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WOMAN: Welcome aboard, ladies and gentlemen.
Please make sure your seat belt is fastened
by inserting the metal tip into the buckle
and adjusting the strap
so it's low and tight across your lap.
To release the belt, lift the top of the buckle.
For your safety, remain seated
with your seat belt securely fastened
anytime the seat-belt sign is lit.
And please keep your seat belt on
whenever you are seated,
in case we experience unexpected turbulence.
Please bring your seat to its full upright position
and make sure that all carry-on items are properly stowed.
Now that everything else on the plane is secured,
have you thought about the child on your lap?
In the event of turbulence or other emergency,
your baby could substantially shift during flight.
In fact, he or she may hit the ceiling
or be thrown several rows away from your seat
due to your failure to provide a proper seat-restraint system.
MAN: Well, folks, that concludes our safety demonstration.
At this time, we'd like to invite you
to sit back, relax, and enjoy the flight.
MARSHALL: Most parents drive to the airport
with their child in a child safety seat,
and the laws of physics don't change
when you get on an airplane.
So, why wouldn't you want your child
to have the same level of protection on the airplane
that they had in the car?
We've investigated accidents where the board concluded
that the reason the children survived the accident
was because they were in a child safety seat.
Many parents think
that they can hold their child on their lap,
but we've been looking at this issue since the 1970s,
and we know that children who are on a lap
are at much greater risk
during turbulence or an accident.
That's why we have made a number of recommendations.
We want the children to be off their parents' laps,
into a seat, and properly restrained.
The FAA recommends
that children travel in child-restraint systems,
but they don't require it.
We know that parents want to do the right thing
for their children.
That's why we've made the recommendations
to ask the FAA to require it.
You never know what's going to happen,
and you want your baby to get the best protection they can.
You protect them in every other way.
Why does it become less important to protect them
on an airplane?
I've been in the aviation safety business
for over 40 years,
and I've interviewed parents
while I've been at the Safety Board
who've had lap children in an accident.
The most devastating interview I ever did
was of a mother who said,
"They told me I could hold my daughter on my lap,
and when the accident happened, I couldn't hold her."
As a parent, you never want to be in that situation.
WOMAN: Simple precautions
can sometimes mean the difference
between life and death.