Two carseats on the plane & Do we need to bring the RN AA?

We'll be flying on Southwest, and this is the first time we've traveled with two seats. DS will be in a FF RN and DD in a RF CCO.

1) Is there a policy against having 2 carseats in the same row on the plane?
2) If we can have 2 carseats in a row, must the RF seat be by the window, or can we have the FF seat by the window and the RF seat in the middle? (I know about the "can't block the egress of another passenger" policy, but does this apply to a child in a carseat?
3) When traveling with 2 kids/carseats and another adult, what do *you* prefer the seating arrangement to be? (Ex: One adult + child in one row, other adult + other child in a nearby row; adult + 2 kids in one row, other adult across the aisle...?)

Also, I'm hoping we don't need to bring the RN AA (DS will be RF in the car). Anyone have experience with either a 2011/2012 Elantra or a 2012 Explorer and a RF RN? Is the AA necessary, or can you get a decently upright install w/o it?

Oh, and do we need to bring either kid's birth certificate? They're both flying on an adult fare, so no one should need any type of ID/age verification for them, right? We've never flown Southwest before, and I'm not totally sure what to expect!

FAA gives the airlines a little bit of wiggle room in deciding which seating locations are appropriate for carseats. I've never flown Southwest, but most airlines will allow 2 carseats in the same row, though they would want the RF seat by the window since it does more to impede access/egress, with the FF in the middle and parent on the aisle.

That is how we did things on a recent US Airways trip and the flight attendants were OK with that. The other parent was across the aisle (which was very relaxing for that parent -- my wife and I took turns).

The problem with this setup was that it was difficult for us to reach the baby when she needed things, since we were two seats away.

It might have been easier for us to have done window-middle / window-middle in two rows, one in front of the other. And if you put the FF carseat in front of the RF one, that also eliminates the possibility of someone complaining about their seat not reclining (though that has still never happened to us).

TSA doesn't require ID for kids and Southwest doesn't require it except for a lap infant or a special infant fare, neither of which seem to apply here. So you don't technically need anything -- and to be honest we usually go without -- though I still think it's a good idea to bring at least a photocopy of a birth certificate just in case.

We did window-middle in two consecutive rows last time we flew with two car seats on Southwest and it worked well. We also had a RFer and a FFer. Doing it that way allowed us to put our FFer in the seat directly behind our RFer so we didn't have to worry about him kicking the seat in front of him. We were also able to pass things back and forth to each other if needed.

Southwest does not require a birth certificate if they have their own seat, but be prepared to be asked repeatedly if your little one has his or her own seat.

We fly 3&1 always when on a 3:3 plane configuration. DH is stuck with the kids and I am across the aisle. I have a different last name and if the kids get out of hand, I start asking in a loud voice who brought the brats on board. J/k. Kinda.

stephpook said:

We did window-middle in two consecutive rows last time we flew with two car seats on Southwest and it worked well. We also had a RFer and a FFer. Doing it that way allowed us to put our FFer in the seat directly behind our RFer so we didn't have to worry about him kicking the seat in front of him. We were also able to pass things back and forth to each other if needed.

Southwest does not require a birth certificate if they have their own seat, but be prepared to be asked repeatedly if your little one has his or her own seat.

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I have never flown with two kids, as I only have one, but we fly southwest all the time, and this is probably what I would do. It eliminates any question of what's allowed, since both carseats will be in the window, the kids can't fight, and if you're very lucky and the flight is not full, you may get a row or two to yourselves.

Thanks for the info!

You most definitely need the birth certificates. I fly SW a lot and they always check it.

ebp913 said:

You most definitely need the birth certificates. I fly SW a lot and they always check it.

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I've never flown anything but Southwest and have never needed a birth certificate for my kids. You should not need proof of age if your kids are flying on regular tickets - only if they are lap babies or flying on a special price age-restricted ticket.

Children flying with their parents do not need any form of ID. It's the airline that asks for lap babies.

I don't have experience because we usually fly internationally. Once, I went to visit a cousin and flew WN while in the U.S. When I showed them the passports (well, yeah, that's what we have living abroad) they actually laughed. The security guy shook his head "I ain't looking at all that!"

On WN, we did three and two for one leg, and two and two for the other. It was a little different because it was me alone, with three. I preferred the two and two. I put the others in front of me and the baby when we were two and two. We had a couple sitting on the two aisles who were nice. But the three and one option was really bad for me since the youngest was farther away. I made my oldest sit across for take-off and landing (in an emergency, I wanted to get the baby out of her seat-former Flight Attendant mentality ). I let him switch during the flight itself but they all felt so far! With two and two, I could talk to the two in front more easily and be right next to the youngest.

I think for you, two and two would be safer too because (here goes that F/A mentality again...) each of you would be in charge of a child in an emergency.

If either parent is big (no need to share this info with us), I recommend doing three and one on the aisle but otherwise, if neither of you are, two and two would be more logical.