How do you fly with a special needs child?

Options for Air Travel for Children with Severe Physical Disabilities
  1. Option 1: Use a Car Seat. ...
  2. Option 2: Fly with Your Child on Your Lap. ...
  3. Option 3: Use the CARES Harness or Other Approved Devices. ...
  4. Option 4: Make Your Own Modifications. ...
  5. Option 5: Take a Medical Flight. ...
  6. Option 6: Stretcher Service.




People Also Ask

The right to preboard the airplane before all other passengers is a civil right guaranteed to disabled people by the Air Carrier Access Act. But, like all other civil rights, it can be waived by the individual if they so choose.

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Preboarding is available for Customers who have a specific seating need to accommodate their disability and/or need assistance in boarding the aircraft or stowing an assistive device. Customers who are traveling with assistance and emotional support animals qualify for preboarding.

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Yes, you can request additional support from airline staff for your autistic child. This may include assistance with checking in, passing through security, and boarding the plane. It is recommended that you contact the airline in advance to make these requests.

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Delta, Southwest, and United all allow this extra support. JetBlue may be a low-budget carrier, but they have a program that allows for silent boarding, so passengers with disabilities can settle in and get used to their surroundings before the other passengers' board.

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JSX, Breeze, and other airlines, as well as Autism Double-Checked, provide practice boarding events across the country so families can get their kids used to flying. Some are offered in conjunction with the Arc's Wings for Autism program or other local autism organizations.

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Contact your airline's disability assistance department for more information. Create your own social story to help your child walk through specific events she will experience at the airport and on the airplane. Some airlines provide their own social story you can use or build on.

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Tip 6: Skip the queues Once in the terminal, it is worth talking to a member of the staff near the check-in line, as they can normally send you down to a disabled or priority passenger line to check in, which is less stressful.

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Overseas travel requires good preparation and research, things that autistics are good at. Another benefit of overseas travel is that being in another culture can be relaxing – especially if you find your own culture exhausting!!

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Our children often struggle to understand social norms and expectations and traveling helps them to understand new cultures, learn some flexibility and independence skills, and have new experiences such as new foods, new modes of transportation, and hear new music, she said.

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