Just saw this and thought the parents here could very much use this info, as you all probably fly more than most people.
I am a children’s safety advocate- but even I did not know how dangerous holding your baby rather than using a car seat was during air travel.
Plane Crash Survivor Fights for Lap Children Ban | NBC Chicago
Re: No lap babies on airplanes!
Don’t they give lap safety belt extensions on planes now so your child isn’t just in your arms, they are buckled in too? Placing a kid on the floor during a crash landing is a ludicrous suggestion. God forbid we were ever in that position, I would never do it.
But also if she’s crusading for banning holding kids in your lap, then a part of that has to be fighting to lower prices for children too for those families that need to buy that extra seat. I know airlines flying international, long haul flights offer discounts sometimes but flying from the US to Canada, for eg, there are no discounts and paying full price can be prohibitive for the average family.
In the end though I can’t help but feel that if you are in a plane crash, all bets are off anyway 
Re: No lap babies on airplanes!
i think it’s safer to hold the baby in your arms than using a belt around a car seat. besides, you have to buy a seat…how many people will be willing to pay the adult fare for the baby? i guess not many.
Re: No lap babies on airplanes!
I completely agree with you about the prices, SMG!
After researching this I am shocked at the number of injuries to lap babies when there was turbulence and no crash. It looks like car seats are the way to go, but families need to be offered a greatly discounted seat!
Are you kidding, KKF? How would a baby ever be safer in your arms rather than a car seat installed correctly. No one could hold onto a baby during strong turbulence the way a correctly installed car seat could.
Re: No lap babies on airplanes!
no, i am not. the thing is that the car seats are not designed to fit in airplane seats and it’s more dangerous if the seat doesn’t fit and fastened properly.
the biggest deterrent for the airlines to install car seats compatible with airplane seats is the cost of installing such seats and the willingness of the traveling public to pay full fare for their infants. cost is one of the major reasons for not having a baby seat in the planes.
lemme put it this way, if you ain’t a super rich, would you pay $1200-15oo for travel to the subcontinent? i won’t.
Re: No lap babies on airplanes!
I agree with you on the cost. But you are wrong on the car seats. Many (some of the cheapest) are certified to fit on airplanes. And those car seats will ALWAYS be safer than someone holding on to them- in a car or airplane. The thought that any human can hold onto a child better than a car seats leads to so many deaths. Mostly in cars- but still!
I am sure those who have lost their children would gladly pay every cent or waited a year or so until their children were in their own seats anyway.
Re: No lap babies on airplanes!
well, babies have been flying in their mom’s or dad’s lap for decades and i haven’t come across any incident where mom survived and the baby died because he/she was in mom’s lap.
as you have agreed with me, the cost is a biggest factor in not having a seat for your child and we have to live with that.
if the airlines have it their way, soon obese people will have to buy another seat if they want to fly…i dun wanna see people being weighed before boarding! 
Re: No lap babies on airplanes!
Like I said- just thought I would pass on the info. Do some research on the subject and it will give you pause. Even If KKF hasn’t personally heard of a mom surviving, while a baby died…a simple google search would prove him wrong.
Perhaps we should advocate for cheaper fares for babies. But, never should we deny scientific facts that can save the lives of our innocent children.
Anyway, just something to think about!
Re: No lap babies on airplanes!
A car seat would definitely be safer than a person. This is why we use car seats in vehicles too vs. a child sitting in someone’s lap. Most only require a seatbelt for proper installation which is something airplanes have. It comes down to cost.
Re: No lap babies on airplanes!
ok, we all agree that cost is the inhibiting factor. FAA admits that it’s unsafe to hold the baby in lap but did not come down with any regulation to force airlines to have the Child Restrain System on their flights. they can not say that because it will kill the airline industry which already operates under tremendous financial restraints.
since the incidents are too few and far between which doesn’t necessitate the installation of seat belts on all airplanes.
those who are concerned about the safety of their children, they are more than welcome to buy a seat for their infants and carry their babies in compatible with aircraft car seats.
Re: No lap babies on airplanes!
What airlines don’t have seatbelts?? As far as I know all of them do!
Re: No lap babies on airplanes!
i meant CRS [Child Restraint System]…this doesn’t require the travelers to bring on board the car seats for their babies. it’s a seat system designed for this purpose.
Re: No lap babies on airplanes!
I think that the airlines installing a restraint system is very unlikely and probably wouldn’t be safe. Each child needs a seat that fits them- children under 2 (maybe 4) should be rearfacing etc.
Everyone can bring a car seat on board and they can be correctly installed with a seatbelt. And then you have your car seat at your destination to use.
Let’s just hope the airlines will give the seats at a great discount to encourage parents to do the right thing!
Re: No lap babies on airplanes!
yeah, very unlikely, rather not possible due to cost. we may wish to see greatly subsidized fare for babies but it’s highly unlikely unless FAA orders them to do it. at the end of the day, we as passengers will have to subsidize and many of us won’t be able to fly due to high cost of flying.
i pay as little as $850 Canadian [US$ 790] for a round trip from Toronto to India on major airlines. if the infant seat is subsidized i may have to pat over $1000 Canadian for the same trip.
Re: No lap babies on airplanes!
I always take my carseat along and pay an extra seat.