has its own policies when it comes to infants and children.
Therefore, you must double-check the ticket requirements of the airline you wish to use so as to know if you’d need to spend extra money.
Make sure your car seat is well-packaged
While it is true that it is safe to use a car seat on a plane, some parents still don’t use it (it is not compulsory to use a car seat, though). To some parents, the main purpose for traveling by air with the car seat is to use the seat at their destination.
If that’s your case, no matter the checking options available at the airport, ensure that your car seat is well-packaged to avoid any damage. There have been cases of car seat damage in the past.
You might like: How safe is the Doona stroller?
Go for a portable car seat
Apart from choosing a car seat that is airline-approved, ensure you choose a smaller and lightweight car seat. Carrying a bulky car seat around is cumbersome and a great inconvenience.
An all-in-one car seat stroller such as the Doona car seat & stroller would save you a lot of stress. Since you can easily convert a Doona car seat to a stroller, it is the best car seat to use for air travel.
