Flying business class with children: bassinets, fares, seats

A family in business class makes more choices than two adults do: a lap or a seat for each child under 2, a bassinet, a car seat that suits a flat bed, and seats together. Each airline sets its own answer. American says: “Bassinets are not available in First / Business cabins.”^{Source 1} Emirates, on the other hand, gives the size of its Business Class bassinet.^{Source 2}

This guide compares what eight airlines say on their own pages, each read on November 8, 2026: American, Delta, Emirates, Qatar Airways, British Airways, Virgin Atlantic, Air France and Singapore Airlines. It adds what the FAA says about lap travel and where the Department of Transportation’s family-seating rule stands. Where this post gives our view, it says so.

A lap or a seat of its own

A child under 2 may fly on an adult’s lap, and that is the first decision. The FAA allows it, but “the FAA strongly discourages this practice and recommends that you secure your child in an approved CRS”,^{Source 3} a child restraint system. Its advice comes down to one sentence: “Buying a ticket for your child is the only way to guarantee that you will be able to use a CRS for your child under two years old.”^{Source 3}

At Emirates, a seat of the child’s own comes at a child’s fare: “you can use an infant car seat on the flight if you’ve booked a separate seat and paid a child’s fare.”^{Source 4} Two airlines say where that seat is booked. British Airways says of a separate infant seat: “Please note that this cannot be booked online.”^{Source 5} Virgin Atlantic says: “If you do require a seat for your infant, you’ll need to book that with us directly.”^{Source 6}

When a child turns 2 during the trip

A second birthday in the middle of a trip is treated differently by each airline. American: “If they turn 2 during a trip, they will need their own seat for the remainder of the trip.”^{Source 1} Air France moves the whole booking to the older rate: “If your child turns 2 during your trip, the infant discount does not apply. The child rate applies to your entire booking.”^{Source 7}

British Airways keeps the lower fare: “You’ll only pay the infant fare for the entire journey.” The child still needs a seat of its own on the flights from the birthday, and that seat is booked by contacting British Airways, not online.^{Source 8}

Our view: settle the lap-or-seat question first, before the bassinet and the seats, because both depend on it. At Emirates, for one, “you can’t request a bassinet if you have booked a normal seat on child’s fare rates.”^{Source 4} A car seat, on the other hand, needs a seat of its own.

Bassinets in business, airline by airline

A bassinet is the airline’s cot for a baby, fitted at certain seats only.^{Source 4} The airlines name it differently: Delta’s is a SkyCot,^{Source 9} British Airways’ a carrycot.^{Source 5} Not every business cabin has one.

From the airlines’ own family-travel pages,^{Source 1Source 9Source 2Source 4Source 10Source 5Source 6Source 7Source 11} checked November 8, 2026. “Not stated” means the page we read does not say; it is not a no. Cabins vary by aircraft and route. Ask us which aircraft and seat your flight has.

American and Delta

American has no bassinets in First or Business.^{Source 1} Its bassinets are handed out at the gate: “Bassinets are available on a first come, first serve basis at the gate for travel only on 777-200, 777-300 and 787 aircraft.” The infant must be “younger than 2 years old and weigh no more than 20lbs (9kg)”.^{Source 1}

Delta’s SkyCot is for a child under 25 lb (11.3 kg) and up to 26 in (66 cm), on widebody international flights and on widebody domestic flights of over 1,500 miles.^{Source 9} It is requested through Delta Reservations before the airport and confirmed at the gate. Delta states the limits plainly: “SkyCots are limited to two per aircraft” and “All SkyCot requests are subject to availability and cannot be guaranteed”.^{Source 9} Confirm the size and weight limits at booking.

Emirates and Qatar Airways

Emirates gives its bassinet sizes by cabin. In “Business Class and Economy Class” a bassinet is 74.93 cm long x 33.03 cm wide x 16.51 cm deep (29.5 in x 13 in x 5 in); in First, 63.5 cm x 28 cm (25 in x 11 in).^{Source 2} They are “designed for babies up to two years old weighing up to 11kg (24.3lb)”, and Emirates may refuse one if the baby does not fit.^{Source 2}

The request goes in with the booking: “Request a seat with a bassinet for babies up to two years old when you book online or add one later through Manage a Booking.”^{Source 4} Emirates’ bassinets are limited in number.^{Source 4}

Qatar Airways takes requests through its offices: “Please contact your nearest Qatar Airways office to request bassinet seats.” The “maximum body weight of the infant should not exceed 11 kg (24 lb)”, and the age limit is 24 months.^{Source 10} The page names one cabin without them: “Bassinets are not available in the First Class cabin on-board the Airbus 380.”^{Source 10} It names no other, and it does not say whether the business cabins have them.

British Airways and Virgin Atlantic

On long-haul flights, British Airways says: “we provide carrycots and infant seats free of charge for babies up to 2 years old, weighing under 12.5 kg (27.5lbs)”. The carrycot itself is “only for infants up to 6 months old, weighing no more than 8kg (17.5lb)”.^{Source 5}

The position is chosen like a seat: “one person in your booking can choose a carrycot/seat position.” It is subject to availability, and British Airways may move a family for a traveler with a greater need, such as a wheelchair user.^{Source 5}

Virgin Atlantic’s page does not name the cabins. It says: “All cots/bassinets should be requested in advance.” And: “Available bassinets will be allocated in the order we receive the requests for each flight.”^{Source 6}

Air France and Singapore Airlines

Air France gives its limits in one line: “Bassinets are designed for infants who weigh less than 10 kg/22 lbs and measure less than 70 cm/27 in.” On long-haul flights they are “subject to availability and the specific aircraft configuration”.^{Source 7} A paid seat is the way to secure one: “The purchase of a Seat option is the only way to guarantee a bassinet, subject to availability.” For the cabin a bassinet is in, the page says “please contact us by phone”.^{Source 7}

Singapore Airlines names two cabins: “Bassinet seats in Premium Economy and Economy Class are reserved for passengers with infants, on a first-come-first-served basis.”^{Source 11} The page gives the bassinet a maximum weight of 14 kg.^{Source 11} It does not say whether Business Class has them, and we do not read that into it.

Our view: when a bassinet is a must, choose the airline by its rule first and the flight second. Put the request in the booking as early as the airline allows, and treat it as a request until the airline confirms it.

Infant fares, in each airline’s words

A lap infant on an international flight pays a share of the adult fare, plus taxes where the airline says so, and each airline words it in its own way. Within the US, Delta lists its lap infant fare as “Free”.^{Source 9} Abroad, the wording is this:

From the airlines’ own pages,^{Source 1Source 9Source 2Source 4Source 8Source 5Source 6Source 7Source 11} checked November 8, 2026. “Not stated” means the page we read does not say. Cabins vary by aircraft and route. Ask us which aircraft and seat your flight has.

The full sentences carry the qualifiers. Virgin Atlantic: “we only charge 10% of the adult fare (plus any taxes, fees or charges).”^{Source 6} British Airways: “You’ll pay an infant fare, which is a percentage of the adult fare.”^{Source 8} Emirates: “Tickets for infants traveling on the parent’s lap or in a bassinet are discounted from the full adult fare.”^{Source 2}

Air France writes: “You can enjoy a 90% discount* if your infant travels on your lap.” Its asterisk points to flights between Paris and Corsica, where “infants (aged 0-2 years) may travel on your lap free of charge.”^{Source 7} Qatar Airways’ and Singapore Airlines’ pages that we read give no lap infant fare.

The infant also has to be on the ticket. Delta says you “must notify Delta Reservations so we can list your child on ticket”.^{Source 9} For international trips, American says to add the infant after the trip is ticketed, on aa.com, under “Add infant in lap”.^{Source 1}

Our view: ask for the infant’s fare as a figure, taxes included, before the adults’ tickets are issued, and have the infant listed in the same booking. The total is then known before the bassinet request goes in.

Car seats in a flat bed

A car seat that is allowed in economy may not be allowed in business. The airlines give three reasons: the angle of the seat, an airbag in its belt, and fit.

American: “Safety seats are not allowed in First or Business on select planes due to the seat angles.”^{Source 1} Delta, for the Delta One flat beds on its A330-200 and A330-300: “Child Safety Seats are not permitted in this area since the airbag seat belt cannot be deactivated”. The same page adds that “children under 2 years of age are not allowed to sit in a seat equipped with an airbag seat belt”.^{Source 9}

Singapore Airlines: “CARES child harnesses may not fit in some of our First Class and Business Class seats.”^{Source 11} British Airways: “When travelling in Club Suite or on rear-facing Club World seats, your child can only sit in their own child car seat during cruise.” For take-off and landing, the child is strapped into the aircraft seat.^{Source 5}

All of this assumes a seat of the child’s own: the FAA calls buying one the only way to guarantee that a car seat can be used.^{Source 3} Delta’s rule names two aircraft types, so the same airline can allow a car seat on one aircraft and not on another.^{Source 9}

Our view: ask which aircraft flies your date and which seat the child is in, then read that airline’s rule for that seat before you pack the car seat.

Seats together

American makes its own promise, with its own age and its own condition: “If you don’t choose seats in Main Cabin or Basic Economy, we’ll assign seats a few days after you buy your tickets so children under 15 are next to at least 1 adult they’re traveling with.”^{Source 1} Its condition names Main Cabin and Basic Economy, not business. No final federal rule requires it yet.

In 2024 the Department of Transportation proposed one. Its notice in the Federal Register of August 9, 2024, describes DOT as “proposing to require U.S. and foreign air carriers to seat children aged 13 and under adjacent to at least one accompanying adult”.^{Source 12} As of November 2026, it is still a proposal. On November 8, 2026, the Federal Register listed 2 documents in the rule’s docket, DOT-OST-2024-0091: the proposal, and an extension of its comment period published October 3, 2024. Both are proposed rules; there is no final rule.^{Source 13}

In the meantime, DOT keeps a dashboard of what nine US airlines promise, marked last updated September 5, 2025. It “encourages all airlines to guarantee that young children are seated adjacent to an accompanying adult without charging any additional fee.”^{Source 14} The guarantees it lists are “Subject to limited conditions”, among them that the family is on the same reservation and that adjacent seats are available in the class of service booked.^{Source 14}

From DOT’s Airline Family Seating Dashboard,^{Source 14} a page marked last updated September 5, 2025, read on November 8, 2026. “Yes” is “Subject to limited conditions”, among them the same reservation and adjacent seats available in the class of service booked.

None of the foreign airlines in this guide is on DOT’s dashboard. For them, the airline’s own page is the place to look.

Our view: keep the whole family on one reservation, since DOT’s dashboard ties the guarantees to it, and choose the seats when you book rather than at check-in.

Passports for children

As of November 8, 2026, USAGov’s child passport page says: “All children under 16 must appear in person to apply.” It adds: “Passports for children under age 16 are valid for 5 years.”^{Source 15} On who comes along, it says: “A parent (preferably both) must be present and must sign the passport application.”^{Source 15}

The State Department’s consent form puts it more firmly: “Children Under Age 16: Both legal parents/legal guardians must appear in person with their minor child to apply”. The form, DS-3053, is the State Department’s route when one parent, or both, cannot appear.^{Source 16}

Our view: check each child’s passport dates before the flights are booked, since a child’s passport lasts 5 years, and leave time to apply in person if one is due.

This is general information, not travel advice, and it may not be accurate or current. Entry, visa and health rules change often. Always confirm the requirements with the embassy or consulate of your destination and with your airline, and check the official page before you travel.

On board: meals, kits and gifts

British Airways offers “free children’s meals” on long-haul flights, to be ordered “at least 24 hours before your long-haul flight”.^{Source 17} Singapore Airlines serves infants under two a baby meal or a child meal for infants, and says: “These Special Meals must be requested at least 32 hours before your flight”.^{Source 11}

Emirates: “We’ll also give you an infant kit filled with useful essentials, like diaper cream, bibs and wipes.”^{Source 4} Qatar Airways: “Infants get a special sleepy-time soft-plush toy to snuggle with.”^{Source 10} Air France gives a baby gift box, and “In the La Première, Business, and Premium cabins, the gift box also includes a pair of soft and comfortable socks”.^{Source 7}

Our view: order the children’s meals in the same step as the bassinet request, so that neither is left for the week of the flight.

The order to book in

Our view, in order:

1. Lap or seat, for each child under 2, with the FAA’s advice in mind.
2. The airline and the aircraft, by their bassinet and car-seat rules.
3. One reservation for the whole family, with the infant listed on an adult’s ticket.
4. The requests: the bassinet, the children’s meals and the seats together, made with the booking.
5. The passports, checked against the travel dates.
6. A last look at the seats and the bassinet request in the days before the flight.

Our London, Paris, Rome, Tokyo and Sydney pages carry the routes and the fares. When you ask for a quote, give each child’s age, since the fare, the bassinet and the seat all turn on it; how booking with us works explains what to send and what comes back.