Child Survives Plane Crash because of Carseat!

Jewels · Oct 29, 2007

Toddler who survived fatal B.C. plane crash to be flown to Calgary hospital

Mon Oct 29, 1:43 PM

By The Canadian Press

GOLDEN, B.C. - Search-and-rescue officials say a three-year-old girl
survived a plane crash that killed her grandfather and another man near
Golden, B.C., because she was strapped into a child's car seat.

The girl, who suffered head injuries but is stable in hospital, has been
reunited with her parents.

The girl and her parents are to be flown to the Alberta Children's Hospital
in Calgary.

The Cessna 172 was heading to Edmonton and had just taken off from Golden
when it crashed into rugged forested terrain Sunday in the Blaeberry River
area.

Rescuers say bad weather hampered search efforts and rescue technicians
eventually had to be lowered down to the crash site from a private
helicopter.

The names of the victims have not been released and the cause of the crash
is under investigation.

Leila · Oct 29, 2007

Fantastic! I'm very sorry for the loss of life in this crash, but relieved to hear that this child survived because of her seat!!:thumbsup:

waterbaby · Oct 29, 2007

BRA-VO!!!

"But planes are safer than cars."

And they still crash!

Misty-Bug · Oct 29, 2007

I just saw this on the news. YAYAYA. NO WAY would Cooper NOT be in a car seat in a plane

southpawboston · Oct 29, 2007

waterbaby said:
BRA-VO!!!

"But planes are safer than cars."

And they still crash!

your rolley eyes imply that you think that comment is bunk.

umm... sorry, but the statistics still speak for themselves. and i think it's been mentioned here before, but those statistics (and the comment about planes being safer than cars) only apply to commercial airliners... you know, the big jumbo jets, flown by experienced pilots and maintained by an airline. a cessna 172 is a tiny 4-seater, single-prop airplane, often owned and flown by amatuer pilots (my next door neighbor owned one

). i've flown in it before (well, technically a 152, the even smaller two seater version

), and to be honest, i would never fly in one again, let alone my wife or daughters, even *with* carseats. the fatality risk is indeed high.

you simply can't compare a hobbyist's toy plane with a commercial airliner and lump the fatality risk of a cessna in with the big airliners. that would be like saying a go-cart is as safe as a car.

that would be like saying that sailing a raft out to sea is as safe as taking a caribbean cruise.

all together ooky · Oct 29, 2007

Oh, it's so good to hear that a kid survives a plane crash because of the carseat!

skipspin · Oct 29, 2007

southpawboston said:
you simply can't compare a hobbyist's toy plane with a commercial airliner and lump the fatality risk of a cessna in with the big airliners. that would be like saying a go-cart is as safe as a car. that would be like saying that sailing a raft out to sea is as safe as taking a caribbean cruise.

SBP, here is what you need to fly in: (Assuming you are or have access to a good pilot)
www.cirrusdesign.com
It probably would have saved the life of all aboard. Not only do all Cirus aircraft come with a ballistic parachute for the entire cockpit, but also come standard with 4 point seatbelts with airbags, seats rated to 26.5 Gs, rollcage, terrain awareness, traffic avoidance, and the airframe and landing gear designed to protect the occupant in a groud collision. As a bonus, they also have leather seats and cup holders. A far cry from that Cessna you rode in. Many owners are/were commercial pilots since they desire the safest plane for their family.

Interrestingly enough they could have added a ballistic parachure to their 172. http://brsparachutes.com/default.aspx (Very cool vidoes on this site.)

Mommy090804 · Oct 29, 2007

Yes, I saw this on the local news at dinner! Amazing!! Thank goodness they were able to access the crash site.

snowbird25ca · Oct 30, 2007

Wow! It's so awful for the loss of life, but amazing that the little girl survived because of her car seat & that the press is making that known. Maybe it'll result in less lap babies & only good can come from that...

SPB - I think that waterbaby's comment might've been intended that just because plane's are safer than cars, doesn't mean that you don't need to use a car seat. Perhaps rollingeyes at those who use that as a reason to not bring a car seat on a plane? I could be totally wrong, but that was my first thought reading it.

Cool about plane's with parachutes. I imagine those must be a single use thing - can't imagine repacking one of those. Although the same plane probably wouldn't be flying again I'd guess.

I had no idea that all those safety features could be put on small planes. That's really cool.

Melizerd · Oct 30, 2007

It was on GMA this morning and they did really highlight the fact that the car seat saved the little girl (and her teddybear).

I hope that out of the tradgedy of the crash comes some good awareness of the use of carseats on a plane.

waterbaby · Oct 30, 2007

snowbird25ca said:
SPB - I think that waterbaby's comment might've been intended that just because plane's are safer than cars, doesn't mean that you don't need to use a car seat. Perhaps rollingeyes at those who use that as a reason to not bring a car seat on a plane? I could be totally wrong, but that was my first thought reading it.

Yes, exactly... thank you.

The quotes and eyeroll were meant to portray me rolling my eyes at that common excuse I hear for NOT using carseats on planes.

I know better, and I certainly don't think it's bunk.

cheerbop · Oct 30, 2007

I just think this is awesome....
That the National and Local medias all over our contry are highlighting the fact that it was the cr seat that saved her.

Maybe, just MAYBE, people will start to "get it" now.

I know our neighbors thought we were so odd taking car seats on an airplane. I told them, why wouldn't I? Cars crash and so do airplanes. Maybe less often, but they do. BUT, when they do, usually they are going super fast and they also fly how many thousands of feet in the sky?!
I think I will keep using my seats on the airplane, Thank you.

Just very happy to see this on the news

southpawboston · Oct 30, 2007

waterbaby said:
Yes, exactly... thank you.

The quotes and eyeroll were meant to portray me rolling my eyes at that common excuse I hear for NOT using carseats on planes.

I know better, and I certainly don't think it's bunk.

right, but here i'm just not lumping all planes together. cessnas and boeings are apples and oranges.

would i bring my 1 yo DD on a cessna without a carseat? no way. i wouldn't even bring her on a cessna, PERIOD. but would i bring her on a big ol' airbus or boeing without a carseat? yep.

ktmo · Oct 30, 2007

This is an amazing story. My DH owns a Cessna 182 and my eldest has flown with him a handful of times. I think the first times was when she was 6 weeks old. She is always in a car seat. We have one in his plane, just like we have one in our cars. She flew a few weeks ago. I guess you would call my DH a hobbyist with a toy plane, but I feel very secure in his flying abilities and her safety.

Katie

ThreeBeans · Oct 30, 2007

It would take an act of God to get my to put myself or my kids on a small plane. Just the thought is making me ill. Of course, I am scared of flying, and even smaller passenger jets make me cry.

And that was not hyperbole. When we got on the plane to Florida for our honeymoon, I sobbed through takeoff. Poor DH!

Mom to a few · Oct 30, 2007

This video is on the front page of Yahoo.com right now!! Hopefully lots of people will see it who might've missed it on TV!:thumbsup:

Elizasmom · Oct 30, 2007

I'm flinching already at the attack I'm expecting here, but I did not put my 2 year old DD in a car seat when we flew from VA to TX this summer. I could barely manage all the bags as it was. I would not have coped, and she would have screamed her head off.

I am just as concerned about car safety as the next person (I plan on being a CPS tech), but I honestly feel that planes are another issue. Car seats in cars are extremely important because car accidents are the number one killer of children. Airplane crashes are not even close to that. Yes, you can, and ideally should, use car seats on a plane, but not doing so is not anywhere close to not using one in a car. The odds of being killed in an airline flight are 1 in 52.6 million. Also, while car seats save lives in cars in a big way, I would imagine the risk is reduced very minimally by car seat use on a plane. Your child is probably far more likely to drown in the toilet. Does your toilet have a child lock?

My point is that there are so many things you can do to improve your child's safety. I'd rather do as many other things I can and give my self a break on the car seat on airplane issue. For example - are all the dressers and bookshelves in your house bolted to the wall? Do you have miniblinds with cords? Do you always slice grapes and hotdogs? Have you taken a CPR class? Is your toilet seat locked down? Do you ride on buses with no car seat? Are there bars on your windows? How many people here who are apalled at someone not using a car seat on an airplane have the safest car on the road? I was far more afraid to drive to the airport with my child properly strapped into the car than I was to fly with her without her car seat.

andbabiesmake4 · Oct 30, 2007

I saw a clip about this on the news last night and specifically said to DH "I bet she was in a carseat" .... thank God.

USmominOz · Oct 30, 2007

It even made the news here in Au

southpawboston · Oct 30, 2007

Elizasmom said:
I'm flinching already at the attack I'm expecting here

you won't get attacked by me... i agree with most of your points.

for us, it's less of a convenience issue and more of a cost issue. the extra $1000 per year or more it would cost us for that extra seat is hard to swallow.

there was a long thread on this some time ago, and it did get quite heated. i think my basic argument in that thread was that there is a universe of situations that require safety. different people have different "comfort" levels in each area of safety. some people who are fanatics in one area may be lax in another, and people who are fanatics in that other area may be appalled at the laxity of that other person. i know i have a certain fanaticism toward tires which few people share. am i appalled at those people who don't even know when the last time was when they checked their tires' pressure? sure i am. are other people appalled that i don't use a carseat for my DD2 on flights? i'm sure there are. we all have different comfort levels when it comes to different areas of safety for our loved ones. the people who survive the longest (i'm waxing darwinism here) are the ones who end up with the best balances in the broadest range of safety areas.

Child Survives Plane Crash because of Carseat!

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