cruisingbug Posted October 21, 2006 #1 Share Posted October 21, 2006 September 2006, from the Washington Post.com The Federal Aviation Administration last week announced its approval of a new one-pound safety device to restrain children in an airplane seat. The restraints, called CARES, are approved for children weighing 22 to 44 pounds -- approximately ages 1 to 4 -- and cost $75 (plus $3.95 for shipping). Made by AmSafe Aviation, the largest manufacturer of airplane seat belts, the device has straps that fit over a child's shoulders and then attach to the regular seatbelt. It is not approved for use in cars . The devices will not be available until the end of the month, but orders are being taken through AmSafe, 800-229-6249, http://www.kidsflysafe.com . While kids under age 2 fly free on domestic flights as long as you hold them in your lap, you must buy them a ticket to guarantee that you'll be able to plop them safely into a car seat or a CARES harness. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LittleBit Posted October 24, 2006 #2 Share Posted October 24, 2006 ya know, I've always wondered about this rule - why would you carry your child on your lap for a flight? I just can't believe that it is safe (or comfortable either) to hold a baby on your lap for 2 or more hours. I mean, I guess I could understand not buying a ticket for your kid if you knew for sure that there would be any empty seat next to you, but on a full flight I certainly don't want to have two people plus a 2 year old sitting in the 2 seats next to me. And if it's a bumpy flight, delays, or worse? I can't believe that saving the cost of a ticket is worth the safety of your little one... oh, topic? is the CARES seat something the airline buys and you have to request when booking seats? Or do you have to buy and bring your own (and will every airline let you use it? It sounds like a good investment if you fly alot, but if I'm only flying once or twice with little Olga while she is 1-4 years old, I probably wouldn't bother. Maybe it's something AAA will provide when you are a memeber (they do that for car seats) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terpnut Posted October 24, 2006 #3 Share Posted October 24, 2006 This CARES seat is exactly what my wife and I wanted a few years back. It's a great idea for child safety on airplanes. Too late for us though... :rolleyes: :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bmgaritty Posted October 24, 2006 #4 Share Posted October 24, 2006 There are other safety restraints for children - ie car seats with FAA approval. It's nice, but it doesn't do double duty as of yet for cars or taxis. At 1 lb. it would be great for both situations. Hopefully, there will be laws enacted so all children are required to be in a seat (no lap chidren) with a restraint such as Cares or an approved car seat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terpnut Posted October 26, 2006 #5 Share Posted October 26, 2006 There are other safety restraints for children - ie car seats with FAA approval. It's nice, but it doesn't do double duty as of yet for cars or taxis. At 1 lb. it would be great for both situations.The main advantage of the CARES seat is that it is a multi-point restraint (i.e. it has harness that restrains the entire torso). An FAA-approved car seat on the other hand provides only lap protection and thus is vastly inferior. Of course, if everyone understands and agrees that a five-point harness is optimal, then why aren't all the adults also restrained as such? :rolleyes: Anyhow, because the CARES seat is designed specifically for airline seats that don't have shoulder belts and car seats are designed specifically for automotive seats with shoulder belts, there is no such thing (right now) as a child safety seat for both applications. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bmgaritty Posted October 27, 2006 #6 Share Posted October 27, 2006 The main advantage of the CARES seat is that it is a multi-point restraint (i.e. it has harness that restrains the entire torso). An FAA-approved car seat on the other hand provides only lap protection and thus is vastly inferior. Of course, if everyone understands and agrees that a five-point harness is optimal, then why aren't all the adults also restrained as such? :rolleyes: FAA approved car seats have 5 point harnesses. How does that only provide lap protection? Are you possible speaking of a booster seat? Booster seats are not approved by the FAA. Anyhow, because the CARES seat is designed specifically for airline seats that don't have shoulder belts and car seats are designed specifically for automotive seats with shoulder belts, there is no such thing (right now) as a child safety seat for both applications. Car seats are designed for LATCH, shoulder and lap belts. I beg to differ with you're opnion that they don't handle both applications. What is good about CARES is that it is only 1 lb. What I see as the negative with CARES is that there is no head/neck side protection as a car seat provides. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terpnut Posted October 28, 2006 #7 Share Posted October 28, 2006 Car seats are designed for LATCH, shoulder and lap belts. I beg to differ with you're opnion that they don't handle both applications. What is good about CARES is that it is only 1 lb. What I see as the negative with CARES is that there is no head/neck side protection as a car seat provides. When you secure a regular car seat in an aircraft (even one that is FAA-approved), it is still only secured by the lap belt. Even if the car seat itself has a five-point harness, the entire seat is still only secured by the lap belt. A car seat secured in this manner is not as safe as a seat secured by an automotive three-point harness (i.e. lap and shoulder belt). In an accident, a seat secured by just a lap belt is subject to very high amounts of movement at top part of the seat where a child's head is. Sudden and rapid head movement forward and back due to improperly secured car seats is one of the primary causes of injury to children in automobile accidents. IOW, securing a car seat using a lap belt is NOT anywhere as secure or safe as securing it using a shoulder/lap belt. Thus my point stands that the CARES seat is the ONLY seat that offers full protection for securing children in aircraft seats because it is designed to be secure across the bottom AND top of the seat. And you are mistaken that the CARES seat can be used in a car. The CARES seat requires a top restraint that loops AROUND the entire seat and under the tray to secure it. Obviously, as it is designed specifically and solely for aircraft seats, you cannot use this seat in an automobile. Thus there is no single ideal solution for both cars and aircraft because each craft's built-in, standard adult passenger belt systems and seats are totally different. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
l929 Posted October 28, 2006 #8 Share Posted October 28, 2006 Thank you so much for posting this!! I am definitely getting one for my 21 month old, but what do you think about a 3 year old? The website says it goes up to 4, but I bought a tote n go that he is too big for already (which he shouldnt be according to manufacturer) and I dont want to buy something that he is going to be too big for. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terpnut Posted October 28, 2006 #9 Share Posted October 28, 2006 Thank you so much for posting this!! I am definitely getting one for my 21 month old, but what do you think about a 3 year old? The website says it goes up to 4, but I bought a tote n go that he is too big for already (which he shouldnt be according to manufacturer) and I dont want to buy something that he is going to be too big for.I strongly recommend you focus on the weight and height limits (44 lbs and 40" respectively). I know of some three year-olds that already exceed these limits, and then there is my five year-old who does NOT exceed them! :rolleyes: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bmgaritty Posted October 28, 2006 #10 Share Posted October 28, 2006 When you secure a regular car seat in an aircraft (even one that is FAA-approved), it is still only secured by the lap belt. Even if the car seat itself has a five-point harness, the entire seat is still only secured by the lap belt. A car seat secured in this manner is not as safe as a seat secured by an automotive three-point harness (i.e. lap and shoulder belt). In an accident, a seat secured by just a lap belt is subject to very high amounts of movement at top part of the seat where a child's head is. Sudden and rapid head movement forward and back due to improperly secured car seats is one of the primary causes of injury to children in automobile accidents. IOW, securing a car seat using a lap belt is NOT anywhere as secure or safe as securing it using a shoulder/lap belt. And a car seat that is secured by a lap and shoulder belt is not as safe as one that is secure by LATCH. Actually car seats that are secured properly by a lap belt do not have significant forward and back movement due to the location of the lap belt. It is high up on the structure of the car seat. The lap belt guides are very different than the shoulder belt guides. Both lap and shoulder belts can pull away from their anchors in a car accident, thus LATCH was developed. The movement that causes most injuries to children car accidents is due to improper installation. 75% of car seats are not properly installed and are loose. Parents get lazy and don't tighten them enough, whether they are secured by LATCH, shoulder, or lap belts. Thus my point stands that the CARES seat is the ONLY seat that offers full protection for securing children in aircraft seats because it is designed to be secure across the bottom AND top of the seat. And you are mistaken that the CARES seat can be used in a car. I never said that CARES could be used in a car - please reread my post and don't mis-quote me. It would be nice to have a 1 lb. product that works in both situations. The CARES seat requires a top restraint that loops AROUND the entire seat and under the tray to secure it. Obviously, as it is designed specifically and solely for aircraft seats, you cannot use this seat in an automobile. Thus there is no single ideal solution for both cars and aircraft because each craft's built-in, standard adult passenger belt systems and seats are totally different. CARES is better than nothing but does not offer full protection. 1. It does keep a child from "folding " due to a lap belt which is very dangerous. 2. It offers no head protection as a car seat does 3. It doesn't have a crotch strap to keep a smaller child from sliding and take more load from the lap/shoulder belt. It is 4 point rather than 5 point (shoulder and hips only -no crotch strap). 4. CARES also doesn't work on some first class seats or older seats with recessed tray tables. It is a partial solution, not an ideal one for children in airplane seats. I'll still haul my car seat or sit 'n stroll PS- Wouldn't it be nice if all parents worried about securing their children in airplanes as you and I are? Have a great day! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terpnut Posted October 29, 2006 #11 Share Posted October 29, 2006 CARES is better than nothing but does not offer full protection.1. It does keep a child from "folding " due to a lap belt which is very dangerous. 2. It offers no head protection as a car seat does 3. It doesn't have a crotch strap to keep a smaller child from sliding and take more load from the lap/shoulder belt. It is 4 point rather than 5 point (shoulder and hips only -no crotch strap). 4. CARES also doesn't work on some first class seats or older seats with recessed tray tables. It is a partial solution, not an ideal one for children in airplane seats. I'll still haul my car seat or sit 'n stroll PS- Wouldn't it be nice if all parents worried about securing their children in airplanes as you and I are? Have a great day! I agree that most parents don't appreciate the risks of not properly restraining a child in a car or aircraft! That's why they say 90% of children are not properly restrained in automobiles--either they're not restrained at all or, more likely, the car seats/boosters are not properly secured or used. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
l929 Posted November 2, 2006 #12 Share Posted November 2, 2006 Ours came today. I have to say that I think these devices should already come on planes, we should not have to buy them. They are just an extra seat belt, a great idea and I think they will work, but there is no reason the airlines cant supply them. They may actually sell more seats to infants 1-2 years old b/c if parents know there will be a device for them so that they dont have to bring one, they may actually buy a seat when they normally wouldnt. Also, if the FAA advocates that it is safer for your child to have their own seat, then they should make it easier to do so. It was one thing when it was a large car seat that they had no place to store. But this thing takes up no room. I bet the day will come when we say, "remember when we used to have to lug a car seat on a plane!" Although, lets see how it is when we fly in 2 1/2 weeks. I'll report back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terpnut Posted November 2, 2006 #13 Share Posted November 2, 2006 Ours came today. I have to say that I think these devices should already come on planes, we should not have to buy them. They are just an extra seat belt, a great idea and I think they will work, but there is no reason the airlines cant supply them. They may actually sell more seats to infants 1-2 years old b/c if parents know there will be a device for them so that they dont have to bring one, they may actually buy a seat when they normally wouldnt. Also, if the FAA advocates that it is safer for your child to have their own seat, then they should make it easier to do so. It was one thing when it was a large car seat that they had no place to store. But this thing takes up no room. I bet the day will come when we say, "remember when we used to have to lug a car seat on a plane!" Although, lets see how it is when we fly in 2 1/2 weeks. I'll report back. Excellent points--it's not like stocking a dozen of these on board would take up much space! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.