Has anyone used CARES on the plane before--the new FAA approved child restraint device? My toddler is in the upper limits (he is 40 pounds and 40 inches) of the suggested limit of 44 pounds, 40 inches. I was wondering how the experience was: worth it $75, was the child comfortable, was it easy to install? Any insights will be appreciated. Thanks!

so
Who CARES?

anyone?
i guess nobody CARES.

i certainly don't CARE.

Was this supposed to be funny? If you cannot offer helpful insight, why bother at all?

What is it exactly?

I'm not sure if this is the same thing or not, but Virgin Atlantic has something called CareChair, which is like a booster seat with a harness.

I've never heard of them being sold, or being FAA child safety reg compliant.

CARES is a five point harness seat belt that attaches to the airplane seat. It was approved by the FAA quite recently and none of our friends have used it so I was wondering if anyone has had any experience with it.

Hmm. I've checked their website. Very interesting info, thanks Kealoha. I'm almost tempted to use it myself, as I hate having to schlepp the car seat and it does look better than the loop belt.

http://www.kidsflysafe.com/

I said "almost", as we mainly fly European and I'm not sure if they're accepted on non-US airlines.

Kealoha, Could you use it later in your trip as a car seat? If it is lighter weight than a car seat and can be used both places, I'd give it a try. I'm going to mention this seat to my daughter as she travels a lot with children. If you buy it and use it, post back to let us know how it worked out. Best Wishes!

I was going to post the same question but found someone had beat me to it quite a while ago. The product has now been on the market for over a year and I wonder whether any fodorites have used it. It is for a small (27lb) toddler - 21 mos. - for whom we have purchased her own seat and we do not need a carseat at our destination.

I am curious to hear about any experiences. Was the child comfortable? easy to install (looks confusing)? was the toddler able to sleep as well as being in a carseat? would you recommend bringing a pillow/blanket with it or anything else? thanks.