An American passenger was kicked off a plane earlier this week when she tried to smuggle her cat on board as an “emotional support animal.”
The woman was caught on a recent flight aboard British Airways from Glasgow to London. She was sitting next to an emergency exit which means her bag had to be stored in the overhead. The cat was in a box inside her bag.
A British Airways spokesperson told Daily Record
“Cats cannot travel in the cabin but recognized assistance dogs travel free alongside their owners. Other animals need to travel in the hold.”
The Glasgow airport says their security staff was aware the cat was on the flight (dates are saying anything from last Sunday until October 24) and the cat was properly processed, although a report by The Travel brought up the issue of how the cat got past airport security. Security personnel said the cat wouldn’t have been detected whether it was brought on the plane dead, alive or stuffed.
British Airways says emotional support cats aren’t allowed to fly in the cabin but can be stored in the luggage hold on the plane.
With everything from peacocks to squirrels being labeled by their owners as support animals, airlines are defending what they allow to fly in the passenger cabins.
The woman is said not to have booked another flight once she was booted off.
Is it proper for dogs to be allowed to fly beside their owners and cats not or should things like people being allergic to cats be taken into consideration?
Your thoughts on any of this are welcome in the comment section. If any of you have a photo of the cat and know the correct date, post that as well.
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Exactly. She could’ve found an airline that allowed pets in carriers under the seat. She also should’ve made sure she isn’t seated in an exit row. They don’t make anybody sit in an exit row, she could’ve just said she doesn’t think she can open the door in case of emergency.
My friend transported her late mother’s cat from Russia to the US. Her mother passed away in Russia, and my friend wanted to bring the cat to live with her in the US. It was perfectly fine and legal. When she went through security, she didn’t want to have her cat go through the machine, so she went to another room with a security person so that they could inspect the carrier while she held the cat.
I was on the same flight as I came to visit Russia with her. It had 2-4-2 arrangement, so my friend got a window seat, and I got the aisle seat next to her. Whenever the cat got too upset, my friend would take her out and allow her to sit on her lap. A flight attendant would ask her to put the cat back, she’d do it, after a while the cat would get upset again… At one point, the cat managed to open the carrier and decided to go out and check out the plane. Thankfully, a nice person across the aisle caught her and handed her to us. It helped that this was a mellow elderly Persian cat. Eventually, the cat quieted down.
I don’t remember if this was Finnair or Air France. I think the latter. We did have one stop, but I don’t remember if it was in Helsinki or Paris.
Cargo holds are not meant for living creatures. It should be illegal across the board. I have said for a long time that airlines need to provide a few built in carrier options in cabins where larger pets can be safe if they don’t fit under the seat.
Not wanting to pay for your pets ticket through fraud should always get one booted off the flight. Cats and dogs are generally recognized as support animals. Though I believe they should be required to be crated as they are not service animals. Customer abuse and incidents in the cabins during flights have led to these crackdowns. Our local walmart now has signage that dogs are NOT allowed in shopping carts.