Many surgeons advise waiting about SIX weeks after knee or hip replacement before a long-haul flight, and some say up to 3 months. Short flights are often allowed sooner. There is no single rule, so ask your surgeon and tell them exactly how long the flight is.
The main reason to wait is a blood clot. Deep vein thrombosis, or DVT, is a clot in a deep vein of the leg. Your risk of one is higher for several weeks after joint replacement, and sitting still on a long flight raises it further.
If you do fly, the steps below lower that risk. Moving your legs often is the most useful one.
Your surgeon’s instructions come first. If they differ from anything here, use theirs.
How soon can I fly after knee or hip replacement?
Advice varies between surgeons and countries, and good evidence on exact timing is limited. This is the typical range.
- First 2 weeks: most teams advise against flying unless it can’t be avoided. This is when clot risk and pain are highest and you are least mobile.
- Weeks 2 to 6, short flights: a flight of a few hours is often allowed if you’re walking well and taking any blood thinners as prescribed.
- Around 6 weeks, long-haul: many surgeons give the go-ahead for longer flights from here. Some prefer you wait up to 3 months, especially if you’ve had a clot before.
- Flying home after surgery abroad: plan this with your surgeon before the operation, not after. See blood clots after surgery
The advice is the same for knees and hips. The difference is comfort: after a hip replacement you may also need to keep your seat high enough to follow your hip precautions. See hip replacement precautions
What helps on the plane
- Book an aisle seat: you can stretch your leg into the aisle and get up without climbing over anyone. Extra legroom seats help if you can get one.
- Walk every hour or so: get up and walk the aisle whenever the seatbelt sign is off. Walking pumps blood out of your legs.
- Do ankle pumps in your seat: point your toes down, then pull them up, 10 times every half hour. Add slow ankle circles.
- Drink water: sip regularly through the flight. Dehydration makes blood thicker.
- Skip alcohol: it dehydrates you and makes you more likely to sit still or sleep for hours.
- Wear compression stockings if advised: your team may give you a pair or suggest a type. Make sure they fit properly and don’t roll down.
- Keep up your blood thinners: take them exactly as prescribed, on time, even across time zones. Keep them in your hand luggage.
- Keep pain medicine handy: sitting for hours often makes a new joint ache. Pack what you need in your carry-on.
On a long flight, the leg that keeps moving is the leg that stays safe.
At the airport
- Ask for assistance: book wheelchair help or airport assistance when you book your ticket. Airport walks are long, and queues mean standing still.
- Security scanners: your implant may set off a walk-through metal detector. Many airports now use body scanners, which show the implant without fuss. You don’t need a card or letter; just tell the security officer you have a joint replacement.
- Carry-on bags: keep them light. Don’t lift heavy bags into the overhead locker; ask for help.
- Travel insurance: many policies ask about recent surgery. Declare it, or your cover may not apply.
After you land
Your clot risk doesn’t end when the plane lands. Keep walking regularly over the next few days, keep up your exercises, and plan the drive from the airport. If you’re the driver, check you’re cleared to drive first. See driving after surgery, exercises after knee replacement and exercises after hip replacement
Go to the emergency department if
- You have new pain, tenderness or swelling in your calf, especially in one leg only.
- You suddenly become short of breath, during or after travel.
- You have chest pain, especially pain that gets worse when you breathe in.
- You cough up blood.
Calf pain or swelling can mean a clot in the leg. Breathlessness, chest pain or coughing blood can mean a clot has moved to the lungs; for those, call emergency services. If you’re still on the plane, tell the cabin crew straight away.
Call your surgeon today if
- Swelling around your new joint doesn’t go down overnight with the leg raised.
- You missed or mixed up doses of your blood thinner while traveling.
Mention it at your next review if
- You’re planning a long flight in the next few months.
- Your ankles stay a little puffy for a day or two after a flight, then settle.
The flight itself won’t harm your new joint, but sitting still for hours can harm the rest of you.