I am moving to Japan. I have done the prep work to take my dog with my (vaccinations, microchipping, FAVN test) but there is no more space available for pets on the military contract carrier / rotator with me next month when I move, so I'm looking at alternatives. I am considering coming back to the US for Christmas and taking him with me at that point.

I understand United has an exemption to their pets-must-travel-as-cargo policy for military and state department personnel -- it seems like the PetSafe program applies, but military / state dept personnel undergoing an official move / on orders can check in their pet at the counter and retrieve their pet at baggage claim, and don't have to pay extra for a customs agent or other cargo handling/fees/agents.

The itinerary I'm looking at flying back to Japan (and potentially with the dog) is SAT-SFO-NRT-OKA, on flights 5309, 837, and 7972 (an ANA codeshare). The flight durations are 4:12 (2 hr layover), then 11:20 (3 hr layover), then 3:15. The entire trip duration is 23:47.

Will this work? It is my understanding that I would need to book my dog twice - on United from SAT-NRT as part of their military/state dept exemption to their ban on checked animals, and then separately on ANA. I think the lengths of the flights would meet safety criteria, the aircraft call all accommodate a large kennel (not x-large or jumbo), and the duration is <24 hrs.

I of course will call UA to get word directly from them, but if anyone has experience doing this sort of thing or is an expert at pet travel, I'd love to hear your thoughts about this plan.

Thanks
-z