Plane trip/rental help needed!

I am flying cross-country (Canada) and renting a car to see the inlaws this xmas and I need some carseat help. I have two dds, one 3+yo who rides in an AOE (ugh, bought before I knew better) and a 13mo RF in a marathon. We have a ticket for the 3yo, but not for the 13 mo, but we're trying to get a "free" seat for her...

Questions are:
1 - will I be able to put two carseats next two each other on the plane? Which goes in the window? (the 3yo is ready to turn FF, BTW) Will the flight attendants give me a hard time about this?
2 - if I don't get an empty seat, which seat should I check and how do I safely check a car seat?
3- what do people do to ensure a safe install in a rental car? Right now I've used rolled-up towels and a pool noodle to get a good recline angle in our car...guess I should just bring that with us...

Anything else I should know? This is the first big trip with both girls so I'm a little bit worried about it all going well...

Flying during the Christmas season, I *highly* doubt you will get a free seat for your 13 month old, so expect to be checking a carseat.

I would be checking the AOE because if anything is going to happen to the seat, you want it to be the one you want to replace anyway, kwim? I don't know that it's actually possible to safely check a seat, but I would be gatechecking if at all possible. In a bag with some soft pillows around it would help a little.

If you've rear faced your 3 year old up till this point, she will probably have outgrown this seat when you go to turn her forward facing. You can *not* use the top headrest position with the harness and the straps *must* be above her shoulders when forward facing.

If your 3 yo has outgrown the AOE... your options would be to switch the two kids seats (3 yo in Marathon, 13 mo in AOE) or buy the 3 yo a new seat.

You should not be using *both* rolled towels and pool noodles. Use one or the other, but not both. I prefer pool noodles. At 13 months old your baby does not need a 45 degree angle any more. Anything between 30 - 45 degrees is appropriate for a child her age.

The AOE installs much easier if you remove the base from it. I would remove the base. Then take three sections of pool noodle with you in your suitcase for installing at the destination.

I would personally set the Marathon for FFing use for the 3 yo for the airplane. When you install it on the plane, ask for a seatbelt extender. Then shorten up the airplane's lapbelt as short as it will go. Extend the seatbelt extender as far as it will go. Attach the extender to the shortened seatbelt and run it through the FFing beltpath. Buckle it up and tighten the *extender*.

This will leave the airplane's seatbelt buckle just outside the beltpath and the extender's buckle will be in the beltpath. When you get to your destination you just need to open the buckle that is outside the beltpath... this makes it super easy to uninstall at your destination. It is very difficult to impossible to open the buckle when it is *in* the beltpath.


IF you get a free seat for your 13 mo old on the plane, then you can install both seats side by side, but the rear facing one *must* go by the window.

Do you have any idea what vehicle you will be renting at the other end? Knowing even the possible makes/models you could get makes it a lot easier. We can recommend methods of installation based on which vehicle it may be.

One other tip... airlines have started to not allow strollers past the check in counter *unless* they are umbrella folding. Be prepared for that if you do not have an umbrella folding stroller.

Who are you flying with and how many connections do you have?

If you're flying Air Canada, you will NOT be able to use a carseat onboard for the unticketed child - even if there is space available.

If you're flying WestJet and you have a non-stop flight with NO connections, you can ask about "Infant Standby" at the check-in counter. If there is a seat available, they will allow you to use the 13 mo's seat. If you have stops or connections, WestJet will also NOT allow you to use the carseat.

Most rental cars nowadays have LATCH, so you should find your installs pretty straight forward (at least that's been our experience!) Bring whatever levelling tools you use at home.

Good luck!

Oh, just thought of something else (as I web-check-in for my own cross-country flight ) If you're flying with WestJet, you cannot use any form of electronic check-in when you're travelling with an unticketed infant, you can only check-in in person (and it's advisable to show up extra-early if you want to use infant standby - there will be few seats left together because of all the people who have been able to take advantage of web-check-in.)

Happy trails!