Flying UK to US on Continental

Hello,

First time poster here, hope you can help...

We are flying from the UK to US on Continental in November, with our six month old son, and trying to work out the best way to do it.

We have booked the three bulkhead seats with bassinet, but he is growing like crazy, and I think he will be too big for the bassinet by then.

Our feeling is that it will be much safer for him to be in a car seat than to be on our laps. Also much more comfortable - as we will have a seven hour flight from the UK to Newark, and then another three hour flight to our final destination. Don't fancy jiggling him on my knee for all that time!

But with Continental being a US carrier, it looks like they will only accept FAA approved carseats, and it doesn't seem that any carseats available in the UK meet that standard... We have a perfectly good, rear facing carseat (a Silver Cross Ventura). Do I really have to find a way to ship a US seat across here just for this trip, or is it likely that the Continental staff will just okay the one we have?

Any thoughts, or recommendations for ways to deal with this would be very welcome, thanks so much.

Hi and welcome!

Well, the not-so-great news is there is no easy, perfect solution to your problem. But I can offer you some suggestions and you can see which non-perfect solution you like best.

First, when I flew Continental last year they said on their website that they would accept a carseat approved for use in aircraft by a foreign government organization. I see that they no longer say that, but they may still accept one. You might want to call Continental and if they will accept one you could ask them to put that in writing. (It's always good to have these things in writing, even if just an e-mail from someone in customer service.)

The bad news is that even if they say they will accept one, there are still no great choices. The CAA in the UK doesn't sticker seats for approval in aircraft. There are several seats approved for use in aircraft by the TÜV (a German organization) and some of them are sold in the UK, but I do not know if the UK versions will have the TÜV For Use in Aircraft label on them. You could check. Two I know are sold in the UK that are approved in Germany by the TÜV are the Britax BabySafe and the Maxi-Cosi Mico.

The problem is that most UK/EU infant seats require a 3-point (lap/shoulder) belt to install. We used the Maxi-Cosi Citi SPS (approved by the TÜV, but not sold in the UK as far as I know) on our Continental flight last year. But it needs a 3-point belt in the car. Using it on the plane worked ok although I don't think it was as safe as a US infant seat that is approved for use with a 2-point belt would be and I would -not- want to use it or any other infant seat that required a 3-point belt in the car in the bulkhead row. When we installed our Citi SPS it worked in part because the carseat was supported by the seat of the person in front of us bracing the back of the seat sort of like the wrapped around shoulder belt would, but if you're in the bulkhead the infant seat won't reach the wall so I don't think this would be at all safe even on a routine flight.

I couldn't figure out online if the Ventura seat you already have is a 3-point install only seat where the shoulder belt wraps around the back, but I'm guessing it is and if it is and if you want to try and use it on the plane I would encourage you -not- to book the bulkhead, but to install it in a regular row. I honestly don't know if anyone would say anything if you just used your Ventura. I have never had anyone check to see if my seat was FAA-approved, but I -have- had flight attendants check how secure the car seat was installed. As an aside, if you do need a 3-point belt for the Ventura install and you get unlucky you may find that the car you use in the US (if you are planning on using a car) has seat belts that are too short for the installation! Something to keep in mind.

If you're up for buying another seat and you don't want to try to import one from the US for your trip your best bet would probably be the Maxi-Cosi Mico. I downloaded the instruction manual from the UK website and they say that it can be installed with a 2-point belt if you use the base and they even say in the instruction manual that it can be installed on an airplane and mention the FAA. (If you do want to buy this seat you should check an actual UK instruction manual to make sure it is the same as the one I saw online.) If you want to keep your bulkhead seating and you want to bring a car seat I would seriously look into the Mico because as I said I personally wouldn't feel comfortable installing a car seat that needs a 3-point belt in the bulkhead.

I could go on talking about other possible options, but I'll stop with this for now so as not to overwhelm you. Do you plan to travel with your son a lot in the future? Also, do you want to keep your son rear facing once he outgrows his infant seat (it's a lot safer) and if so do you already have a plan for that? Do you know anyone who could bring you or mail you a US seat before you travel to the US? Depending on your answers to these questions I could suggest other options that would probably be more expensive, but might pay off in the long run. But again, don't want to overwhelm you with too much info all at once.

Hope that was helpful.

Thank you for the comprehensive post, International Mama

Hadn't realised that the Ventura might not work in a US car! It does require a three point belt system. So even if we could get it on the plane, it sounds like it might not be the best option in case it didn't fit our rental car in the US.

In terms of future travel, I guess we are likely to be flying to the States a couple of times a year. But we don't own a car, so we don't ever use a carseat at home. The Ventura just came as part of the package with our Silver Cross pram, but we have used it exactly once - coming home from the hospital when our son was born!

I've emailed round a few friends here to see if anyone has an American buddy in the UK that might be able to lend us a seat. Otherwise I think the best option is probably to get one shipped from the US - whether that's one that a friend lends us, or whether we just buy one I'm not sure yet.

If we go that route, do you have any recommendations for a really lightweight and portable seat? I have this image of us trying to haul our luggage plus baby plus carseat plus stroller through the airport... oh my!

And on your last question, I guess ideally we'd like to keep him rearfacing, but given that this is going to be an extra purchase which is really only used for flights and occasional drives on holiday, value for money is important too.

How big is he? The Scenera is cheap and lightweight. You may need a rolled towel to install in some cars, but it's a good cheap choice for rear-facing kids, usually.

Also, how old is he? You need to follow the laws of the state you will be travelling to-- and most likely the state will require you follow manufacturer's instructions, and all manufacturers have a minimum 1 year and 20-22 lb. requirement to forward-face in their seats. The Scenera I mentioned also has a 34 inch minimum to forward face. (Of course rear-facing longer is better! The Scenera can get many kids to 2-3 or so rear-facing.)

What do you usually do, take the bus/subway/other mass transit? (Just curious. )

He's currently about six and a half months, so he'll be about seven and a half when we fly. And when I had him weighed about three weeks ago he was just over 16lb...

We live in a pretty small city, so normally just walk, and get buses when we need to! My husband is American though, and he can't believe he has been living here over four years and still doesn't have a car!

Hey, I know New Yorkers who don't have a car either. Rarer here in L.A. though, harder to get around without one.

The Scenera or Avenue (foam for head protection, taller shell, taller slots, will last longer) would probably be my lightweight, cheap, easy to carry suggestions for a baby that size. They will last a good few years rear-facing and are less than 10 lbs.-- not too much to lug.

I've got lots of thoughts, but probably won't be able to write a long post for another day or two. One question in the meantime though: Will someone be meeting you at the airport in the US who could bring a car seat for you?

My suggestions to follow!

RuthCD said:

Hadn't realised that the Ventura might not work in a US car! It does require a three point belt system. So even if we could get it on the plane, it sounds like it might not be the best option in case it didn't fit our rental car in the US.

Click to expand...

No real ideas or info about anything, other than to say that your rental car will almost certainly have all 3-pt belts in the back seat. Seats on planes only have a lapbelt (2pt), which is why it was brought up .

InternationalMama said:

I've got lots of thoughts, but probably won't be able to write a long post for another day or two. One question in the meantime though: Will someone be meeting you at the airport in the US who could bring a car seat for you?

My suggestions to follow!

Click to expand...

Thank you!

But no, we won't be met. We're just picking up a rental car from Hertz I'm afraid. And I've heard horror stories about the seats provided by rental companies.

That's too bad that no one is meeting you. That would have opened up your options quite a lot. I agree it's a good idea to see if you can find a friend in the UK who has a US seat you could use for the trip. That's what we did actually and it worked great. (Here is the thread I started about my own problems. There is some good advice in there about how to package a car seat, which one to buy etc.) Just make sure the friend knows the full history of the seat etc. Here's a checklist about using a used car seat that I really like.

Otherwise if you don't want to try your luck with a UK infant seat, either the one you own or a new one that can use a 2-point belt, I would suggest probably having someone mail you one from the US is the best option. Or if you know someone who is coming to the UK soon they could bring you one as checked luggage. This isn't an ideal solution because of the possibility of damage in the mail etc., not to mention the expense, but I think if it's packaged appropriately it should work. (You can see suggestions on how to package a car seat in the thread I linked to above from Adventure Dad who ships car seats all over the world.) There are actually some small infant seats that people have had success bringing as carry-on luggage and stowing in the overhead compartment, but again, I don't know if you really want to buy another infant seat when your son is already 6 months old and you use a car seat so rarely.

The seats that KetchupQueen suggested are both good, inexpensive, lightweight seats that get recommended for travel a lot. You can read a review of the Scenera here. Or you can read a review of the Avenue that I like here. But to be absolutely honest if I were in your shoes I would seriously look at the Combi Coccoro. Here's a review. It's as light as the other seats, but much fancier. Yes, it's a bit more expensive, but nothing compared to what you'd pay in the UK for a similar seat. You can get it online for about $160.

The thing I am loving about this seat right now is that they are going to release a stroller called the Cocorro Flash that you can use to wheel it and your child around. You can see some pics of the carseat with the stroller here. This carseat has a lot of convenience features the other seats mentioned don't have, for example lock-offs, which you will need in almost all European cars. If the carseat doesn't have them (Avenue and Scenera don't) you'll have to use a locking clip (and remember it!). That's just one example of why I prefer it to the other less expensive seats. I figure if you're going to go to the hassle and expense of having someone mail you an American seat it might as well be a nice one.

Your son won't be able to use the Coccoro for as long as he could use the Avenue, probably, but the thing is that once he outgrows the Coccoro I would encourage you to get the Radian for travel anyway. You can swap them out on one of your US trips as he approaches the max on the Coccoro. (I would encourage you to get the Radian now except that you usually can't use it rear facing on a plane and he's too young/small to use it forward facing yet.) Buying these two seats will be a bit of a cash outlay, but even the two seats together won't cost you as much as any one seat in the UK that could keep your son rear facing as long (and none of those seats are approved for use on airplanes).

Okay, those are my thoughts for now. I feel I should let you know that it won't be legal for you to use whatever US seat you buy in the UK, but it sounds like even if you end up getting another EU-approved car seat eventually you'll need to get a car seat for travel to the US anyway.

Hope that helps.

The Coccoro is a great solution. It is so far off my radar (having a baby who doesn't fit it already) that I always forget it. But it's a good one and MOST kids will last longer than mine in it!

I know the standard ones to recommend are the Scenera and Avenue because they are cheap and lightweight, but I really think convenience features also matter if you are going to travel a lot with the seat or want to install it quickly in taxis, other people's cars etc. Not needing a pool noodle, having lock-offs in Europe, having a shorter shell so you can install it without moving the seat in front forward and the person on the airplane has some recline room RF, and now with the Coccoro being able to put it on a stroller frame really are things that matter, especially if you're going to be in countries where people may pressure you to simply not use a carseat at all because it takes too much time, space or extra effort. (I have had someone start driving while I was still installing a car seat before.)

Thank you very much! I'll let you know how we get on...

Double posting to say that we have a Scenera on the way, borrowed from a friend.

I suspect when it has arrived and I've had a look at it I'll be back on here asking for advice on how to install it. Pool noodles?! Sounds much more complicated than our UK seat! I may also have to see if I can borrow a friend's car to practice installation, otherwise the first time we'll be using it is in the cab to the airport, which would be less than ideal.

All convertibles are rather different than all infant seats (though the Coccoro suggested above really installs more like an infant seat. ) It won't be what you're used to for sure, practicing is a good idea. But, we'll be happy to talk you through it! You can use towels instead of pool noodles-- I always forget that not everyone has year-round access to them like we do here in Southern California!

I'm glad you found a solution!

I installed my first convertible for the first time in a rental car, so I know that challenge. I actually posted a thread on here explaining my situation and asking for install tips and people were very helpful, posting pictures and giving advice about typical problems with that particular seat. So if you have questions don't hesitate to ask.

I was so lucky I did because the person who gave me the seat didn't give me the instruction manual!

Hello again! It has arrived, and I am borrowing a neighbour's car to practice installing this weekend. I can't help noticing that the stated dimensions are that it is 18 inches wide though, and I think the seats on our flight are a measly 16 inches (can that be right!?). Do you think we should move from the bulkhead in case we have problems fitting it in and need to lift the armrests?

Don't worry. I'm sure it will fit. The Scenera is a well-loved travel seat, we would know if it didn't fit. The dimensions they give are how wide it is at its widest point. You only need it to be narrow enough at the base to fit between the armrests on the plane. If it gets wider after that towards the top it won't effect the fit. Make sense?

Good luck with you practice installs. I'm glad you'll get a chance to do that before your trip. If they have isofix try it with both isofix (latch) and the seatbelt so you're prepared. And don't forget the rolled towel.

ETA: For your trip make sure to print this and have it with you in case anybody gives you trouble about rear facing a convertible or putting a car seat in the bulkhead. This document clearly states that you can do both.

I've put a Scenera in a bulkhead with no problems.

Hello again! Just wanted to check in and say thank you for all the advice. We are just back from the States and everything went really smoothly. We carried our Scenera using a Pac Back, which was really helpful for getting through the airports!

On the Edinburgh - Newark flight we had the bulkhead and had no problem installing the seat RF. Plenty of room and no-one raised any objections.

On the Newark - Savannah flight we were further back on the plane, which was a much smaller plane but still had plenty of seat room and I had no problem getting a good angle. I installed the seat RF... and the airline steward immediately came and told me I couldn't do that because it stopped the person in front being able to recline... I told her that I'd checked out online what I could and couldn't do, and to go and check out her FAA handbook, which she did, and then came back and grudgingly admitted I was fine She still muttered something about being more considerate towards other passengers, but I'd already spoken to the woman sitting in front of the carseat and she was fine with not being able to recline, so all was good.

On the return flights, we got the bulkhead from Savannah - Newark, so no problem there, plenty of space and an easy install.

On the Newark - Edinburgh leg we were further back, and oddly there seemed to be less seat room than there had been on the smaller plane. We didn't get off to a great start because we boarded early and had just got the seat installed and everybody settled, when some folks got on and it turned out we were sitting in their seats, in the wrong row. I sure was delighted with my husband for that mistake!

So we shifted a row forward, got reinstalled, and then ended up behind someone who was trying to recline his seat before we even left the ground... He got super cranky with us - despite my explaining that we'd requested the bulkhead to avoid this situation, and it wasn't our fault that the airline had placed us there - but thankfully the cabin crew were awesome. The flight wasn't full, so they did a bit of reshuffling and reseating of other people so that there was an empty seat in front of the car seat and the lack of recline wouldn't be a problem for anyone.

All in all, it was a lot easier than I had expected, and apart from the obvious safety benefits, it was great seeing our son sleeping comfortably for nearly six hours on the long flights - no way that would have happened with him on our laps!