A Personal Note from
Stephanie Manus
My 2 year old is alive today
because I choose to purchase a seat so that she could be secured in a
child restraint seat. Emily 2, Lauren 4, and myself were passengers
aboard American Airlines flight 1420, the plane which crashed upon
landing at Little Rock Airport in Arkansas on June 1st, 1999 At
11:51p.m.
Never could I have imagined
we would be in an airplane crash. I know that if it hadn't been for
Emily being secured in her own seat that she would have died in the
crash. The force of the plane crash landing and with the speed the
plane was going, there was no way that I could have held onto her. The
plane broke in half, whipped around and came to a slamming halt.
Things had been thrown throughout the plane, and those that could,
struggled to get out of the disaster.
The FAA and the airlines
need to make it mandatory that all children be secured in a child
restraint. This has taken a ridiculous amount of time already and
there is no good reason for not having regulations mandating child
restraints. FAA excuses need to stop and action needs to take place.
I am asking parents,
guardians, and family members to take the necessary precautions to
give our children a chance in case something in the air or on the
ground should happen. Unfortunately, we don't know when these things
will occur and that is why we need to secure our children in a child
restraint to keep them safe. When you make a reservation also confirm
a seat for all of your children, and prepare to have your child
restraint seat with you when you travel by air, so that we take all
the extra precautions that children deserve.
Please help us tell the FAA
and the airlines that this is not only important but, an urgent
matter. Everyday that goes by hundreds of children are put at risk
simply by not being secured in a child restraint in flight. Let's help
protect our children.
If you have any comments or
concerns please e-mail me at manusfamily@msn.com
Thank you! Stephanie Manus
SAFER CHILDREN
Wanted: Good Common Sense
Infant seats on airplanes
are long overdue and the FAA is strongly urged to mandate this safety
measure without further delay. Every person over two years of age,
traveling on aircraft, is required to be seat belted for take-off and
landing, and whenever the captain deems it unsafe to be unbuckled --
yet the most vulnerable, children under two years of age, are allowed
to sit on a passenger's lap. This not only places the child/infant at
risk of becoming a human missile, but also any passenger whom the
child impacts. This unsafe practice has endured far too long, and in
the last ten years caused deaths in Sioux City and Charlotte NC. Will
it take another death to finally produce responsibility and safety for
these helpless children?
It is unconscionable that
infant safety should be so callously ignored and left to chance and
luck. There is no documentation for the injuries 'lap' children have
incurred through turbulence or an infrequent crash, but they are on
the front line of risk in any 'g?force' type situation. Children under
the age of 2 are required to be in a child seat on all U.S. military
aircraft, and commercial airlines have taken a step in the right
direction by offering parents a half price ticket for their infant.
Stop this 'russian roulette' mentality and require that our treasured
children be placed in a child restraint seat with a seat belt, just as
they are required in a car traveling at a fraction of air speed.
- Jan Lohr, Surviving
Flight Attendant, United 232, Sioux City, IA, July 19, 1989.
"NADA/F GOALS"
At the 1998 Annual Meeting
the membership unanimously endorsed the following:
"The FAA should direct the airlines to require that all
passengers under the age of two be secured in a child restraint seat.
All passengers should have safe transportation, especially our
children. The FAA hue and cry that parents will take to the highways
does not stand the test-planes are full of children over the age of
two. All children should have a seatbelt on board a flight, as
required for the rest of the passengers."
UPDATE...
The good news is that the
FAA has approved the first step, the Advanced Notice of Proposed Rule
Making, addressing child safety aboard aircraft. NADA/F members have
been thanked for their public comments and our work toward making
these recommendations law. The next step will be the Notice of
Proposed Rule Making and it should be released sometime this Fall. The
sad news is that comments and procedures could take another year or
two.
WHAT CAN WE DO? WE NEED
YOUR HELP!
- When you fly, ask
the airlines if they offer in-flight child restraint seats, or if you
should supply your own car seat. Make certain that children of all
ages are safely secured.
- Tell the airlines that safe seats should be their requirement
for ALL passengers!
- Clip, sign, and mail the form at the bottom to tell the FAA
that you want action!
- Contact NADA/F if you would like to become more involved and
work with others to Chair this Action! (888-444-NADA-phone)
Please mail the following
to:
Federal Aviation Administration, Ms. Jane Garvey, Administrator, AOA-1
800 Independence Ave. S.W., Washington DC 20591
"""""
Dear Ms. Garvey:
Please do everything possible to expedite the Rule-Making to mandate
that passengers under the age of two are also required to be secured
in-flight by requiring the use of appropriate Child Restraint Devices.
All passengers should have safe transportation, especially our
children. We need your help to require the airlines to do the right
thing as soon as possible.
Sincerely yours,
Name ________________________________________________________________
Address_______________________________________________________________
Additional Comments____________________________________________________
