Age you took your kids flying?

My dad gave me my first flight in a glider (L-23) when I was 2. Strapped onto my mom's lap in the backseat.
 
I am wondering the same thing. is under a year to early for a small plane? I know she wont get much out of it, but it would still be cool to have her first flight with me. Are ear plugs recommended?
 
I doubt mine would keep ear plugs in anyway. Or wear a headset. Which is why I think I'll wait the next 6 months (plus I need to get current again) and she how I think she'd do then.

And I think 91.103 will require her to be in a kid seat.
 
highspeed said:
So I was glancing through AvWeb's pictures and there's one showing a kid and the caption said she was 2 going on her first flight [http://www.avweb.com/avwebflash/potw/PictureOfTheWeek_204045-1.html].

So, what age did you bring yours with you, front seat or back, and child seat or not? My daughter recently turned 2 and I'm planning on taking her for a ride over the summer/later this year.
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Being kidless, I can't speak for when I took my kids flying.

But I know I was in our family's Stinson from a very young (<2) age, as a lap child most likely.
 
highspeed said:
I doubt mine would keep ear plugs in anyway. Or wear a headset. Which is why I think I'll wait the next 6 months (plus I need to get current again) and she how I think she'd do then.

And I think 91.103 will require her to be in a kid seat.
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Yeah currency is my first step also, since she arrived flying has been put on hold. Maybe Ill wait until she is old enough to understand and enjoy the experience.

Have fun!!
 
My dad took me flying at 6 months, and continued all throughout my childhood. I credit that as being one of the core reasons I am interested in flying.
 
2.5 Was going to wait longer but he started asking. Used his car seat. He wasn't to fond of it. Will try again this summer. He wants to fly to see the horses. Told him we would take him to chincoteague island to see the horses so he might be a little more keen on it. I converted my old DCH10-13.4 over to a youth for him. He'll wear it around the house but not it the airplane go fiqure.

Keith
 
I took my daughter flying at 7 months. My son went at 9 months or so. They've both since gone several times in Cessnas, King Airs, and Phenoms.
 
Very young - can't even remember my first flights as Grandpa was hauling us all over in one of his machines when I was young. Really, four years old marks my memory of flying. My first memory of flying is in his YPF-7. I was strapped in next to mom in the front cockpit and it was memorable because it was open cockpit and it he did a loop. Second memory was also at four - in his Howard DGA. That was the first time I got to sit up front and be "Co-pilot". Also memorable because it was the first time he let me "steer".

Really I didn't get going good until I was five though. The Howard DGA is an exceptionally tricky airplane to land - look up the NTSB database and type in "Howard" as the manufacturer and you will see enormous numbers of catastrophic groundloops. In fact, my Grandpa's airplane is in there - NC9271H. A Navy test-pilot ended up wiping it out. This was after we sold the airplane in 1994/1995. Anyway...I remember it clearly. Grandpa was letting me fly, and as we approached the airport I could tell he was getting nervous. There was a 20 knot x-wind that was 90 degrees to the runway. Even with all his experience - WW2, Korea, TWA, etc - I could tell he was tense - beads of sweat on the upper lip, etc. I said - "Hey old man...I got this one...relax" and I could sense his stress leveling. I flew a perfect approach, guided the machine in and set it down nicely on the upwind wheel and made a perfect x-wind landing. It was Hoover-esque. Fortunately Grandpa had gotten plenty of cushions so I could see over/around the big Pratt and rudder pedal extensions. After this impressive feat of airmanship at five years old I was given my nickname - SkyGod.
 
ricecakecm said:
I took my daughter flying at 7 months. My son went at 9 months or so. They've both since gone several times in Cessnas, King Airs, and Phenoms.
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I was catching a ride to florida on southwest so it wasn't a small super noisey aircraft but My daughter took her first flight at 3 months... No problems..
 
My avatar is from my daughter's first flight on her 3rd birthday. She had no problem with keeping the headset on, but my son still crabs about it now at age 11 (usually he just pops earplugs in or earbuds for whatever ridiculously overpriced game device he's using).
Depending on the kid and the airplane, it may not be worth it to fight with hearing protection for short flights. When I was a kid nobody wore headsets anyway, we all just yelled at each other.
Also, depending on your comfort level, consider using a bigger airplane and putting him in the backseat with a handler. Less worry about him getting grabby with the mixture (hey a red knob, that's cool!), someone else to keep him occupied during preflight, fueling, etc.
 
My girl's flown over the pond now twice in her 2 years and she's been great on those flights, 8 total with the connections. I hate to think what that'll set me back this year when she's no longer a lap child...

A kids headset for ~150 plus a 172 rental pales in comparison.
 
Took my wife and son (he was 7-9months old, can't remember exactly) on a xc from KRVS to KBFF with 2 landings in between. My son never fussed once. 10 minutes after each t/o he passed out in his car-seat.
 
I'm quite kidless, but my first GA flight wasn't until I was 13. That's what happens when nobody in your family has any interest in flying I guess.
 
My daughter was still -4 months (still trapped in the mom-types womb) when we went up in a Cessna.
2 months on a US Airways A320 PHX-ORD-PHX
 
My older daughter first went with me at 9 mos old, in a carseat, in a CRJ-200. She had flown 20-30 times prior to that flight. I also took her up in a 172 just prior to her 3rd birthday. My younger daughter was 3 months old, it was her first flight ever, and that was in a DC-9.
 
I am yet kidless (wife/fiance-less, for that matter), but I fully intend to take my kids flying before they go home for the first time.
 
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