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Traveling with Pets on UA (In-Cabin or Cargo -- not ESA) {Archive}

Traveling with Pets on UA (In-Cabin or Cargo -- not ESA) {Archive}

Old Feb 17, 2012, 1:42 pm
  #16  
 
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You're going to need a bigger wallet

http://gma.yahoo.com/blogs/abc-blogs...-abc-news.html
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Old Feb 17, 2012, 1:59 pm
  #17  
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Recent news story:

http://gma.yahoo.com/blogs/abc-blogs...-abc-news.html
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Old Feb 17, 2012, 4:06 pm
  #18  
 
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Originally Posted by FlyinHawaiian
I just read that... another decision not well thought out. Sure it was CO policy, but clearly they chose revenue over the consideration of the # of pmUA flyers this would impact. Maybe this is like they lady who doesn't drink coffee picking the freshpoo... someone this doesn't impact making the decision.

I have never flown with a pet, so it will not impact me, but I feel for those who need to.

And as certain people will try to sway that this is not a CO decision- it clearly is. It is NOT taking the best of each company it is squeezing every penny.
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Old Feb 17, 2012, 4:43 pm
  #19  
 
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Originally Posted by bdraco
I have a pet reservation for April out of OGG for an in cabin pet. However the new policy seems to be :

http://pss.united.com/web/en-US/cont...s/default.aspx
Pets are not permitted on flights to and from Hawaii.

I've never had a problem with a dog Ex-Hawaii. I hoping they will still honor my existing reservation.
It's virtually certain that you will not be able to bring a pet in-cabin to Hawaii in April. Expect a phone call from United advising you that your pet reservation has been cancelled and that you'll need to ship the pet as cargo with PetSafe.

Last edited by Strom; Feb 17, 2012 at 4:43 pm Reason: *pet, not human reservation
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Old Feb 17, 2012, 6:04 pm
  #20  
 
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United Airlines Policy Change Could Cost Pet Owners Thousands

http://gma.yahoo.com/blogs/abc-blogs...-abc-news.html

On March 3, United Airlines and its subsidiaries will change the way they transport pets. And although the airline's fees for transporting animals are in line with what other carriers charge, the change could end up costing pet owners thousands of dollars.

The change in policy means pets will now be transported as cargo rather than checked luggage.
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Old Feb 17, 2012, 6:11 pm
  #21  
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In several other articles:

United says it's making the switch to PetSafe because of the program's many resources for handling those in its care. The program has been lauded by pet-transport professionals.

"They're fantastic with their animals," says Gay O'Brien, former president of the International Pet and Animal Transportation Association. "We're all so pleased that United is picking that up."
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Old Feb 17, 2012, 7:15 pm
  #22  
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Nothing generates bad press faster than dissing military personnel

They will bow down soon enough on this.
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Old Feb 17, 2012, 7:25 pm
  #23  
 
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Originally Posted by uastarflyer
Nothing generates bad press faster than dissing military personnel

They will bow down soon enough on this.
Hell hath no fury like a military wife scorned.
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Old Feb 17, 2012, 7:50 pm
  #24  
 
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This is not a pre-merger issue - this is a post merger issue - it is CO's program being ported to UA (where have we heard that before) and won't take effect till 3/3. There is also already a thred on this.
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Old Feb 17, 2012, 8:23 pm
  #25  
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Check out the United page on Facebook...Wow, I'm guessing a dog group got word of this and told its members to spam the United FB page. For like 3 days, that's all that was posted on there...HUNDREDS of comments about it, especially from the military perspective.

Seems like United is really putting the screws to people on this one. Including and especially military. "Sure, we'll let you board first, but give us $2000 to haul your dog across the pond.

I'm neither a dog owner nor lover, but seems ridiculous that you can no longer check your animal, regardless of size, as a bag or even an excess bag.
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Old Feb 17, 2012, 8:23 pm
  #26  
 
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Does anyone know what changes are occurring for in-cabin pets?
UA's policy allows them to almost all their intl. destinations. CO's did not. What will the policy be after 3/3? The website just says to call which suggests the CO policy will prevail. If so, they are going to lose revenue on routes where you used to be able to pay for an in-cabin pet. For many pet owners with small pets, it's in-cabin or leave the dog at home due to the risks of travel in the hold. Maybe this is the first example of a revenue losing policy from CO applying to the new UA/CO.
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Old Feb 18, 2012, 7:56 am
  #27  
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Originally Posted by Strom
It's virtually certain that you will not be able to bring a pet in-cabin to Hawaii in April.
You haven't been able to bring an in-cabin pet to Hawai`i in recent memory.

United Airlines does not allow pets in the cabin to Hawaii except certified guide dogs
In fact, I'm not sure there is a US-based carrier that allows in-cabin Hawai`i-bound pets. (ATA used to but at the time my friends who were bringing us our cats researched it, they were the only ones. That was eight years ago so UA's current no-pets-in-cabin on Hawai`i-bound flights is not a new rule)

Originally Posted by lapeter
We take our 2 dogs back and forth to Maui from Boise a couple of times a year. TIA
Wow. You go through the involved and expensive quarantine or airport-release process twice a year for bringing your dogs to Hawai`i?
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Old Feb 18, 2012, 10:08 am
  #28  
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Can someone post example pricing under the old and new systems? For a domestic lower 48 flight, a Hawaii flight, and an international longhaul flight.

Also can someone explain the changes in handling?
From what I gather the old way was: drop off at checkin desk, *insert magic here*, loaded in cargo bay, *insert magic here*, appears at baggage claim.
And the new way is: drop off at cargo facility, *insert magic here involving climate controlled something*, loaded in cargo bay, *insert magic here*, pick up at cargo facility.
I'd really like to know more about the specific handling of checked pets.

The UA site isn't very clear about the old way and all I see on FB is "whaa whaa military members whaa whaa thousands of dollars whaa whaa love their pets whaa whaa United is the devil whaa whaa" and it's a distraction from the actual change in procedures and fees.
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Old Feb 18, 2012, 2:25 pm
  #29  
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More sensationalism, still no numbers/details.

The price has gone up as a result of providing better service (temperature controlled, etc) and safety for the pets. CO killed 3 pets last year while Delta killed 19 so I'd say the PetSafe program is doing something good.

Should the airline eat the increased handling costs? In effect that's making all passengers subsidize the few who choose to travel with their pets.
Should the airline provide a cheaper, lower level of service that's more risky to the pets health and life?
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Old Feb 18, 2012, 2:57 pm
  #30  
 
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Originally Posted by mduell
More sensationalism, still no numbers/details.

The price has gone up as a result of providing better service (temperature controlled, etc) and safety for the pets. CO killed 3 pets last year while Delta killed 19 so I'd say the PetSafe program is doing something good.

Should the airline eat the increased handling costs? In effect that's making all passengers subsidize the few who choose to travel with their pets.
Should the airline provide a cheaper, lower level of service that's more risky to the pets health and life?
Your post implies that DL and CO "murdered" the pets. That's far from true. No one shipped/transported more pets than DL last year, so they had the most incidents.

You can read about all the incidents with pets on DL here http://us.lrd.yahoo.com/_ylt=ApOW6MX...2011_Delta.doc. You'll see that in most of those cases the pet had a preexisting condition, sometimes not known to the owner.

Transporting pets on airplanes is extremely safe, and all major airlines (except WN AFAIK) transport dozens of pets daily. The issue is that DL accepts pets as baggage (which will set you back only $200), while CO/UA (starting 03/03) does not. Transporting pets as cargo is a lot more difficult, since involves driving to the cargo terminal to drop off pets 4 hours before the flight, and a lot more expensive.
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