How to pick up and carry a stroller for an airplane?

Many young parents in the first flights with a small child are faced with such a very important problem as the transportation of the stroller. Whether it is possible to transport this vehicle at all, if so, under what conditions, whether it is free or has some value - these and many other questions torment parents before taking a holiday, but do not worry. Below will be set out all the rules and details of transportation.

There are no specific features for transporting wheelchairs in an airplane; each airline sets individual conditions. Therefore, before making plans, it is necessary to take into account all the nuances and get acquainted with the details. This can be done on the website of the company, the aircraft of which you fly, or when communicating with the operator of the airline in person or by phone. This phone is usually listed on the tickets or on the official website. Most often, all the information is located under the section “Passengers with children” on the websites; it is easy to find out about free or paid transportation in the “Baggage” subsection.

Some companies carry the stroller to carry-on baggage, which is allowed to take into the cabin, but most often this means of transportation of the baby must be taken to the baggage department, the conditions of this delivery are different everywhere. When using the luggage department, larger companies to carry out their image are carried free of charge, while smaller ones charge for such luggage.

During the first flight, parents are faced with the question of choosing a baby carriage, which can be easily transported by plane. Of course, you can take with you any means of movement for a child who has not yet learned to walk independently, however, the wheelchair is much more convenient with a smaller size and functional folding mechanism, because it affects the possibility of transporting it in the cabin.

Most airlines around the world have set the standard dimensions allowed for carrying a wheelchair on board an aircraft. These standards are 55 * 35 * 25 cm.

Carriages are divided into several types.

• Stroller-book. In many cases, such a subspecies is passed almost to the plane, but some of them are sent with luggage after check-in and returned directly with the main luggage after arrival.
• Stroller cane - a subspecies that most often has a mass of less than 8–11 kg and suitable dimensions, so almost always carried in the cabin. An exception may be some kind of solitary airline, where the stroller is taken near the ramp and, upon request after the flight, is brought to the ramp.
• Standard universal strollers - devices that have a weight of more than 11 kg and are always carried in the luggage compartment. Most often, strollers fly for free.

At the very beginning you need to decide what the main function of the baby’s vehicle you need, what you will use it for and for how long. You need to take into account all the details, so you need to follow a few rules.

• It all starts with the flight, so you need to start the selection based on the requirements and conditions of your airline in order to be missed with this stroller on board. Having familiarized yourself with all the subtleties in advance, you can already weed out some of the options and select a part of them that is suitable in size, size and mechanism.
• You also need to consider the rule of the airport itself. In rare cases, it can have its own characteristics and determine which stroller is allowed to use in the room itself.
• For younger passengers who use wheelchairs, it is better to take a device with a folding backrest on vacation, because force majeure may occur in the airport building or on the journey itself, for example, to delay the plane. In these cases, the back, taking a horizontal position, will be a "lifeline": the child will be able to lean on it and rest.
• Negative factors should also be taken into account and you should not get a very expensive carriage on the trip, because during rest there is a very big risk of breaking or spoiling its appearance. And everything begins, as a rule, from the airport and the plane, where this vehicle can be easily broken or soiled, especially if it is transported in the cargo hold.

• Even on a wheelchair such an additional device, such as a hood or visor, must be present, since in hot countries very often it rains heavily for which the child needs some protection. The hood is also useful during a strong sun, so when choosing a stroller, you should be guided by this factor. When choosing a stroller with a hood, one should not forget about the flight period, therefore this visor should be compact.
• When choosing to pay attention to the wheels. First, the standard wheels of a stroller cane cannot be driven along the sand - in this case, you need to choose large options. However, not all airlines will take a stroller with large wheels as carry-on baggage, and some of them will also take a considerable fee for transporting the type with large-sized wheels in the luggage compartment. To avoid such problems, you need to familiarize yourself with all the rules in advance. Secondly, the wheels of the stroller must be maneuverable and durable, which is useful both at the place of rest, and during the flight, and at the airport.
• The last factor is the presence of additional devices on the baby's movement device. This includes a cup holder, lifting handle, raincoat, etc. All this is selected individually based on personal wishes and finances.

And you can also add: no matter how comfortable and functional the stroller is for the trip, the main emphasis in choosing it still needs to be done while spending time in a place of rest. It is necessary to take into account all climatic and weather conditions, as well as the peculiarities of the roads along which it will be necessary to carry this device on wheels.

Each company has its own characteristics, but almost everywhere there are approximate certain rules. For starters, parents themselves need to decide how it will be more convenient for them to carry the stroller. If the owners of the device immediately decide to carry it in the luggage compartment, then you need to know about the weight of the frame and the wheels. Most airlines set the maximum weight of this device - about 20 kg. If this maximum is exceeded, the stroller is considered as additional baggage, and you will have to pay extra for its transportation in a special compartment.

The procedure of transferring the vehicle to the child occurs most often at the side of the aircraft itself, from where the child can be carried to the landing site without difficulty. When putting the stroller in the baggage compartment, you need to agree in advance with the flight attendant to be handed over to you immediately upon arrival, however some companies do not provide such a service due to safety conditions. You also should not forget about the registration of the stroller as baggage and about the attachment to it of a special nominal tag indicating its data.

If the stroller has the ability to fold, then it can also be additionally packed in a specialized box or film for greater safety, especially when you will be flying on a plane of a little-known airline.

If there is a desire to carry the stroller not in the luggage compartment, but as hand luggage, then in such cases it is also necessary to know in advance the basic information about the frame and wheels, because it is allowed to carry strollers that only have certain standards. Then it and the rest of the property is better to pack.

Such a situation is not excluded, when the airline destroys all your plans, and the flight attendants do not allow the stroller to board the carriage, although it is suitable for all standards.

Many companies adhere to common rules, but some of them have exceptions and additions.

Aeroflot:

• a child’s stroller with a weight not exceeding 19 kg is allowed to be carried without paying for a separate baggage space;
• wheelchair dimensions are allowed for the sum of all parameters - no more than 115 cm;
• in addition to the stroller, 10 kg of additional baggage is allowed per child;
• if the child has acquired a seat, it is allowed to carry a cradle or stroller;
• At the time of check-in at the counter, a special note is issued.

"Victory":

• in the cabin it is prohibited to carry any folding devices of movement of any weight and child seats, exceptions may be cradles;
• The child’s age is limited to 2 years; after this age, the mass of the child’s vehicle should not exceed 10 kg, and the sum of the dimensions cannot be more than 1.58 m;
• up to 2 years transportation of wheelchairs in the baggage compartment takes place without payment of funds.

S7:

• transportation of children's vehicles is allowed if there is a child on board (children up to 11 years old), otherwise additional baggage space is paid;
• transportation of car seats, cradles, strollers for children under 2 years old is free of charge;
• When transporting cradles on board the aircraft, the following standards should be observed: 55x40x20 cm.

UTair:

• if the fare does not include free baggage allowance, children's things can only be carried by hand baggage;
• if a child under 2 years old flies with you, then the stroller is carried free of charge in the luggage compartment if all the rules and regulations are met;
• In addition to the stroller, you can take 10 kg of luggage.

Alitalia:

• standards are practically the same as general ones;
• free transportation of wheelchairs is carried out for children under 11 years old;
• upon arrival, strollers are served on board only in Italian territory.

Nordwind:

• only folding cane strollers can be carried free of charge; for all others, you need to buy one luggage space.

Thair Airways:

• no age limit;
• the stroller can be used before boarding the aircraft;
• the baby vehicle can be transported even without a child.

Ryanair:

• works according to all general norms and standards;
• property is transported to the ramp and is issued to the board immediately upon arrival.

Lufthansa:

• up to 2 years in the salon you can carry a cradle or a cane;
• dimensions should be no more than 158 cm.

Turkish Airlines:

• allowed on board cradle 70x30 cm;
• the remaining vehicles of the children are transported in the luggage compartment.

Air France:

• Mobile baby luggage must be packed;
• a child under 2 years old can carry strollers in the cabin;
• stroller-stick should be 15x30x100 cm.

British Airways:

• wheelchairs no larger than 117x38x38 are delivered in the luggage at the very board and are obtained at the ramp upon arrival.

When traveling by plane with a child and his vehicle must be considered a number of nuances:

• for starters, you should replace the standard stroller with a more compact folding model, which should fit the size for carrying hand luggage;
• pick up the stroller average cost;
• You should carefully read the rules of a particular airline and discuss all issues;
• You should take care in advance about the availability of a special cover or film for transporting children's vehicles;
• Before the flight, you need to attach a special tag with all the data to the stroller;
• at the front desk the wheelchair must be marked with a special DAA mark;
• Before the flight, it is desirable to remove all additional funds from the stroller (hood, bottle holder, basket, etc.).

During the holidays with a small child, you will definitely need to bring along a vehicle for the baby. Most often this device is a stroller. During the flight on an airplane with a stroller, you need to take into account the huge number of nuances and standards of various airlines, which must be read in advance in order to avoid force majeure.

Each of the companies has its own individual characteristics, therefore, having familiarized with each of them, you need to give preference to more comfortable conditions for you, and after that make the choice of the stroller itself. Most often it is required to be compact, functional and comfortable.

You will learn more about how to choose a stroller for an airplane from the following video.