At just two pounds, Natalie Maldonado’s teacup Chihuahua weighs less than her purse. But on a recent AirTran flight from Tampa to Atlanta, as she tucked the dog under her seat, a crewmember stopped Maldonado because the pet had been improperly tagged, she says.
“I was surrounded by four agents, a gate agent, the flight attendants and another crewmember,” she remembers. “They demanded that I pay a $70 pet carry-on fee.”
That’s when her flight went to the dogs. Although she reluctantly agreed to pay the surcharge, she was walked off the flight after an attendant told her she was committing a “federal offense” by interfering with the flight schedule. She and her Chihuahua were allowed to take the next AirTran flight to Atlanta.
“The manner in which I was treated was completely unacceptable and the pet policy fee is ridiculous and excessive,” she told me.
In their struggle to turn a profit, airlines have piled on a lot of fees in the last year, from surcharges for checked luggage to extras for confirmed reservations. And just when it seemed they had found every last fee, it looks as if they’ve turned up one more: They’re looking to Fido and Fluffy for a little extra cash. Specifically, to their owners.
Maldonado’s pet problem may sound like a tempest in a teacup. But it isn’t to her. She alleges AirTran employees intimidated and humiliated her and her dog. When she tried to take names, one flight attendant told her he “wasn’t allowed to give last names.” I was sure the airline would respond to her complaint, so I suggested she send a polite letter describing the incident.
AirTran’s response? A form letter saying it regretted “to learn of your disappointment with our pet travel policy” but pointing out that pet fees are “standard” in the airline business. It promised to pass her comments about the crew’s behavior along to a supervisor.
Here’s the kicker: When it comes to pet transportation fees, AirTran is widely considered to be one of the most reasonable airlines. Its competitors, who at some point must have caught wind of the fact that close to two-thirds of Americans have traveled with their pets and exclaimed, “Ah-ha — there’s money to be made there!” routinely charge twice what this discount airline does.
Call it pet fees gone wild. To get an idea of how crazy these charges have become, consider what happened to Richard Grove, who was asked to pony up $300 to transport his 7-pound cat roundtrip on a recent Delta Air Lines flight. “That’s more than I paid for my own ticket,” he complained. Grove wrote Delta to protest the absurdity of paying more to fly his kitty than himself. The airline replied with a form letter thanking him for letting them “know how you feel.”
It would be tempting to see this as yet another airline industry money grab. But aviation analyst Michael Miller says pet transportation charges differ from other so-called “ancillary” fees charged by airlines today in a few important respects. Pets represent more of a liability than a revenue opportunity, for starters. If a dog or cat dies in the luggage hold — more on that in a minute — the company may face an expensive lawsuit. Although that’s far less likely to happen to animals in the passenger cabin, pets of any kind are essentially unwanted guests on a plane, from an airline’s perspective. Miller says airlines aren’t just “charging whatever they want” to make more money, but to discourage people from bringing animals on board.
That’s not to say there isn’t a market for airborne pets. This summer, Pet Airways, which is billed as an alternative for pets traveling in cargo holds, is scheduled to begin flying between New York, Washington, Chicago, Denver and Los Angeles.
Still, this may be one of those rare times when I agree with the airlines. If dogs and cats belonged at 36,000 feet, they would have wings. But the current system, whether it’s a moneymaker or a deterrent, is hopelessly broken. Here’s why:
Air travel can kill animals
Literally. Pets die on planes, particularly when they’re in the cargo hold. According to the Web site ThirdAmendment.com, a total of 109 animals have perished since 2005, most of them dogs. Airlines must report deaths, injuries and losses to the Transportation Department, but the numbers are thought to be artificially low, since animals that aren’t kept as pets or carried on an all-cargo or unscheduled flight aren’t counted. Continental Airlines had the most deaths (34) followed by American Airlines (21) while Delta Airlines and United Airlines tied for third, with 12 casualties. Delta lost the most pets (11) while Continental had the most injuries (14) according to the government.
The price isn’t right
Why does it cost AirTran $70 to carry a pet one way, but Delta charges $150? Does the cumulative weight of these creatures make planes consume more fuel on one airline, necessitating a higher fee? You don’t have to be an airline employee to know the answer: of course not. Then again, when have airline prices ever made sense? A seat bought two weeks before a flight costs just a few hundred bucks, but buying it the day before your trip can set you back a few thousand. Madness!
Some animals are more equal than others
Jacking up the prices for man’s best friend exposes one of the last remaining airline subsidies: lap children. On domestic flights, airlines don’t charge parents with kids under two who sit on their lap. Fido flying under the seat pays $150. Junior sitting on the lap pays nothing. Does that make any sense? No. When you account for all the extra stuff that you have to bring along, like diapers, formula, snacks and toys, lap kids account for far more weight than most pets stowed under the seats.
No self-respecting dog would subject itself to air travel, anyway
Southwest Airlines used to have the right idea. It didn’t accept live animals in the cabin or cargo compartment other than those trained to assist people with disabilities, until it reversed itself this spring, citing the soft economy. (Here’s a handy list of airline pet policies.) Think about it. What self-respecting cat or dog would intentionally lock itself in a pressurize aluminum tube for several hours? I don’t know of any.
Full disclosure, here: I am owned by two cats that I love dearly. And I interviewed Miller as he was taking his Australian Shepherd, Nikki, for a walk. So it’s safe to say neither of us have a problem with pets in general.
But flying with them is a terrible idea, at least for now. “I would never put Nikki on a plane,” Miller told me.
My cats Max and Pollux are grounded, too. At least until airlines can come up with a better and fairer way to transport their animal passengers.
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{ 17 comments… read them below or add one }
Air Canada has some friendlier and clear pet policies and fees:
http://www.aircanada.com/en/travelinfo/airport/baggage/pets.html
And best of all 2 free checked luggages.
I was with you until you compared dogs to children. Big difference when you talk about how to treat people and animals Those children who you liken to dogs will be the doctors and nurses who treat you when you become old and weak. Do you expect to be treated like a dog then?
“She alleges AirTran employees intimidated and humiliated her and her dog” – let me guess….she didn’t read the rules on pet transportation, attempted to bring it on as a carry on bag, made a BIG fuss when they told her she had to pay, and then decided the intimidated and humiliated her when she initially refused to pay the pet fee.
I wasn’t there, but I have every expectation that this isn’t far from the truth.
Whether you agree with airline policies or not, you have to abide by them – or not fly with that airline. One can certainly expect airline employees to excalate to whatever level is needed for you to comply if you do not. I’m sure that this many employees did not gather unless she made a fuss.
What Ms. Maldonato perhaps doesn’t realize that the other passengers don’t want to be delayed by her not reading and abiding by the rules. Delaying 150 passengers for 1 minute is 2-1/2 person hours of delay.
I have mixed feelings about pets on a plane because I know some people have allergies to them. You are eating on a plane and pets are not allowed in restaurants. Why would they be allowed in a plane where people are eating?
Also, there are many people with yappy little dogs – why would you want a yappy dog on the plane?
Tom, did you really read his comparison of dogs to children? He wasn’t saying dogs should get better treatment. He was saying children already take up more room at no charge. He was not suggesting we begin sticking the children under the seats. The comparison wasn’t about how one is treated compared to the other, but rather how much one pays vs. the other. This does not equate children to dogs.
And frankly, it’s not safe for those children to be sitting on parents’ laps anyway – they should have their own seats. I’m surprised the airlines haven’t started requiring all passengers, including ALL children, to have their own ticketed seat. Think of all the extra revenue THAT would generate.
I paid a $60 fee several years ago to transport a three ounce bird from Florida to Boston as carry on with me. Aloyisous was a parrotlet, I bought in Florida and put in a transparent plastic carrier inside a larger opaque carrier. He literally wieghed three ounces, the larger carrier was the size of a large shoebox. I had to make a reservation, had all his health certificates, prove he was born in the US, not wild caught, endure an agent at the airport who spent a half hour lecturing that people should not own animals and birds should not be pets and so on, none of which was pertinant to the travel. In comparison the TSA agent was very reasonable, since the inner cage was completely transparent, I did not have to remove the bird for inspection, a very good thing because the 12 week old bird was not finger tame so after biting anyone nearby, he would have gone flying around the airport. Aloyisous lived a long and happy life at home, became very friendly and loved people and dgos, never traveled again,and only flew around my house.
Tom, Maybe you have not needed health care recently – bravo for you! – it would be wonderful if people were treated like dogs. The difference in compassion at my Veternarian versus the local hospital is truly amazing. I will be very happy to be treated as well as my dogs are.
I love animals, especially cats. But seeing as I can’t get mine to be calm on a 5 mile ride in the car to the vet’s office, there’s no way I’d take them on a multi-hour plane ride.
Five years ago I moved to California. I flew on United, and had an upgrade to first class. My cat, Baby, flew in cargo. After boarding, the flight attendant came up to me with a pink cargo slip and said, “Mrs. Stein, your baby is safe in cargo.” . . .
So, when people have to move a long distance for a job, family, or whatever reason, they should just dump their pets on the side of the highway?
I suppose there exist people who think it’s great fun to fly with animals, even cats, but believe me, I really doubt many people do it in circumstances where it isn’t the only possible option.
I’d rather be on a plane full of animals than a plane stuffed with idiotic, senseless fools with entitlement complexes who block the aisle for 20 minutes while they screw around poking their oversized “carry-on” into the best possible overhead bin. But that’s just about every flight these days.
Perhaps this is the place to tell you about recent nightmare (for me) with pet (someone else’s) on a plane. I was totally mortified to see the two people sharing my three-seat-wide show up with a cage WITH A DOG IN IT! I am allergic to pet dander, and I nearly fainted to see the dog, let alone think of sitting near and having allergic reactions for the 11 hour flight! The plane was full, but I was eventually able to exchange seats with a kind young woman across the way, but was further mortified when, during the flight, they took the dog out of the cage to play with it, in their laps, hold it up (for all its dander to fly) and hold it in front of this nice young woman, who looked sorry she had ever changed with me. I got further comeuppance from Delta when the entertainment system in my new seat failed after an hour and I was left to my own “devices” to pass the time, namely watching the people play with their dog. Point: I believe passengers should be warned that a pet will be hear them, so they have the opportunity to get as far away as possible, esp. if they have allergies????? PS Delta flight attendants never said a word about the dog, but I should complain to Delta about the malfunctioning personal entertainment system. Wasn’t that amenity, after all, part of the ticket price?
@Naomi- if they were waving the dog around the cabin, you have a much more serious grounds of complaint with Delta than broken entertainment. Pets are only allowed in cabins if they can stay safely in their carrier.
Also, out of curiousity, my understanding is that pets can only be carried in the cabin on domestic flights- so which 11 hour domestic flight were you on?
I would like say that if the person who owned their pet companion has properly trained them like some parents should train their kids. You would never even know that this pet was on board.
If the pet is a service animal they do not have to be in a carrier.
Oh and Tom just in case your a little bias toward children I would like to say that some of them are going to criminals and not all children grow up to be doctors. And not all doctors are liked either. Animals do more for humans than alot of humans do for humans. And some of those animals are considered to be companions and not just animals. And not everyone see’s things the way you do.
And the person with the allergies I find this very hard to believe that a animal in a cabin would cause a allergic reaction without touching the pet. Now if the pet was out of the kennel and the animal was in your face or touched you then maybe I can except this. But in most cases if the animal was never taken out of the kennel (which most crews will address this situation in a heart beat) you would never even know it was on board.
Blech, I had to fly with my kitten once and I will never, ever do it again. It was one of those last-minute, pet-sitter-canceled sort of things, so I had no choice but to take her along on a family visit. All the reasons listed here are true, but even more are present. I actually wrote to Chris to ask what the $50 fee covered (I was on JetBlue, that was the cost for that airline), as you certainly get no more “perks” / care when you have a pet aboard that takes up not as much room as a backpack or other carryon. Even lap babies probably can get a snack or a drink! ;-)
This flight was from JFK to Pittsburgh, so only about an hour, which I figured was totally fine for the cat to be cooped up. At the time she weighed about 4 pounds, and the carrier was, as I mentioned, about the size of a back pack. Well, naturally the hour long flight was delayed – for four hours. This is, of course, added onto the hour it takes to get to the airport, and the hour and a half of waiting for the plane at its scheduled time. After getting into P’burgh, it’s another hour to get to my family’s house there. So, a grand total of 7 hours for a cat in a cage. Uggghhh. After the two hours of waiting, I had to go back outside with her so she could, erm, “go” and then take her back through security. Security one time sucks, but added to taking a shaking kitten out for the case to be x-rayed – twice – is a nightmare. Totally, totally not worth it.
I’m not even blaming the airlines for this – I was totally naive. Perhaps it “should” be easy to take a 4 lb. kitten on an hour-long flight, but it isn’t, regardless of policy/fees/whatever. I just wanted to add the possibility of delays, etc., in reasons for NOT taking your animal. There are always rare circumstances that necessitate it, but if you really love your pet, I second leaving them at home.
I just traveled from Denver to Chicago with a huge golden retriever service dog sharing the three seats with me and his owner, a delightful young woman. I am mildly allergic to dogs, and by the end of the trip, I was pretty itchy and sneezy, but, that beautiful, well-behaved dog (who had to be miserable during take-off and landing on the floor in front of us, as we were in the very last row) when finally allowed up on the seat, rested his head in my lap and he was so soothing and more pleasant than many of the passengers I’ve shared space with on my frequent travels, that it was worth a little discomfort. The large ummm…. fragrant woman on the next leg of my flight whose thigh crept well under the armrest and spent the entrie flight glued to mine… not so much.
ah now you’ve done it. giving money grabbing airline execs a new idea… tsk tsk tsk. i dont want ot be stuck paying a diaper surcharge. or formula tax. you know they’ll do that next.
Please note,
Others traveling with animals,and the airlines,are not treating regular customers fairly.My wife is allergic to all animals {affects her asthma as well}(cats more than others),and non disclosure to us resulted in ruining a 2 week vacation with our grandchildren,keeping her under medication,when she found it difficult to breathe.continue,it would be wise to ask all passengers if they have allergies or asthma,and to seat such people at least 6 rows away,or keep all animals in very rear of plane.
Thankyou,
Ron Evans
I have totally mixed feelings about pet policies with the airlines. I own a very large german shepherd and you are not restricted to domestic flights only. I am military and have flown my dog from the US to Japan and Hawaii to the US so yes you can. One thing everything needs to do is READ all the details. If the woman was pulled out and humiliated then it’s her own fault. And I see it embarrassed her but not her dog…that’s just stupid. I do not feel any pet should be seated with people due to others allergies (except for service animals) which should really have their own part of the plane designated for them. I am not one to take my dog anywhere without finding out the rules whether is a plane, beach, store or whatever. I am extremely allergic to cats or what others like to say “your not allergic to the cat, your allergic to their dander”…either way the dander is part of the cat so I’m allergic to the cat but anywho after getting seated in a flight my eyes started to itch and so on. Minute after minute it got worse, eventually when my eyes were swollen as if I had pink eye, sneezing and add in the feeling of a severe sinus infection I asked the stewardess if there are any pets nearby and it turned out a woman had a cat a few rows up under her seat. I immediately asked for another seat as far as possible which she was kind enough to ask other passenger if they could switch but I found that just a big headache for us passengers. It takes me being just 20 feet away before my symptoms begin and the closer I am and longer I stay by them the worse it gets FAST. I get highly discriminated as it is everywhere by the breed of dog I have but I in the end I always make sure I’m not affecting my fellow human being first. Unless they have a yappity, growling, vicious type mini dog (which people rarely train) that’s acts like they are going to attack me then I give my dog the command to protect us which usually puts the little ankle biters at bay.