I took our cat from SYR-ORD-SFO-HNL in January. He went as "checked" bagage. We bought the carrier from UAL, so we "knew" it would be OK. I was very pleased with the trip. When I got off the flight in ORD, I was watching the them unload the baggage from our aircraft. When our cat came down, the baggage handler noticed him, and put him in the 'heated' cabin of his "tractor"^. I was in F the entire trip, and the FAs & GAs were very good about notifying me that he had been boarded and was OK on each leg. The State Animal guy got him in Honolulu; I didn't have to do anything there.

My neighbor took a cat from OGG-SFO, in the F cabin of a 767. He got a soft carrier, and lined it with disposable diapers. This seemed like a pretty good trick. The cat, Miso, is just fine.