Travel with a baby checklist

Airline infant policy is not one policy

Almost every article about flying with a baby treats airline rules as though they were universal. They are not, and the differences are the kind that stop you boarding. Every figure on this page is quoted from the airline’s or the regulator’s own page, and the tool names the source next to each one, so that you check your own carrier rather than trusting a summary.

How young is too young

easyJet defines an infant as 14 days to 2 years and states plainly that babies under 14 days old are unable to travel. Qantas is more granular: up to 48 hours after birth is too young to travel at all; between three and seven days after birth, travel can be requested by completing a medical clearance form; and from eight days a healthy infant may travel without clearance, although a baby born prematurely or with complications should still be cleared. Two large airlines, two different answers, and neither is something you want to discover at a check-in desk.

Car seats on board, which varies most of all

The FAA tells you to confirm your seat has the exact sentence “This restraint is certified for use in motor vehicles and aircraft” printed on it, or that it is approved by a foreign government and bears the required label. It prohibits baby carriers, booster seats and backless restraints during ground movement, take-off and landing. It also protects you: if an approved seat does not fit a particular aircraft seat, the airline must accommodate it elsewhere in the same cabin.

Delta will allow a child safety seat on board only if you booked a seat for your child or there is an open passenger seat in your row; otherwise it is gate-checked. It cannot be used at all on Delta One flatbed seats, and children under two are not allowed in a seat with an airbag seat belt. easyJet allows forward-facing car seats only. Qantas prohibits booster seats and capsules outright, accepts different certifications depending on where the seat was bought, and warns that its Dash-8 and Fokker aircraft cannot take a seat requiring a top tether.

Lap children, and why the FAA is blunt about it

Children who have not reached their second birthday are permitted to travel as lap children. The FAA nevertheless strongly discourages the practice and recommends securing your child in an approved restraint in their own seat for the entire flight, because your arms are not capable of holding a child securely in unexpected turbulence. It then spells out the practical consequence most people miss: buying a ticket for your child is the only way to guarantee that you will be able to use a child restraint at all.

easyJet adds an operational limit almost nobody knows about: only one infant may sit on a lap per row of three seats, and a maximum of two infants per adult — so with two infants, one of them must have their own seat and a car seat. It is an oxygen mask count, not a comfort rule.

The harness that fits in a pocket

If carrying a car seat through an airport is what is stopping you buying the extra seat, the CARES harness is the alternative. The FAA certifies it for children up to 40 inches tall weighing 22 to 44 pounds; Qantas states the same device as 10 to 20 kilograms and 100 centimetres or less. It is approved for taxi, take-off, landing and turbulence, and it weighs almost nothing.

Two cautions come with it. It is approved for aircraft use only and must never be used in a car. And counterfeits are sold online, so buy direct from the manufacturer and check the label reads “FAA Approved in Accordance with 14 CFR 21.8(d) … Approved for Aircraft Use Only”.

Bassinets, fares and what you get free

Qantas bassinets are available on B787, A380 and A330 services. The infant must be under two, under 11 kilograms, and physically fit a bassinet approximately 71 centimetres long, 31 wide and 26 deep. They are complimentary in the premium cabins and charged for in international Economy, and they go early.

On fares, Delta carries an Infant-in-Arms free on flights within the United States but a ticket is still required, and outside the US it is usually 10 per cent of the adult fare with country-specific fees. Qantas requires an infant to have their own ticket on international flights at 10 per cent of the adult fare, while domestically an infant travels on the accompanying adult’s ticket.

On baggage, Delta does not count strollers and child safety seats towards your allowance and checks them free at the curb, the counter or the gate, plus a booster seat, other infant seat or bassinet, or a breast pump and cooler bag as an extra item on board. easyJet takes two items per infant or child into the hold free, plus a changing bag in the cabin for a lap infant.

The liquids rule people under-use

easyJet states it clearly: the 100 millilitre limit does not apply to baby food, baby milk or sterilised water, provided each container is no more than 2 litres, and you may simply be asked to taste it. Take more than the flight time needs, because delays happen on the ground, after the shops.

Car seats do not travel between legal systems

A restraint legal in one country is often illegal in another. Australia requires AS/NZS 1754 and a seat bought overseas is not legal to use there. Canada requires Transport Canada’s National Safety Mark under CMVSS 213, and a seat without it cannot legally be used in Canada even if it is legal where you bought it. The UK works to UN ECE R44 or R129. If you are hiring a seat at your destination, remember that hire companies rent seats but rarely fit them and the instructions are usually missing.

Two things to do on arrival

Before you unpack, look for blind and curtain cords near wherever the baby will sleep and move the cot away from them. Then run the hot tap. Holiday accommodation almost never has thermostatically limited hot water, and the room the cot has been put in is very often the one under the window with the corded blind.

This is a packing list rather than medical advice. If your baby is unwell before you travel, particularly with a cold or an ear infection, get advice before the airport rather than at it.