Hollywood Burbank Airport Opens Lactation Suite

BURBANK, CA — The first of two planned lactation suites for nursing mothers has been installed at the Hollywood Burbank Airport, it was announced Monday.

The self-contained pod in Terminal A, across from Gate A4, has seating, a fold-down table, motion-activated interior lighting, power outlets with USB ports and a wireless locking system that allows free access via a smartphone app operated by Mamava, the Vermont-based company that manufactures the units.

There is no charge for using the app or the pod, which is 9 feet, 5 inches wide; 5 feet, 4 inches deep; 7 feet, 3 inches high; and weighs 900 pounds.

A second lactation suite is scheduled to be installed next month in Terminal B, across from Gate B4. Both pods were paid for by Lamar Alliance Airport Advertising as part of that company's concession agreement with the Burbank-Glendale-Pasadena Airport Authority.

"We are so pleased that our 500th Mamava is being placed at Hollywood Burbank Airport," said Mamava CEO and co-founder Sascha Mayer. "Women who are nursing and travel for work have an incredibly difficult time on the road. Our first suite was installed at an airport and now (so is) our 500th, a full circle of support for traveling mothers."

Oakland International Airport is the only airport in California with a Mamava. Nursing moms can find other locations -- at airports and other transportation hubs, as well as sports arenas, universities and hospitals -- using the company's smartphone app, which also offers a guided meditation to help breastfeeding mothers.

City News Service; Photo: Shutterstock