Or, airlines could just dump first class cabins entirely and make them into puppy/baby pens instead.
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Thats insane.
I have flown with my small dogs in the cabin.
The policy is soft sided carrying cases on the floor, under the seat in front of you. Air Canada are such sticklers that I wasn’t even allowed to open the bag, let alone move it, or store it anywhere else.
And I was JUST on a United flight from Austin to LA where the woman behind me had her small dog on her lap the entire flight.
This smells fishy to me.
Is there a statement from United?
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My 2c here, from the reporting that I’ve read:
The owner of the dog was flying as the only adult in her group, corralling a dog and 2 children (one of them a lap infant.) I hope that if I were ever in her situation I would push back on the flight attendant’s ridiculous martinet demands and say “no, that’s completely absurd. Lack of air could kill my dog. I refuse to fly under such an order, get me off this plane now.” (Assuming we’re not in the air already, etc.) But I could see being overwhelmed with everything that I’m responsible for and not breaking with authority.
So my next hope is that if I were a passenger nearby seeing this situation, I would speak up. “Ma’am, it’s not safe for a dog to be in the overhead bin. Wait, what, you insist? I’m sorry, that’s absolutely nuts. Doggo is gonna hang out with me for a while.” Going with the flow here and hoping that everything will work out alright, or that it’s not my problem? It’s a pernicious temptation.
Other reporting I’ve read on this has reported the dog barking from within the overhead bin mid-flight. For crying out loud. I place 80% of the blame on the flight attendant here, but 20% on everyone else looking away and thinking “not my problem.”
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It wouldn’t need to be airtight. It just needs to have a low enough fresh air exchange rate such that the CO2 from the breathing dog could build up to dangerous levels.
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That in itself is something unique to United, and why they can be blamed for this. The corporate culture there seems to be poisoned in a uniquely awful way.
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I think I agree with that.
I blame the BoingBoing algorithms.
I’m sorry… the attendant FORCED her to put the dog in the overhead bin? Like physically? Maybe they used a gun?
If you own a dog you are RESPONSIBLE for that animal’s life. The conversation should go:
“put that dog in an overhead bin”
“no”
“if you don’t i will”
“don’t touch my dog or i will pursue legal action”
if you are responsible for the dog’s LIFE you need to take that seriously…
This is like the story where they “forced” someone to flush a gerbil down the toilet, no one can FORCE you do do any of this stuff… you’re your own person with what they refer to as “free will” as far as that goes…
And you go on an airplane without earplugs? That’s on you, man. Even without babies airplanes create a lot of loud high pitched noises all by themselves.
I don’t think anybody ever died because of the sound of a crying baby, and headaches are not visible from outside, contrary to what you may think (I’m a migraine sufferer myself, so I know it feels different). So if you did not alert the staff that you had a headache which needed medical attention you can’t really blame them for that.
Also, I think you switch cause and effect here: if you have a headache, the sound of a crying baby is unbearable, but the sound doesn’t generally cause headaches. But even if you have some sort of medical condition which causes sound-induced headaches (epilepsy related maybe?) an airplane is a place where you can expect lots of unpleasant sounds, so prepare.
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If the ‘expert’ (flight attendant) tells you it’s safe to put the dog there, who are you to refuse? For all I know there could be forced ventilation in these bins.
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I’m not going to be able to dig up a citation for this on short notice, but the data shows that
- many families would just drive rather than pay for an additional seat for their baby
- driving is a lot more dangerous than flying, more dangerous even than flying without a seat
ergo, allowing lap-sitting is a net public health benefit.
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I could see not realizing there wouldn’t be air circulation enough in the overhead
Please don’t assume that I can’t take care of myself. I had both earplugs and noise cancelling headphones thank you very much.
When I said visible pain, it is quite obvious to anyone with any sense of empathy that I was in distress, and it is the cabin crew’s duty to check in on anyone who looks like they might be.
I also quite well know what causes headaches for me. I don’t need my body mansplained, thanks.
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Is flying really worth it anymore? You pay to finally board an aircraft after being groped and prodded, hoping that the Border Laws don’t somehow engage with your personal electronics or even person, pushing and shoving into a confined space. In this case, it kills your pet; itself being pushed into a confined space. Is this an airline or a BDSM situation?
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I could see a person not realizing this. Maybe 30% chance? But all 15 people within easy earshot of the enclosed barking dog? That’s vanishingly low.
I get where you’re coming from, but this shades into victim-blaming. Especially when additional detail on the situation (party of 3 people was one parent, one toddler, and one lap-infant, plus the dog) points to a strong possibility the dog owner was just overwhelmed.
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The family was refunded its $125 pet cabin fee.
Quality driving trollies right there. o7
Which airline are you a flight attendant for?
While this does not show hours flown, it does show number of animals transported.
A page from the Department of Transportation’s 2017 Air Travel Consumer Report.
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She must have meant the puppy also, because otherwise there would be a loose puppy to deal with. These people have no heart or any ability for discretion. Yes, company policy dictates what they can or can not do. But if I were the attendant, I would allow the pup to stay under the seat and just pretend you were not aware. There are ways to do your job and still be a human being. On the otherhand, United has a terrible track record for animals and pets. They need to change their policies to something more humane.
