Would your DH ever fly solo with your kid(s)?

[stretchad]

For the first time since having DS I have a work trip in NYC in July. We were planning to head there over labor day weekend to visit family. But it might make a lot more sense to just tack on an extended weekend at the end of this trip to visit family instead. I would fly out on a monday, work tues-thurs. My thought would be to have DH & DS meet me in NYC on Thursday night or Friday, then we'd head out to the IL's for the weekend and fly home together. 

It'd be a direct flight for DH/DS, I'd pick them up at the airport (probably with a carseat already installed in a rental so DH wouldn't even have to schlep through the airport). 

When I mentioned this idea to DH, he was quite hesitant, almost like I was a little crazy for suggesting it...

ETA: It'd be about a 5 hr nonstop flight
edited for clarity.

[thinkofthesoldiers]

WTF? Of course they do. Do moms? Gay men with kids?

[h]

Of course! My H has flown alone with kids multiple times, including flying alone with all three of them once (which I have yet to do).

[stretchad]

May 30, 2016 23:23:03 GMT -5 thinkofthesoldiers said:

WTF? Of course they do. Do moms? Gay men with kids?

I guess I should clarify, dad flying solo with toddler...which I feel like I hear less about, definitely on this board.

[savan]

Yes! DH has flown with DD alone. DH has done a ton of traveling and it wouldn't be a big deal to him at all. I, on the other hand, am a more nervous traveler and have never attempted it, though I would do it if needed.

[lolo]

Yes, he would though he hasn't.

We thought he would in January to meet me at a work conference, but turned out that MIL came as well, and so they all flew together.

He is truly an equally capable parent.

[quesyrah]

No, mine probably would not. Unless he had to I guess.

I have flown solo with 1 kid and with both.

[sent]

Depends on your family. I know other fathers would do it, equality and all that. But I wouldn't trust mine to fly alone with our 2.5 yr old. He has no intuition when it comes to DD.

[7costanza]

My H would be very hesitant, but not because he isn't fully capable. He just doesn't like flying solo period. Being a dad/man has nothing to do with it.

[heygrey]

H flew with R at 18 months to a wedding - direct 4.5 hr flight. His sister met him with a car seat installed at the airport. (I flew out a few days later and we flew back together. The point was for him to have several days to spend with his family since he had vacation time and I did not.)

He was hesitant at first, but I basically told him to suck it up and get it done. I had flown 15+ flights solo with R at that point so I was happy to give him tips to make it go as smoothly as possible, but I was unwilling to entertain the idea of him not doing the trip.

[turtlegirl]

Last year I was too pregnant to fly, so DH flew with DS1 and DS2 (ages 4.5 and 3) to visit his extended family for 4 days.

[origami]

Yes he would and he did. Well, only 1 kid, but it was NBD. I don't have any special mom powers that he could never have and I fly with the kids by myself at least once a year. Loooooong flights too. If he balked at a 5 hour flight we would have words to exchange.

[Cioccolato]

Yes, he would. He's going to in a week. We're flying together to visit his family in Naples, Italy. I'm coming back two days before him and DD because I need to go back to work. It's about an hour and a half flight.

He doesn't have any more or less special toddler controlling powers than me. He'll be fine. He's the one who suggested it.


I'm pretty pumped for two days of being alone!

[sillygoosegirl]

No, sadly I don't think he would, at least not for a long time. I don't know if he finds this aspect of parenting more frightening than I do, or he just doesn't have as much interest in going places as I do. Or maybe it's because I've traveled with DD without him before and he has never done it... I have a sister who lives a 4 hour train ride away, so that was my opportunity to get my feet wet, and I felt a lot more confident after doing it. The only place DH can think of that he might take DD without me is to visit his family, and that's a transcontinental flight, so certainly a more frightening first trip. I've been encouraging him to, but he really doesn't want to go without me.

[Deleted]

With both kids? Hell no. Lol he couldn't handle it

With just the 4 year old? Yes

[Deleted]

One kid yes but not 2. We have a 2 yo and a 4 month old though. Today I had them both out in the front yard while my h was doing yard work and it was almost too much to handle with the toddler running off all the time.

[Deleted]

It would definitely not be my H's preference, but he'd do it after I made enough fun of him.

[lala]

He did when we only had one and she was 1. With all 3? Neither of us would want to, but we could.

We'll be split for a flight in the fall and he'll have the 2.5 year old.

[G22]

H would be a bit wary of it since Z is still nursing and he sometimes refuses bottles. But he'd do it if it was necessary and a short flight.

We currently live in Europe and I think the thought of flying alone back to the states with Z wouldn't be ideal in his mind. But again he'd do it if needed.

[spankswife]

Yes DH has. DD was maybe 3?

[h]

May 30, 2016 23:27:50 GMT -5 stretchad said:

May 30, 2016 23:23:03 GMT -5 thinkofthesoldiers said:

WTF? Of course they do. Do moms? Gay men with kids?

I guess I should clarify, dad flying solo with toddler...which I feel like I hear less about, definitely on this board.

I know lots of dad who have flown solo with toddlers. Aside from a nursing infant, I really don't see why it would be any easier for a mom to fly solo than a dad.

I know my H flew alone with DS1 at least twice before DS2 was born, which means he would have been between 18 months and 2.5 yo. He flew alone with all three when DS3 was 21 months and the older two were 4 and 7.

I am sure general comfort level with flying has something to do with it--my H flies at least a couple times a month for work, and we fly with our kids at least 3-4 times a year, so he is used to flying in general and flying with kids. But as long as dad is a comfortable flier, I think taking a child on an airplane for a few hours is really no more or less daunting than taking a kid on any other extended outing solo. Chances are good it won't be particularly fun, and it may completely suck, but at the end of the day it's a time-limited thing.

[AmyRI]

The opportunity hasn't arisen. He would with one kid solo for sure. For a direct flight he'd probably take the older two without balking. I don't think either of us would fly solo with all three kids until they're older.

[crispnclean]

He would with just one for sure, but the opportunity has never arisen. We are only a week into having two kids so it's a little early to say whether either of us would feel comfortable flying solo with two! Neither of us has even left the house with two on our own yet at this point.

[stealthmom]

Yes. He has done so in the past and he will again in July.

To Australia.
From the east coast.
With two kids 7 and 2.

My husband laughs in your husband's hesitant face. :-p

[VillainV]

Yes, he has flown with C alone before, and we have plans for him to do it again. The first time he was a little nervous (as was I the first time I flew with him solo) but it's really NBD. At least there's only one of him. We just try to plan flights carefully and fly direct if we can.

[lauren170]

My H flew from Denver to Boston with my toddler. They survived but it wasn't fun

[ECB]

Yes, he would. Neither of us have had to do it alone, but we both would.

[boiler717]

He would, but would be complicated logistics now. When he's older? Absolutely

[Velar Fricative]

Yes. If I could do it, he could do it. The opportunity hasn't arisen before (and I've only done it once), but we are talking about an opportunity next June where he would fly solo with DD and his reaction was "Okay, sounds like a good idea." He would not have enjoyed my reaction if he said otherwise.

[cricketwife]

He would if he had to, but it's never come up. I have more time off so I've flown with DS by myself. When DS2 arrives, neither of us would want to do the flight to England by ourselves, but would if necessary,