On December 12, an Avianca flight between São Paulo Guarulhos International (GRU) and Bogota El Dorado International Airport (BOG) had an impressive 25 service dogs onboard, which caused some issues for the cabin crew handling the flight. To address this, the airline has recently changed its policy concerning animals in the cabin.

What happened?

Earlier this month, a Colombian journalist, Darío Patiño, said on Twitter that an Avianca flight had at least 20 dogs, all qualified as service animals, on a service from Sao Paulo to Bogota. Currently, there are three daily flights between both cities, AV248, AV86, and AV184, so it is uncertain which of these services was the impacted one. Mr. Patiño added that, due to the size of the larger dogs, they had to lay on the aisle of the aircraft, impacting the cabin crew service.

Looking at FlightRadar24.com, on December 12, Avianca employed an Airbus A320neo on the flight AV248, a Boeing 787-8 on the flight AV184, and an Airbus A319 on the flight AV86.

At first, the reports were dismissed by Twitter users, but Avianca later confirmed the events. In a tweet, the airline said,

“That’s right. We had 25 dogs onboard that flight, which wasn’t easy to handle. Since a few months ago, we have been reviewing our policy to carry pets. We must achieve a fair balance, so the dogs and our passengers can fly comfortably and arrive safely to their destination.”

This flight prompted some changes in Avianca

Following this furry incident, Avianca has decided to change its pet policy. Starting on February 1, 2023, Avianca will introduce new measures “which align with global industry policies.”

From this date, Avianca will only accept service dogs that have a maximum weight of ten kilograms (22 pounds). Additionally, they will also have to travel in a kennel that can be stored under the seat in front of the passenger.

If the service dogs weigh over ten kilograms, they will have to travel on the belly of the plane, without extra cost, starting on that date, announced the airline. Finally, the passengers must book their pet's trip at least 48 hours before the flight. Only six pets will be allowed per Avianca flight on the cabin, and the number of pets allowed on the bellies of the plane will depend on the size of the plane.

Similar cases globally

In the last few years, there was a surge in the number of service dogs (or pigs, cats, peacocks, and hamsters) in cabins globally. There has been confusion between actual service dogs –trained to help people with disabilities– and emotional support animals, which are your regular pet, not trained.

According to a report by The Guardian earlier this year, there was a 1,000% increase in owners obtaining emotional support animal certificates between 2002 and 2015 and a further 200% between 2015 and 2019. To tackle this issue, several airlines have tightened their rules for transporting service and support animals globally. In 2020, the Department of Transportation introduced a new measure in the United States, reserving the designation of service animals for dogs only.

Do you think Avianca is introducing the correct policy to address the number of service dogs onboard its flights? Let us know in the comments below.

Source: The Guardian