Adopted by the WMA General Assembly, Pilanesberg, South Africa, October 2006

1. Whereas air travel is a common mode of transportation and is used by people of all ages every day;
   
2. Whereas high standards of safety for adult passengers in air travel have been achieved;
   
3. Whereas strict safety procedures are being followed in air travel that greatly increase the chance of survival during emergency situations for properly secured adults;
   
4. Whereas infants and children are not always guaranteed adequate and appropriate safety measures during emergency situations in aircraft;
   
5. Whereas restraint and safety systems for infants and children have been successfully tested to reduce the risk of suffering injuries during emergency situations in aircraft;
   
6. Whereas child restraint systems have been approved for usage in standard passenger aircrafts and successfully introduced by several airlines;

Therefore, the World Medical Association

7. Expresses grave concern regarding the fact that adequate safety systems for infants and children have not been generally implemented;
   
8. Calls on all airline companies to take immediate steps to introduce safe, thoroughly tested and standardized child restraint systems;
   
9. Calls on all airline companies to train their staff in the appropriate handling and usage of child restraint systems;
   
10. Calls for the establishment of a universal standard or specification for the testing and manufacturing of child restraint systems; and
    
11. Calls on national legislators and air transportation safety authorities to:
    
    1. require for infants and children, as a matter of law, safe individual child restraint systems that are approved for use in standard passenger aircraft;
       
    2. ensure that airlines provide child restraint systems or welcome passengers using their own systems, if the equipment is qualified and approved for the specific aircraft;
       
    3. ban the usage of inappropriate "Loop Belts" frequently used to secure infants and children in passenger aircraft;
       
    4. provide appropriate information about infant and child safety on board of aircraft to all airline passengers.

14.10.2006