Planes 'n Babies

[mark henry]

I don't know about coups i'm more affraid of taking my 18 month old son on the plane when we go to Thailand in November in case i get a thump from another passenger. Seriousley i get mild panic attacks just thinking of it! We are flying with Gulf Air to BKK via Bahrain, two 6/7 hour flights. Anyone got any tips/advice how to get through it (aside from leaving him behind that is). I'v heard Calpol is good for subdueing them a bit? What about Gulf Air? any one flown with them and their off-spring?

The Wife (Thai) is far less worried but not much seems to faze her anyway.

Any help would be appreciated.

Mark

[flightcrew1]

Hi -

I work for a major international air carrier and we have baby minders on board from UK to BKK and other long haul flights. Most carriers do have them. Advise the airline well before hand that you need baby items and request a bassinet for the seat. Do it direct with the airline and don't leave it to your travel agent. You don't know how many times I hear a complaint when something is missing "but I told my travel agent"

[totlanh]

Our daughter at 3 is all-ready a vetran flyer and too date has never posed us any problems.As a parent most airlines permit you to board first so hopefully that may negate any hussle bustle.Also when checking in ask for extra leg room .

[GuestHouse]

I don't work for an international carrier, but here's my advice based on personal experience of regularly flying longhaul with our kids:

Over the past ten years we have flown Long-Haul (London to Bangkok) many times with our children; we have been living and working in Thailand and make the journey twice a year.

The following are my main tips for that flight, some of which you will have to discuss with the airline.

**My first tip is get the right seats, ask for Bulkhead seating, most airlines will normally assign you to Bulkhead Seats, but its worth checking, Bulkhead seats offer much more space.

**Check in early and contact the boarding desk in the lounge to ensure you are allowed to board first, airlines let families with small children board early but they need to know you are their, so do hover near the boarding desk.

** Prepare an in-flight travel bag:

--*Warm clothes for everyone (pullover or similar) the flight cabin can get cold.

--*A Simple change of clothes for each of you in case anyone is ill during the flight

--*A 500ml water bottle each (the type with the drinking nozzle) so much easier to use than the cups the airline will give you, a lot less chance of spills.

--*Any medicines you or your children might need (if they are prescription medicines take copies of the prescriptions with you) - In addition to the normal medicine pack we always carry antihistamines in case of an allergic reaction to food.

--*Something to play with, read or draw with, story book etc.

--*Baby wipes, moisturising cream, toothbrushes and toothpaste

--* A pen for completion of immigration paperwork during the flight

You should also carry all valuables in your in-flight travel bag but be careful not to make it too heavy.

Food Onboard.

Book children's meals in advance, but if you children are fussy eaters consider taking packed lunches in your in-flight travel bag.

Stay away from foods with sugar, colorants or flavourings as these can make your children restless.

**Sleeping onboard.

We change our children into their pyjamas so that they get as close a regime as possible to home (Pyjamas might be that change of clothes I mentioned above).

We never give our children anything to make them sleep: Keep in mind that an adverse reaction to some sleeping potion (Chemical or Herbal) might happen 10,000meters up and several hours from a hospital -the effect of any medication can be very different at altitude and almost no medications are tested for use at altitude.

**Day or Night Flight?

We have always found the night flight to be better as it is the nearest to normal sleep time.

**Safety on Board

Watch out for heavy things in overhead compartments; watch out for serving trolleys and little fingers hanging over the edge of seats.

**Pushchairs?

You will be able to take completely folding (umbrella type) pushchairs with you, right through to the aircraft, at which time they will be taken off you to be placed in the hold. These are a great place to rest your children while in the waiting lounge before the flight.

We have always found our children get over jet lag far better than we do.

Ear ache.

The ear ache we sometimes get when an aircraft is taking off/landing is caused by a differential pressure between the inner ear and the cabin air. Provided there is no blockage to the Eustachian Tube (Airway between the inner ear an throat) the air pressure will equalise soon after take-off/landing and the pain will disapear.

However, infants and small children can suffer with this simply because they do not know what is happening, all they feel is pain.

The two cures for infant earache are the natural ones, crying and feeding. Crying - or should I say 'balling' causes the airways between the ear and throat to open, therebye helping equalise the pressure in the ear and remove the pain. Feeding works in a similar fashion but is aided by the sucking action. This is one time when bottle feeding offers an advantage. A bottle with a smaller than usual hole in the teat will cause your child to have to work harder to feed, thereby helping the equalisation of the pressure.

Gentlely massaging the Eustachian tubes can also help (running your fingers gently up and down from below the ear following close to the back of the jaw bone)

Never ever be tempted to pinch noses and and blow, or encourage your children to do likewise.

Because a blockage to the Eustachian tube can cause real pain during a flight its best to get a doctor to look at anyone in your family if they have a heavy cold in the days before a flight.

Have a great trip

[mark henry]

Thankyou all for your advice. To be honest i was'nt sure i'd get a reply it's not quite as interesting as coups and the like! I'm going to print off your advice and keep it nearer to hand for when we go. Only thing i did'nt mention is that our child has'nt got his own seat! he'll be on our lap or the floor.

Thanks again.

[leisurely]

It will be your lap and you;ll be feeling pretty uncomfortable by the time you land!

I would echo the advice given about drugs. Calpol is not a sedative, I think that there is an urban myth about this. The only way I can see it being tranquilising is when it is given as a remedy. When someone is ill mostly you do want to sleep, you give calpol and the individual sleeps. Therefore Calpol makes you sleep.

The only time I have given one of ours sedation was the first time I flew on my own with her. I decided 12 hours of her running up and down the plane would cause me to have a stroke. I spoke to her paediatrician and he prescribed an antihistamine. He advised me to try it before we went as 2% of people react badly to it. Guess which percent our little angel fell into. 20 minutes after ingestion the effects became evident. It was as though someonehad given her speed. Up and down, yelling and shouting, running, jumping, hopping, laughing. The only thing we didn't get was tears so that was a blessing. Finally she collapsed and slept for the best part of 18 hours.

Never again.

[boppia]

Great posts! Guest house, you should have a page somewhere with all your advice it's really wonderful!

[jdinasia]

Cheers tothe OP to realize that there is NOTHING worse than being trapped on a plane for 14 hours with screaming/crying kids on board!

[leisurely]

There is something worse than being trapped on the plane with a screaming child. When it is yours it is a million times worse . You can't even moan along with the rest of the plane - well you can but it confirms other peoples ideas that you are a bad parent!

[jdinasia]

lol ... have to take your word on that one!

[Neeranam]

Some great advice here.

That Calpon is ok. What is much better is a little dram of whisky mixed into the milk.

A doctor friend actually recommended valium!

I guess people from different cultures think that one thing is terrible to give kids - Some may say, "never give a kid alcohol", whilst giving their babies opium to stop crying. I say natural drugs aer much better.

We've been lucky on our two flights to the UK - one time we were next to a big, middle-aged German woman who loved our daughter, so she disappeared into her for most the time.

The other flight, there were three Thai teenage girls who looked after her the whole way.

Edited September 22, 2006 by Neeranam

[mark henry]

Some great advice here.

That Calpon is ok. What is much better is a little dram of whisky mixed into the milk.

A doctor friend actually recommended valium!

I guess people from different cultures think that one thing is terrible to give kids - Some may say, "never give a kid alcohol", whilst giving their babies opium to stop crying. I say natural drugs aer much better.

We've been lucky on our two flights to the UK - one time we were next to a big, middle-aged German woman who loved our daughter, so she disappeared into her for most the time.

The other flight, there were three Thai teenage girls who looked after her the whole way.

Thanks again folks great advice.

Mark

[GuestHouse]

Great posts! Guest house, you should have a page somewhere with all your advice it's really wonderful!

Page.... I've got a website and a whole book that I wrote on the subject of Thailand4Kids.

But in the interests of following the TV rules I don't plug it.... too often.

[WaiWai]

What is much better is a little dram of whisky mixed into the milk.

That would be for the parents, not the kid, of course.

[boppia]

Are you serious?

Okay, I just checked out your Thailand4Kids site, if that is your site. Well done. Thewholeearth doesn't seem to have anything. I thought it would go to some sort of health food site.

Edited September 22, 2006 by boppia

[Patsycat]

In the late sixties, my parents and their friends always went for the "wee dram" option when on flights that took much longer than now. But i would go for the more "tire them out before the flight" regime now.

[GuestHouse]

Are you serious?

Okay, I just checked out your Thailand4Kids site, if that is your site. Well done. Thewholeearth doesn't seem to have anything. I thought it would go to some sort of health food site.

Yes I am.

Yes it is and thank you

No it doesn't just yet, but I have other plans for that.

In that order.

[astral]

Gulf Air has special Sky Nannies to help you!!

[Charma]

I think the most sensible thing you have done is get a two leg flight. I am going to try this next time as the last trip with our little angel was a real trial and I think I can handle two legs of 6/7 hours better than one 12 hour nightmare.

It is not just the strain of managing the little one, it is the pressure you feel with all those eyes drilling in the back of your head every time they make a noise. I am going to try for a two leg flight with a one or two night stoppover.

I would be interested to know how Gulf turn out.

Edited September 22, 2006 by Charma

[Johpa]

Both my kids were veterans of trans-oceanic flights by the time they were three years of age. Regardless of the airline, I have always found the flight crew to be very helpful in catering to the needs of babes and infants. Be prepared to do some walking up and down the aisle with the child. If possible, book a 747 that allows you to walk "the loop" with additional space by the rear doors and galley area for movement.

Remember that just about everyone else on the flight is bored to tears within a few hours and finding a toddler to suddenly interact with is great fun for most of your fellow travelers so if they so desire, let the kid walk the aisle when there is no food being served. Odds are they will find a kindly aunt or uncle to interact act. They really can't go too far or get into too much trouble.

If they so start crying, get them out of the seat area, which looks like what it is, a narrow confined area dominated by knees, and hold and walk them on your shoulder for a more open view of things.

[ianpants69]

I don't know about coups i'm more affraid of taking my 18 month old son on the plane when we go to Thailand in November in case i get a thump from another passenger. Seriousley i get mild panic attacks just thinking of it! We are flying with Gulf Air to BKK via Bahrain, two 6/7 hour flights. Anyone got any tips/advice how to get through it (aside from leaving him behind that is). I'v heard Calpol is good for subdueing them a bit? What about Gulf Air? any one flown with them and their off-spring?

The Wife (Thai) is far less worried but not much seems to faze her anyway.

Any help would be appreciated.

Mark

I hate to be the bearer of bad news but my wife and I flew with our then 19 month old daughter on Gulf Airlines at christmas. I can honestly tell you it was one of the worst experiences of my life.

Gulf air will provide you with an 'aircot' which is far to small for anything other than a new-born baby. Not only that there is a bright light situated above it which cannot be turned off.

On the outward flight we didn't check our buggy but were given a slip of paper that would allow us to give it to the staff just before we boarded and were told that it would be returned to us when we got off in Bahrain for stop over. When we arrived in Bahrain we were told that because I had checked it at the check-in desk (not true) we couldn't have it. After complaining to the service desk repeatedly (please remember that because of the aircot which my daughter was too big to fit in none of us had slept by this point) the buggy was finally brought to us, broken and unusable, 3 hours after we had gotten off the plane. When I requested the necessary forms to make a claim I was simply told 'it's not my fault' and 'we don't have any forms'.

I have been pursuing the claim for the buggy ever since and acheived nothing.

By the time we got onto the second leg of the journey my daughter was so tired that she pretty much screamed for the whole way to London. We weren't even offered an aircot on this leg of the flight as our daughter was over the weight limit for it (not that it was much use anyway) and I was told that this was my fault for not having booked an extra seat for my daughter. I had checked with Gulf Air in Bangkok prior to booking and they had assured me that the aircot was suitable for a child of up to 2 years old and that booking an extra seat wouldn't be necessary.

After we finally got to my parent's house where we were staying my daughter was sick through exhaustion and we had to take her to the doctor the following day. It took all of us almost a week to get over what was definitely the worst journey of my life.

For three weeks in the UK I repeatly phoned the airline to try and make more suitable arrangements for the return journey, on the day before our departure the mant that I had been dealing with told us that he was happy to confirm that we would have an extra seat to make up for the 'difficulties' on the outward journey. When we checked in we were told that no such arrangement had been made and that no one at the call center had the authority to do so.

The return journey was only slightly better in that it was a day flight and the aircot provided a small space for my daughter to sit rather than being on our laps the whole way.

When I got back here I wrote a long letter to Gulf Airlines outlining what had happened (those things above and many more) after a week or so I received an email saying that they were 'looking into it'. I have heard nothing since.

I will never fly Gulf again. I would recommend you to do the same, whether you are travelling with a child or not, the food is crap, the staff are rude and you get more leg-room on a Bangkok bus.

Good luck.

[daleyboy]

We flew with our little lad in June this year, when he was 7 weeks old, and what a great little lad he was, slept the entire flight there and back without waking once what a proud and relieved daddy i was.

Just follow the advice of other posters about seats and sky cots and book early and double check with the airlines that you have the correct seats.

We flew direct with BA, and i have to admit, that it is the best i have ever been treated on any flight by any airline. Well done BA

[BrissyBoy]

I would have to back up Guest house with the little bit of alcohol.

Also try and book a flight mid week as i have found fewer people traveling and you will have a better chance of having a spare seat for the child, not on your lap.

Try and make it fun for your child. If he/she wants to go for a walk then go with them. Better that then crying half the way. And a few toys always help.

[sbk]

OK, letting your kid wander up and down the aisles is not a good idea, frankly.

There is the very real chance of turbulence as well as air pockets. My father was on a flight to Hawaii many years ago when his flight hit a pocket, dropped 5,000 feet in seconds. The flight attendant hit the ceiling and snapped her neck.

There is a reason the pilot asks you to stay buckled in as long as you are in your seat.

[backflip]

"Remember that just about everyone else on the flight is bored to tears within a few hours and finding a toddler to suddenly interact with is great fun..."

Where, Fantasyland? As a very frequent flyer, the last thing I want to deal with is someone else's noise-covered-with-dirt.

[miminem]

I don't know about coups i'm more affraid of taking my 18 month old son on the plane when we go to Thailand in November in case i get a thump from another passenger. Seriousley i get mild panic attacks just thinking of it! We are flying with Gulf Air to BKK via Bahrain, two 6/7 hour flights. Anyone got any tips/advice how to get through it (aside from leaving him behind that is). I'v heard Calpol is good for subdueing them a bit? What about Gulf Air? any one flown with them and their off-spring?

The Wife (Thai) is far less worried but not much seems to faze her anyway.

Any help would be appreciated.

Mark

Never tried gulf Air but most important things from my experience:

- be relaxed, even not easy as your kid will feel if you are nervous or not. And guess what, if you are nervous, he will most probably be and then you will get more nervous etc, etc.

-get seats at bulkhead or be sure you have an extra seat for your child. Having your baby on your knees for 6 hours is not an option, he will not manage to sleep, neither will you and he will feel that you are getting nervous or tired.

- Try to relief the ear pain at take-off or landing, giving a sweet or bottle feeding worked for me( actually, for my kids)

[popshirt]

"Remember that just about everyone else on the flight is bored to tears within a few hours and finding a toddler to suddenly interact with is great fun..."

Where, Fantasyland? As a very frequent flyer, the last thing I want to deal with is someone else's noise-covered-with-dirt.

Amen to that! And for those of us who don't have children or who raised them aeons ago, we are not used to the cries of a child in distress. Believe me it has to be worse for us than for the parents!

I will stay as far as possible from the bulkhead. Thanks for that information.

[GuestHouse]

As a very regular air traveller, I've witnessed several cases of passangers fighting on aircraft (punching the sh1t out of each other - most, but not all, arrested and charged with air raid - one on the way to BKK). Passangers verbally abusing air crew/other passengers. including threats of violence are common place, and becoming more so.

These have all been adults, mostly male and almost all p1ssed out of their heads.

Almost as bad is getting sat next to some boring g1t droaning on about sh1t I really don't want to hear. I get a lot of that on the BKK sector.

On the basis of my experience, families with young children are pretty much the least bothersome passangers on an aircraft.

[terry57]

"Remember that just about everyone else on the flight is bored to tears within a few hours and finding a toddler to suddenly interact with is great fun..."

Where, Fantasyland? As a very frequent flyer, the last thing I want to deal with is someone else's noise-covered-with-dirt.

im a frequent flyer but im fortunate that its 5 hours max.

there's nothing worse than being on a aircraft when someones rug rat is twisting off yelling and screaming. drives me insane and every body else on the plane.

a top idea would be to have the aircraft partitioned off so all the parents can be together in the one section dealing with there problem children.

some one suggested to let the kid wander around the air craft.

thats a top idea isn't it.

after all,

not all people have children and why should the paying public have to put up with someone elses problem kid.

it sucks big time.

segregate them is the way to go and fair to all paying public.

[terry57]

As a very regular air traveller, I've witnessed several cases of passangers fighting on aircraft (punching the sh1t out of each other - most, but not all, arrested and charged with air raid - one on the way to BKK). Passangers verbally abusing air crew/other passengers. including threats of violence are common place, and becoming more so.

These have all been adults, mostly male and almost all p1ssed out of their heads.

Almost as bad is getting sat next to some boring g1t droaning on about sh1t I really don't want to hear. I get a lot of that on the BKK sector.

On the basis of my experience, families with young children are pretty much the least bothersome passangers on an aircraft.

oh yes, exactly what id expect you to say guest house.

well, id rather be with a person who can enjoy a drink and a conversation than someone like you and your screaming kids.

rome is the place for you mate, so give it a rest will you, stay there and dont subject us paying public to your problems

without prejudice.