How do you install Marathon in airplane?

[gcampbell72]

After reading many posts here, I recently decided to fly cross-country with my 6-month old in his Marathon carseat. We were flying on United in a A319 jet (a full-size plane with 3 seats on each side of the aisle and about 35 rows in the plane).

I had a lot of trouble installing the Marathon in the plane. It was impossible to install rear facing, as there was not enough space between the rows of seats. I was barely able to install it forward facing, but I really had to squeeze it in and it ended up being wedged against the seat in front of us. My son's feet were pressed up against the seat in front of us, and there would have been no room for an older child's legs to hang down.

My other problem was that, with the large metal buckle on the seat belt, I was unable to fit the belt through the proper hole in the seat. The buckle would not fit under that black bar (not sure how else to describe it), so I had to run the belt over the bar whuch the directions specifically say you are not suppsed to do.

I know that I must have been doing something wrong because everyone else seems to have had lots of success flying with MAs. I would greatly appreciate any advice! I need to fly again next month and really want to have my son sit rear-facing on the plane.

Thanks in advance for your help!

Cathy,
mom to Owen, 10/17/03

[DeeEast]

I had the same problem with the buckle with my Wizard on American Airlines two weeks ago. But the seat was plenty big enough and we had no problems with the leg room once it was installed. Our problem was getting it uninstalled. Since the belt meets in the middle, the buckle ends up inside the workings of the seat once you tighten the belt and then it was stuck in there with no way to unbuckle it when we landed. I actually got my hand stuck at one point trying to get it unbuckled. I don't know how my husband did it.

I'm waiting to see the replies to this one too. Anyone with pics? (that's a long shot but may as well ask)

[DebbieJ]

Ack! We're flying on Southwest at the end of July and plan on taking the Marathon.

I hope it fits!

~ deb
mommy to brendan 12/7/03

[Zansu]

If I install the seat FF, I twist the buckle end of the seatbelt so that the buckle release is facing out (toward the back of the airline seat).

[murphydog77]

Also, don't forget you can recline the airplane seat (most of them, anyways) and that makes it easier to get to the buckle as well since it loosens the install.

Heather, CPS Tech
http://www.carseatsite.com

[DeeEast]

But how do you open the buckle when its inside the back of the Marathon/Wizard?

[stillplayswithbarbies]

one thing you can do is ask the flight attendant for a seat belt extension. That should put the other buckle on the side where you can get it, I think.

I've only ever installed the Marathon rear facing in airplanes, so I don't know about forward facing. I've never had trouble fitting in any kind of plane that way.

...Karen
Jacob Nathaniel Feb 91
Logan Elizabeth Mar 03

[DeeEast]

>one thing you can do is ask the flight attendant for a seat
>belt extension. That should put the other buckle on the side
>where you can get it, I think.
>
>I've only ever installed the Marathon rear facing in
>airplanes, so I don't know about forward facing. I've never
>had trouble fitting in any kind of plane that way.
>
>...Karen
>Jacob Nathaniel Feb 91
>Logan Elizabeth Mar 03

Have you asked for seatbelt extensions? If so, have you ever had any trouble getting one? I thought of that after we got home. That's about the only way I could think of doing it without getting the buckle stuck in the back. I'm just wondering about getting the hairy eyeball from the flight attendants.

[murphydog77]

Reclining the seat should make the MA loose, which should make it easier to get access to the buckle.

[stillplayswithbarbies]

they usually ask me if I want one, as they see me walk on the plane with the car seat. I've never had any trouble at all. Apparently it is common to need one to install a car seat.

...Karen
Jacob Nathaniel Feb 91
Logan Elizabeth Mar 03

[DeeEast]

>Reclining the seat should make the MA loose, which should
>make it easier to get access to the buckle.

I must be being dense. I don't understand what you mean here? We reclined the seat and that didn't change the fact that the buckle met inside the workings of the back of the Marathon. What am I missing??

[murphydog77]

LOL! Well, you're not dense and I've never flown with a forward-facing car seat :).

The problem as I understand it is that there's very little room in the belt path in the first place, but when the seat belt is tightened, it's nearly impossible to unbuckle. So, by loosening the installation by reclining the seat, it should make it easier to unbuckle. At least that's what I've read from other people's posts :). That and flipping the buckle upside down before buckling it.

I might be flying in a month, so I guess I'll find out!

Heather

[DeeEast]

Thanks! So you recline it AFTER the installation when you are trying to get it unbuckled and this pulls on the belt loosening the install?

Flight attendant? Where's my belt extender??? lol

OH man, they were no help to us at all. When I got my hand stuck in the back of the seat a'la Lucy Ricardo and thought we were going to have to get the jaws of life to get us both off of the plane, they just shrugged their shoulders and said they knew nothing about car seats!

[murphydog77]

The seat back puts pressure against the car seat, which makes the install tighter. So, when you recline it, the install loosens. Try doing it while you're sitting in the front seat with your seat belt on. As you recline your seat, the seat belt gets looser on you.

It's a trick I use all the time in my van and in SUVs with reclining seats at checkup events--recline the vehicle seat, install the car seat as tightly as possible (car seat will still wobble a lot), then pop the vehicle seat back upright and voila, instant tight install in less than 2 minutes.

Heather

[cluelesswonder]

So far my experience has been with RA only, but I think the same thing applies.

One caveat with the belt extender is that it can make the belt TOO long and so impossible to actually tighten ENOUGH to make the car seat secure.

To make the plane buckle easier to release after landing: when installing the car seat put a half twist on the buckle side so that you would pull towards the back of the plane seat (away from the MA/RA). You can also recline the plane seat (not the MA/RA) to give yourself a little more wiggle room.

I have had trouble with enough leg room for my DD while FF in the RA - the passengers in front can't recline too far or else her legs would get crushed! Only became a problem when she hit 34". Now we have to switch to a MA and I'm not sure if I'm going to be able to fly with it!

Good luck.

Karen