Car Seat in a Plane for a Small 3 Year Old

My son is 5, we fly all the time and he has always flown in his car seat. Why wouldn't you take it on the plane. If it is a lugging it around issue, look into a GoBaby (from GoGo Babyz)- they are a handle with wheels that you hook the car seat to so it rolls like luggage. Would not travel without it.

Absolutely! Kids should always fly with their car seat. Did you know that checking a car seat causes the same damage to a seat as a minor accident? The damage is unseen, structural, and can cause the seat to fail in another collision when you need it most. A car seat should never be checked iwth luggage or gate checked because of this, it will get damaged!

Bring it on the plane, hook it in and you will have a great flight! Your daughter is tiny like mine, mine is almost 4 and 28lbs!

I would take a seat, but make sure it's FAA approved (should be a stamp on it) and realize that the seat must be near a window and cannot be on an emergency exit row--the reasons behind this are that they impede the flow of traffic should one need to get out of a row or out an emergency exit. the narrower the seat, the more easily it will install, most seats will require you raising the arm rests to get it installed properly.

My son is huge so I couldn't fly with it in the plane seat (he's 3, but 47lbs). But we traveled a lot when he was little and it was great. I bought the go-kids travelmate cause we traveled a lot - basically put wheels on the seat. It was very helpful.

To minimize wear & tear on the seat if you did check it, check it at the gate instead of with your luggage.

I think you have a great idea. Kids are use to being in their car seats for 'extended times' so it reinforcing that you can't climb all over the place in an airplane.

I hope you have a good trip.

It really depends on your 3 yr. old. I have traveled from MI to CA twice with my daughter...once when she was just over 2 and once when she was just under 3. I was set on taking the seat on the plane (also because we needed it while there). I was traveling by myself. I had one backpack on my front, one on back, car seat, and kid on a leash! (I always thought these were crazy, but really was necessary and gave me piece of mind in the crowded airport).

Anyway, I thought it would be easier for my daughter ot sleep with the seat, but all she wanted to do was to play, read, etc. on the tray! Because the seat lifted her up, the tray would not lay down and she couldn't use it. we were lucky that the plane was not full, so she could sit in a different seat for a lot of the time. I decided after that, that I would not bring the seat on the plane again.

If you think your daughter will actually sleep, and will only want to do activities in her lap rather than coloring, etc., then bring the seat. If your little girl is miss independent/busy like mine, you may be better off without it.

One other thing. I was carrying the seat through the airport with two hands, one on the back and one underneath. after that trip, i saw someone carrying one by fastening the harness and using that as a handle. duh...why didn't i think of that!?

When my oldest was just shy of 2.5 we flew from Detroit to St. Luis and back. Like yours, she was small and still required a full carseat (this was before the days of 5 pt harnesses and high back boosers, lol). We flew with a large group (7 including my daughter) and we all only took carry-on bags. We managed ok and had no problems. When we got to the gate, we told the attendant that we had a ticketed carseat passenger, and they let us board at the same time as the first-class passengers, so we'd have enough time to buckle it in and get her settled. She did fine both there and back. The only thing we ran into is as we were leaving the flight when we arrived in St. Louis, they told me that on our return flight we "should" put her at the window seat so that in case of emergency, we wouldn't have to climb over her (we had her in the middle between myself and my mom). On the way back, we still put her in the middle and there was no problem.

Well I took my daughter's car seat on the plane when she was younger, but we're getting ready to fly again in April and I don't think I'll take hers but I will take my son's (3 and 16 mos). THe only reason I wouldn't take it on is because she might want to play and read or whatever and you can't use the tray if you have a carseat installed. But, if you really think she will sleep a lot of the time then take it. I think it kind of depends on your kiddo. If you have a DVD player she can always hold it in her lap or you could put in on your tray and angle it toward her. If you think she'll do more interactive stuff and not sleep very much then I would consider not taking it.

I really don't think size is an issue (my four yr old weighs 29 lbs) it's more of a safety issue. They are much safer securely fastened in their car seats. Plus, they know when they are in their carseats they can't get up and run around in the car, likewise with the plane.

Child passenger safety techs agree with you that taking the car seat and using it on the plane is the safest route for young children (see links below). Have a great trip!
http://carseatblog.com/6599/airplanes-carseats-and-kids—w...
http://carseatblog.com/6635/airplanes-carseats-and-kids—w...

Please take her carseat. Its safer & she's used to being in it. Regular belts are easily taken off by small children & usually it winds up being a battle for most parents to keep it on.

My 2 year old, is the same weight as yours - we just flew 10 hours to UK, and chose not to take our seat, we rented one on the other side. Mainly due to not wanting to carry one extra thing as we already had about 6 cases, stroller, carry ons etc! she was fine, there was a lot of turbulence, it would have to be extremely violent to cause internal injuries.
you are only going on a few hour flight though, and if you don't have to much other stuff, then I would just take it on the plane