7oarfa2x

Good day all.

Within the last half of 2020 I am expecting to travel to Manila (Philippines). This will be my first international flight and my first flight period since, probably, the early 90s. So calling me any type of "veteran" flyer would be a huge misstatement. Consequently I am having to (re)acquaint myself with the many rules and regulations. So far it's going fairly well.

That said, I have one major concern for which I am requesting assistance: I'll be taking my two small dogs (just shy of 30 pounds each). And this will be, as far as I know, their first time flying. (I adopted them some seven years ago and know they've not flown while they've been in my family.)

My research so far indicates that IATA-approved crates are required; those should be relatively easy to get. But I am concerned about the overall travel time. I calculate at least 8 hours before we even get on a plane (even though most of that will not be in a crate but rather just travel to the airport). Then some 30 hours (give or take; more like "give") in the plane and terminals. So we're pushing 40 hours. I know I wouldn't want to be cooped up in a plane for that long, much less in a crate.

Anyway, all of this has me searching for the flight(s) with the least amount of travel time that come in at a price that I think is reasonable/necessary for us all. My dogs' safety and comfort is the priority, but that's not a "money is no object" proposition. So I'm trying to find a balance here, specifically an airline (and their code-share partners) that has a great reputation for dealing with pets, AND has travel times on the shorter end AND won't require either an arm or leg as payment.

So my first request is of anyone who has any definitive experience with this issue, especially in regards to travel between the US and Philippines.

I'd be grateful for whatever guidance folks can give me. Thank you!

P.S. If this post really belongs somewhere else please feel free to suggest. Thanks.

Ocn Vw 1K

7oarfa2x, welcome to posting on FlyerTalk!

Your thread appears best suited for FlyerTalk's Travel with Pets forum and I'll move it there.

In addition to your questions about the in-flight experience, you'll want to check the up-to-date requirements of The Philippines for importation of pets. See, e.g.,
https://www.philippineconsulatela.or...he-philippines

Ocn Vw 1K, Senior Moderator.

7oarfa2x

Ocn Vw 1K:

Thank you for the welcome, and for taking care of having my post in the correct forum. I did do a topical search in the "search forums" field but came up empty. So I'm glad to have my post where it belongs. Also, I do appreciate the link to the official PH site.

Regards.

bhomburg

What is your point of origin? The US is a big country.... It's hard to give flight and airline recommendations without that information.
If starting out from the West Coast, it makes sense heading west and flying transpacific; if starting out from the East coast, going eastward via Europe may be a more convenient option. Also, the larger European airlines with the notable exception of British Airways all accept animals in the hold for more or less reasonable charges (they tend to hover around $/EUR 200 per crate).
At 30 pounds each, your dogs are too large to travel in the cabin and have to travel in the hold. The vast majority of airlines won't allow them to travel together in one crate at this size, though, so you'll likely have to separate them and fly with two crates.

If you are concerned about the journey being too long, you can always break the trip at a layover by booking flights with a longer connection that will give you the opportunity to retrieve the crate(s) from the airline and go for a walk before continuing onwards. This is called "short-checking", and most airlines allow it and even automatically do this with connections exceeding a few hours.
For example, whenever I travel between South America and Europe with my dog, I fly, say, from Sao Paulo, Rio or Santiago to Dallas (a 10-11 hour flight), where I`ll arrive in the morning. I usually rent a car, drive to nearby Grapevine Lake and go hiking for three or so hours before heading back to the airport for my afternoon flight to Frankfurt (another ten-hour flight).

7oarfa2x

After more research, I think my departure point will be either Atlanta or Washington, D.C. (probably Dulles). From those airports, travel goes to California and then on to Japan (usually). I didn't see any east-bound flights from those two locations.

Yeah...I figured in-cabin travel was not going to be an option, unless I bought them their own seats. And I also figured that two separate crates would be necessary. Nice, though, to have confirmation.

I was not aware of this option. This would probably work on one of the flights I found, which has a 5-hours-long layover in Tokyo.

Awfully good information, bhomburg; thanks much for sharing.

One of my kids...err...dogs has cataracts and gets jumpy, even at times with me after all these years, if she hears something that's "too loud." I'm just terribly concerned that she'll completely freak out on that long trip, and no one will know it until we land. In the long run, having them with me is not as important as their health and well-being, even if that means leaving them here with another family.

bhomburg

Have you looked at going nonstop? Philippine Airlines (PR) flies nonstop to Manila from New York JFK and accepts dogs as checked baggage. If you lived in the Washington metropolitan area, you could drive there, and be done with the whole trip in just one flight. No connection, the least worries about things that could possibly go wrong. The only disadvantage I see here is that the flight is very long (16+ hours) so there's a high chance of an in-crate 'accident', but total travel time is the shortest by far.
For animals, the most stressful part of flying isn't the flight itself but being shuttled about airports on luggage carts and conveyor belts. Usually, dogs just go to sleep after take-off on the darkened cargo compartment , even the scared ones stop barking and quiet down in level flight.
.If the nonstop is not an option for you, from the East Coast, I`d definitely go eastward. Qatar has well-timed flights and a conveniently located Hub in Doha which will break the journey in manageable steps, with a 'just-right' connection (long enough so they get out of their crates, short enough to not unduly prolonging the trip) and they take care of the animals during the Doha layover (that's why they are a bit pricey at $350/crate). Note that their Doha hub is in a very hot climate, and I`d travel as late in the year as possible to avoid the animals being exposed to undue heat during transfer there. It gets cooler from around mid-October. Primarily for this reason, Qatar has a long list of breeds they exclude from transport; definitely research this before booking.
Another eastward option on one airline would be with KLM (EUR 200/crate) who fly to Manila via Amsterdam. As that flight makes a stop in Taipeh, it's longer (total flying time from Amsterdam is 14 hours 50 minutes) and I have no idea what happens with animals during the 80 minutes on the ground in TPE. Also, it's currently suspended due to Covid-19 and it's unclear if and when it'll come back. Here you can either pay KLM to have the dogs taken care of in their animal facility (150 Euros) during the Amsterdam layover or break the journey to do that yourself if your dogs meet all the EU entry requirements.
Flying through California with two stops and a change of airline (remember that neither United nor Delta transport pets as checked baggage, the only network airlines who do are AA and Alaska) definitely is not what I`d recommend. You will have to book the animals separately (and pay the fees separately) with each airline involved in your trip. And if things go pear-shaped at any point, you are left out on your own.
For example: You buy a ticket on JAL to fly Dulles-Tokyo-Manila. As JAL doesn't fly from Dulles to Tokyo, you'd get routed routed Dulles-Seattle-Tokyo-Manila with the first segment being operated by Alaska or Dulles-Los Angeles-Tokyo-Manila, with the first segment operated by American. You'd need to contact Alaska or American and book the dogs separately on their respective segments (and pay the fees they charge for the domestic segment separately). So, say, you booked that JAL flight via LAX. You checked and double-checked, contacted AA to book the crates, then show up at the airport to check in for your flight just to see there's been an equipment swap and IAD-LAX is now operated by an Airbus A321 instead of the Boeing 737 that was scheduled when you originally booked the flight weeks or months ago. As AA does not accept animals in the hold on most of their Airbus A32x fleet, you will have to find substitute flights - likely with an extra connection - that will accept your dogs, and all that without missing your connection to JAL in LAX. This has happened to me several times - and if I hadn't been a frequent flyer with them and knew how to work the system myself (not to mention having instant access to knowledgeable and helpful special reservations agents thanks to top tier frequent flyer status with them) I`d have been up sh*t creek with no paddle. This is why you should fly all of your trip on flights operated by a single airline, with as few stops and layovers as possible.

You can't buy a seat for animals so they can travel in the cabin on all airlines except private charters (which will cost you tens of thousands for a trip this long) The only large dogs who are allowed to fly in the cabin with 'normal' airlines are service dogs or ESAs.

I have accompanied rescue dogs as a flight companion dozens of times. South America-USA-Europe or Southeast Asia-Europe with dogs who came straight out of shelters or rescues, barely socialized and knew nothing before getting put in a crate and shipped off to a new life with a family in Germany or Switzerland. Never had an issue. The worst that happened was soiled crates (and once the soiled floor of JFK T8 at the AA First Class Check-in counters as a very very nervous Golden Retriever couldn't make it to the exit and the pet relief area in time...oops...) but they all arrived at their destinations none the worse for wear.
The whole experience is far less traumatic for them in reality than a number of social media keyboard warriors out there on the internet will make you believe. Yes, there's mishaps and dog crates do get sent to the wrong place; yes, dogs die or are injured while in airline care because staff is ignorant, careless or both, and yes, some airlines ( United, looking at you there!) have a bad track record of treating our beloved companions like baggage or worse - that includes throwing the crates around like, well, bags. But all in all, the vast majority of animals get transported from A to B just like regular passengers are. Limiting the number of connections to the absolute minimum (this is mostly where things can go wrong) is the best recipe to avoid disaster.
If you have a dog who's not very noise-tolerant, select an airline using only new aircraft types on the routes you intend to fly. Best are Airbus A350/A380 or Boeing 787. Both the shriek of the engines at take-off as well as the wind noise are greatly reduced in those newer aircraft types. Also, the 'cabin altitude' is set much lower (this translates into more oxygen in the air and less respiratory issues with dogs, especially older ones, snub-nosed breeds or dogs who'd been given a sedative greatly benefit from the lower cabin altitude setting of modern aircraft types) and the humidity of the cabin air in modern aircraft types is higher, both contributing to a better in-flight experience not only for humans but also for dogs in the pet compartment of the forward cargo hold. Read here for more on this.

7oarfa2x

bhomburg:

First, forgive my delayed response, as I didn't see an e-mail notification.

Second, a huge "THANK YOU!" to you for your post. The assurances, recommendations and overall information you provided gives me renewed hope that my kids will be able to safely travel with me. This is a huge relief. I really am grateful.

Finally, I will re-review my options for travel, with my kids.

Again, thank you very kindly. :-)

raero

Hi! any updates on your experience? I will travel my pet with me for the first time

7oarfa2x

Hello,

No update as of yet. I believe travel restrictions are still in effect (not sure on that one as I haven't checked) and I'm still awaiting renewal of my passport, AND still have yet to sell all my personal property.