In a few weeks I'll be moving from SFO to RDU. This has been happening a lot faster than I expected, so I haven't had as much time to plan as I would like.

My partner and I have three cats that we need to move. One is a 17 year old female and two 4 year old males. All three cats have traveled long distance by car but never by plane. Right now, we think we'll take the female with us on a flight already booked that happens in about 2 weeks, assuming we can make the arrangements in time with US Air. The two males would probably go on another trip a week or two later, or I may decide to drive with them cross country. The female has already traveled by car from Chicago to California.

Has anyone traveled with an older cat who can share their experience? I don't plan to sedate any of them, but I do worry about the female. She's very noisy when she travels, mostly because she wants to look out the window. She gets upset if she's in a kennel but will quiet down and go to sleep if you let her out in the car. That's not an option on an airplane. I also worry about an older cat having trouble with the altitude change. She's in pretty good health for her age and is still relatively active.

I'd appreciate any advice specific to older cats.