Customer Reviews

Baby B'Air Flight Vest

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(17)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(11)

 

 

The FAA has banned the use on aircraft of certain types of child restraints that may be harmful to a child in the event of an aviation emergency. These include backless booster seats, safety belt extensions (commonly referred to as "belly belts"), and vest or harness devices that attach to an adult. Although some that were manufactured before the FAA's ban may carry an insignia and/or language indicating they are approved for aircraft use, please understand that they are no longer permitted.
Approved Child Restraint Devices
Many of these carry the FMVSS.213 insignia and/or language indicating that they are "approved for use in motor vehicles and on aircraft."
Any CRD manufactured between January 1, 1961 and February 25, 1985, must have the following label: "This child restraint device conforms to all applicable federal motor vehicle safety standards."
Any CRD manufactured since February 26, 1985, must have both of the following labels: "This child restraint device conforms to all applicable federal motor vehicle safety standards" and "This restraint is certified for use in motor vehicles and aircraft."
Harness-type devices approved by the FAA:
At this time, the FAA has approved only the AmSafe Aviation CARES, which is appropriate for children weighing between 22 and 44 pounds.
The AmSafe Aviation CARES must have a label indicating "FAA Approved in Accordance with 14CFR 21.305(d), Approved for Aircraft Use Only."

I can't believe someone rated this lower than 5 stars. I have been traveling with my daughter since she was born and she is now 2 years old. We have used the vest, probably 8 or more times:
When she was 6 months old my husband and I took a trip to Mexico and she was still nursing and on my lap. I felt great knowing that if we hit turbulance - she was attached to me.
When she was 7 months she went to visit Grandma with me to Florida and once again - it worked great. Enough mobility so she could wiggle and nurse but safe enough for me to feel better.
When she was a year - we were able to go to Maui and that was a long flight - once again we used it. And, we were never told by the flight crew to take it off during take off and landing although I understand you're not suppose to use it during that time (only cruising). The attendants seemed to think it was a great idea to have her buckled to me.
Lastly, there are enough adjustments on the vest to get a good fit. It may not be the perfect solution but IF YOU HAVE YOUR CHILD/BABY ON YOUR LAP - I truly believe it's better than nothing.

Although I had read that some people weren't allowed by the flight attendants to use this product, I had no difficulty on either United or Southwest. No one bothered us about it, even during take-off and landing. The vest itself was easy to put on my 10-month-old, and gave us a little more peace of mind during turbulant conditions. It was especially nice to have it while nursing our daughter. I only wish I had gotten the smaller size- although our daughter was in the weight range for the toddler size, her shoulders were smaller than the head opening. I would recommend people err toward the smaller size when choosing this product.

I absolutely love the product. It gave me great peace of mind and helped control our little wiggle worm. Unfortunately, Northwest Airlines gave us quite a bit of grief on half our flights with them. They wouldn't let us use it and threatened to have us removed from the plane if we tried! This was even after we showed the card that specified FAA allowed its use during the inflight portion (not cruise and takeoff). So, buy and use with caution!!!

This product does nothing to protect your child if anything goes wrong. It is basically just something for turbulence. The only way to fly safely is to have the child in a car seat and to strap it into a seat. There is no alternative.

Never have your child in this for take-off and landing. Your weight could come down on the baby in forward impact. Their site implys that this product will be approved but that is not the case. They also claim that it meets some sort of FAA standard, which don't exist.

A good baby carrier will do EXACTLY the same thing.

This flight vest is really pointless. The strap attaching the child to your seatbelt is so short (clearly for a reason) that you end up unsnapping it constantly to allow the child to shift positions. If your toddler is anything like mine, having them sit still for even 10 minutes would be a miracle. Even while sleeping, the child can only be in a limited amount of positions and tends to have difficulty getting comfortable in your arms. Purchasing this item is really a conscience decision as it will do little to protect your child besides making you feel as though you did your best.

This is a good idea and I considered getting one, but upon further research I found that this device is not approved by the FAA for use. I even found mention on some airline websites strictly prohibiting the use of devices just like this. So be aware before you buy that there is a good chance you will be told you can't use it on your flight. Flight attendants vary on their enforcement of the rules, so you experience may vary, but knowing the rules ahead of time will have you ready.

By the way, Amazon sells the only FAA approved restraint that is not an actual seat.
AmSafe's CARES Child Aviation Restraint System

The FAA has banned the use on aircraft of certain types of child restraints that may be harmful to a child in the event of an aviation emergency. These include backless booster seats, safety belt extensions (commonly referred to as "belly belts"), and vest or harness devices that attach to an adult. Although some that were manufactured before the FAA's ban may carry an insignia and/or language indicating they are approved for aircraft use, please understand that they are no longer permitted.

Approved Child Restraint Devices
Many of these carry the FMVSS.213 insignia and/or language indicating that they are "approved for use in motor vehicles and on aircraft."
Any CRD manufactured between January 1, 1961 and February 25, 1985, must have the following label: "This child restraint device conforms to all applicable federal motor vehicle safety standards."
Any CRD manufactured since February 26, 1985, must have both of the following labels: "This child restraint device conforms to all applicable federal motor vehicle safety standards" and "This restraint is certified for use in motor vehicles and aircraft."
Harness-type devices approved by the FAA:
At this time, the FAA has approved only the AmSafe Aviation CARES, which is appropriate for children weighing between 22 and 44 pounds.
The AmSafe Aviation CARES must have a label indicating "FAA Approved in Accordance with 14CFR 21.305(d), Approved for Aircraft Use Only."

My wife and I took our 10 month old son on his first vacation earlier this month and purcahsed this item for his to and from flights. The toddler size fit him perfectly (he currently wears 12 month clothes). It functioned great, locking him down to either of our seat belts but still giving him a good amount of mobility to crawl around our laps and investigate the seats and other items around him and we sat in 1st class so he had plenty of room to area to cover. I'm not sure about the regulations that others mentioned in their reviews but none of the attendents on either AA flight told us we could not use it during takeoff and landing or had us use any other type of security device. Their only mention was that the vest was cute.

The big issue with this item is its poor construction. It seemed solid at first but after first wash it completely fell apart at the seams and we washed it on gentle with line dry as stated on the label. It seems usable again but all the seams are hanging out and need to be trimmed. It doesn't seem like it will last too many more flights or another wash.

this product was great for us our baby girl did not try to take it out and it fitted her perfectly.
We flew with continental on our first flight they didn't even notice -they were not the best crew we flew with!- On our way back they just asked us not to attached her to our belt for landing and take off -and this is also what is written on the jacket.

The child can move, it may be a little hot but since most airplane have a very cold AC we thought that was not a bad thing at all. She was even able to sleep with it with no apparent problem.

We just don't understand why you cannot put it on for landing and take off : we are French living in the US so our little one has been flying back and forth at least 4 times since she was born with a French airline. On their planes they provide a seat belt very similar to the one adult wear, that you attached to your own belt during take off landing and during the flight if there are some turbulence.
This belt is just a belt around the baby's waist so not as safe (I think) as this jacket, but it complies with european safety requirements and is much safer than no belt at all!
I don't understand why american companies who do not provide such belt do not accept this jacket for landing and take off .....