Forget the iPad, pack the Play-Doh: The top toys to take on a plane revealed... as parents admit their main travel concern is keeping children entertained in-flight

• Professor Robert Winstone led the social experiment on a two-hour flight
• Research found Play-Doh and Loom Bands were top toys for entertainment
• 60 per cent of parents can't keep kids entertained for more than 30 minutes

By Travelmail Reporter

Published: 07:52 EDT, 14 July 2014 | Updated: 13:17 EDT, 14 July 2014

Forget the iPad, you'd be better off giving your children Play-Doh to keep them entertained on a plane, according to new research.

A social experiment led by Professor Robert Winston found that old-fashioned fun is all you need to keep children happy in-flight - contrary to popular belief.

The research comes as parents revealed that their biggest concern when flying was keeping their children entertained, with 60 per cent admitting they fail to keep kids distracted for more than 30 minutes.

Building blocks: Finn Garrett and Professor Robert Winston get to grips with Lego on board the flight

A quarter of parents surveyed said they worried about their children disturbing other passengers, while more than half were nervous about disrupting their youngster’s sleeping pattern.

British Airways conducted the social experiment in response to the survey, by placing 30 youngsters on a flight for two hours with a selection of toys.

The children, aged two to 10, were given 90 minutes playtime and observed by scientist and TV personality Robert Winston and a team of educational psychologists.

Entertained: Cathy West and Elodie, 2, play with stuffed toys and Play-Doh on board the lfight

The surprising findings revealed that it was actually the cheapest toys that kept the children occupied for the longest.

Play-Doh and toy-of-the-moment Loom Bands topped the list with 80 per cent of children and 70 per cent of parents saying they would take these on a flight in the future.

Both toys, costing just 74p and £1.99 respectively, kept more than half of the children occupied for longer than 40 minutes.

The most popular toy among two to five year olds was Play-Doh, while Loom Bands were a firm favourite with the five to 10 year olds.

Timeless classics such as Lego and Top Trump cards also scored highly with this age group; keeping them entertained for an average of 37 and 33 minutes respectively.

Professor Winston, said: 'Although the temptation is for parents to play a film in the hope that their child falls asleep, activity based toys, such as lego, sticker books and travel games are also a great way to keep them engaged.

'Bringing out a different toy at regular intervals is guaranteed to keep them quiet for longer than 90 minutes.'

Simple pleasures: The study, which also included participant Archie Sturt, 3, with his mother Nicola Sturt, found children don't need high-tech games to be entertained

Dr Vivian Hill, educational psychologist from the Institute of Education, said: 'Toys that spark the imagination and encourage creativity, rather than static toys like soft toys and dolls, are proven to keep children occupied for sustained periods.'

Ian Ellis, toys buyer at John Lewis, said: 'Loom bands have been hugely popular. We started selling them at John Lewis a couple of months ago and in the last few weeks we have really seen them take off. It has been such a big playground phenomenon with children wanting the newest colours and sets, we will be introducing more to our range as the trend continues.'