Purchasing a seat for infant on UA - car seat or not?

[noidea]

We are travelling SYD LAX on UA in November with our then 3 year old and 1 year old. We are travelling on award Y class seats. Originally we were planning on having our 1 year old in our laps but I'm getting a bit nervous about that now especially since I'm having issues getting our infant added to our booking with UA. (See this thread: http://www.australianfrequentflyer....ng-infant-lap-ticket-checkin-36964.html)We're now trying to get an award seat for him but was wondering if we HAVE to take a car seat for him or can he just sit on our laps for take-off/landing etc and then have the extra room at other times? I'm guessing it might be easier to get him to sleep/sit in the car seat since he's used to it in the car but how do I know if the seat meets safety regulations? Any tips on whether it's worth taking the seat or not since I'm guessing we do have a choice?

 

[AVC]

Check with the airline, they should be able to tell you if the seat is suitable for a childseat.
It's definitely a big plus if he has his own seat, especially for sleeping.
Another alternative is the C.A.R.E.S. restraint >> Safe Airplane Travel for Kids - CARES Child Aviation Restraint System | Kids Fly Safe - CARES | Kids Fly Safe
Certainly easier than lugging a child seat as well as all the other usual paraphernalia, and should fit on any Y seat. Also pre-approved for use (the airline still needs to know so they can seat you accordingly). If my daughter was only 3, I'd probably put her in one any way

 

[markis10]

If you book the extra seat, then the child needs to be in that seat whenever the seat belt sign in on, UA have a pretty extensive info section on this subject:

United Airlines - Infants & Toddlers, Traveling with Children, Airline Informations & Tips

I am not familiar with the frequent flyer costs, but its often worthwhile checking what it costs for an infant in a redemption versus a paid ticket, as infant discounts dont often translate across to FF tickets.