First time flying with infant
 

We will be flying next month with our new born baby and would like any suggestions from experienced parents on how to accomplish this with the least amount of problems for the baby, other passenger and us. We did buy a seat for baby (carseat). It will be an early morning non-stop 4 hour flight. Thanks.

Most likely you will have no problems whatsoever. Make sure the baby is sucking on something at takeoff and landing (pacifier, breastfeeding or bottle). Take more diapers than you think you need and a change of clothes for the baby and a new shirt for you (in case of spit up or a bad blowout). Four hours isn't that long and if the baby is small he (or she) will just do what he normally does at home--eat and sleep!

Monica is right on.<BR><BR>To her advice I would suggest 2 airlines bottles of scotch (for you - just in case)<BR><BR>Really, though, you should have no problems and the most important thing is to relax and let your baby feel your calmness.

Some airlines don't let you bring the car seat unless you pay for a seat. Most airlines will let you if there is an empty seat beside you, did you inform them that you would be traveling with an infant?

Type "infant" in search bar and you will find lots of flying tips. Good luck.

Good for you for buying a seat. I am going to assume you are bringing the rear facing infant carrier. If so, you may want to check with the airline to see if this type of seat can be installed on their plane. A girlfriend of mine once tried bringing her infant carrier on the plane (I think USAirways). The flight attendant would not let her install it rear facing since the seats were designed to collapse forward in the event of an emergency. However, the carrier was not designed to face forward and simply would not install properly that way, so my girlfriend ended up holding her baby during the flight. Hope this made sense. If you find that your baby's ears hurt during the flight, take two styrofoam cups with hot paper towels in the bottom, and hold them over the baby's ears. It will create a vacuum, pop the ears and relieve the pain. Good luck. I am sure you will be fine.

Good advice about checking with the airline about your particular seat. We took our son's infant carseat along once only to be told that it was not "FAA approved." That was news to me because I didn't know carseats were or were not FAA approved.<BR><BR>The worst part of a flight for the ears is the landing. I've never had any issues with my babies and take offs, just landing. Lots of sucking then is good! And you need to start that when you feel the plane slowly starting to make it's decent - when you can't hear as well and your ears need to pop - often 30 min. or more before the plane actually lands.<BR><BR>Unless you've been blessed with an extremely fussy baby, it should be a breeze. Good Luck!

Monica,<BR><BR>One of your suggestions is to have the baby "sucking on something at takeoff and landing (pacifier, breastfeeding, or bottle)" I really hope you are kidding about the breastfeeding part, as I do not believe the main cabin or a commercial airliner is any place for a mother to be breastfeeding her child. How could this even be considered remotely reasonable? It is always bad enough to be stuck on a plane next to a screaming kid, now couple that with a mother that insists on breastfeeding during the middle of take-off and landing and it would only make the situation worse and more uncomfortable to those passengers around you. <BR><BR>And let us not forget that "Paul" put the original post here, and something tells me that "Paul" does not practice breast feeding too often. My advice, the baby is going to scream at take-off and landing due to the flucuations of cabin pressure. There is nothing that can be done about this, and I believe most passengers understand this. Do you best to calm the baby during this time period, and the rest of the ride should be no problem. Please, oh please do not breastfeed during the flight.

No kidding-- sounds like you have issues!

Hey no kidding - just don't look!

Ive breast fed my daughter on a plane and not a soul knew it, except her and my husband. I was in a window seat, with a blanket on me, and very inconspicuous. It's not like you walk down the asile breastfeeding... And any pediatrician will tell you (as Monica did) that breastfeeding or a bottle is great on take off and landing to prevent ear problems. <BR><BR>Breast feeding is the most natural thing in the world.

No Kidding,<BR><BR> Ditto what New Mom said. <BR><BR>

It should be illegal to bring an infant on a plane! How inconsiderate on SO MANY LEVELS!!!<BR><BR>Between the baby and the other passengers who have to listen to YOUR baby scream. <BR><BR>Some people shouldn't be allowed to be parents!

As long as the breast-feeding is done discreetly I see no problem. I have a 6 week old & we have had no problems. Flying, driving or otherwise. Just skip over the anti-breast feeding post. & yes I am a male.

In response to x. When is an acceptable age ? How many children do you have ? Or, are you just old & senile ? It seems to me the sooner young ones are exposed to things like flying the easier it is for them to adapt. Glad you aren't/weren't my parent.

Regarding the breastfeeding - I wouldn't breast feed during take-off and landings for safety reasons only. If your baby only breast feeds (hasn't been introduces to a bottle) that is your decision. BUT, if you have gone through the trouble of buying an airline seat and taking the car seat, the safest thing to do is make sure the baby is in the car seat on take-off and landing, since this is the riskiest part of the flight.<BR><BR>I know the original poster did not bring up the breast feeding - but just wanted to point out that an infant being breastfed is not safely secured!

Hmmm, leave it to this site to uncover childhood problems, such as not being breast fed. You can really tell who was not! I cannot believe the phobias and allergies being admitted to here. Get treatment. Why be so profoundly negative toward a new mom who may need to breast feed on the plane! My god, be human beings, lighten up and breathe! And if it's tahta stressful, seek help and take meds. What's really astounding is that one or two of you may be women. I thought of all people you'd be the ones who would understand.

No kidding's comments are so inane that I'm starting to wonder if he's a troll.

I agree with no kidding and I am a female. Apparently, I am the only modest female who has replied to this message. Ever hear of a breast pump!? I once sat next to a woman on the plane who was nursing her baby. Talk about uncomfortable! Oh sure, I can just close my eyes the whole time. I had no other choice as the seats are so close together that you have no choice but to see. Why don't we just let everyone walk around half-naked? Get a pump!

Um, Getapump, grow up. Not all babies will take a bottle, so expressed breast milk doesn't always work. Walk around half naked? I have yet to meet a nursing mother who wasn't completely discrete about feeding her child. What would you people have her do? Feed her child in the bathroom? My recommendation to the original poster is to give the child a pacifier (if he or she takes one) upon take off and landing - do not take the child out of the seat at that time.

Ilisa is right, it's safer to have the child in the carseat during takeoff and landing. As far as those of you who are horrified at the idea of someone actually feeding their infant the way nature intended--grow up!! A breastpump is not a perfect alternative--expressed breastmilk will spoil just like regular formula and it would also need to be warmed up before feeding--hard on a plane. In addition, if a woman is breastfeeding that milk is coming out at the appointed time--if not through the baby eating than through leaking. And before you say she could pump in the bathroom--get real! Do you really want someone in an airplane bathroom for 20 minutes to a half hour? Again, grow up and don't look if it bothers you!

ilsa, I have met and seen many women who militantly breastfeed. What do I mean? They basically expose themselves whenever and wherever they want to in the guise of nursing a baby. Fortunately, however, they are in the minority. Most nursing women are considerate enough to do so discretely. <BR><BR>paul, be sure also to bring along tylenol to alleviate any discomfort the changing airpressure might bring.

Where are these so-called militant breastfeeders? Where can you find them? Why do I always miss out on these things?

I can't believe the level of immaturity here! I nursed my kids everywhere when we were traveling, but did so discreetly. If you know what you're doing, believe me, no one around you will even know that you're nursing, and they certainly won't see a single millimeter of breast, god forbid! <BR><BR>I still can't imagine why it would be so horrifying to some people if mom accidently exposed herself while nursing anyway. There are some people with serious issues out there.

Please do not remove the child from the carrier at anytime during the flight if possible. You never know when turbulence is going to hit and your child could be seriously injured.

xxx, and just how would you feed a breastfed child if they were strapped into a car seat? That might take for some interesting contortions on the mom's part....

I'm just wondering why parents subject newborns to the ear problems that are unavoidable when flying. Sucking doesn't help the baby any more than chewing gum or yawning helps older kids or adults.

Mom, I'm sorry to say, you're wrong. Sucking does help alleviate earaches when flying. Would you like to disagree with medical facts?

Nina: I am a FA with a major airline and I stated please do not remove the child from the carrier if possible. I didn't say don't do it at all. The reason I state this is because we hit are pockets quite frequently and not only does crew get injured, but passengers not properly buckled in also get hurt. An infant cannot help itself nor can the parent if the plane drops or lurches do to turbulent air. I was only stating that for the safety of both the infant.

Thanks for the helpful advice. I will check with United about the car seat and whether it will present a problem. It is a new Graco one so I expect it will be ok. We know she is safer in the carseat which is why we bought a seat for her on the plane. As far as breastfeeding, no need for advice on that issue.

Smartermom: How do you KNOW? There ARE NO "medical facts", except maybe that ANY infant is more COMFORTABLE in their own bed that in a baby seat for 4 HOURS on a jetliner or while taking off or landing. So, there! And, what the heck does "helps alleviate" mean to a screaming infant?

Enough of this already!<BR><BR>Put the baby in the damn seat and FLY! <BR><BR>Oops, I mean, put the baby in the damn car seat, give the pilot a breathalyzer test, and FLY!

ME<BR>You are an imbecile. The rapid changes in air pressure, particularly during ascent & descent, can cause a vacuum in the middle ear creating a blocked sensation. Many travelers find this sensation annoying, but for some travelers ear discomfort becomes ear pain. If your ears feel blocked when flying, you need to equalize the air pressure in the ear.<BR><BR>This can be accomplished by swallowing which activates the muscle that opens your Eustachian tube causing your ears to "pop". <BR>When flying with a baby keep them awake during ascent & descent and make sure they are sucking on a bottle or pacifier to keep them swallowing. Otherwise, it's very likely you'll have a crying baby on your lap.<BR><BR>Is this still too hard for you to understand? And by the way, in case you don't know too, an imbecile means an idiot. Yes, that's you. Capish?<BR><BR>