Mumbai: Lucky dog flies off, but 12 pets fail to take off

MUMBAI: Nine pets booked to fly in the cargo hold of an Air India aircraft from Mumbai to Kolkata on Sunday were offloaded after the aircraft developed a technical problem. Three other pets which were to fly in the cabin too couldn’t travel as they were denied boarding by the commander.
An Air India spokesperson said that the aircraft scheduled to operate AI-675 flight had some pressurisation issues. “It resulted in inconsistent flow of oxygen into only the cargo hold,” the spokesperson said. “So, all nine pets booked to travel in the cargo hold had to be offloaded for the safety and well-being of the pets during the flight,” said the spokesperson.
The only pet that flew on that flight was a dog that was allowed to travel in the passenger cabin. “The cats were not accepted in the cabin by the commander. Our policy on carriage of pets [available on Air India’s website]… states that carriage of pets in the passenger cabin is subject to approval of the commander of the flight,” said the spokesperson. Also, the feline cages did not conform to specifications for carriage in cargo-hold, said Air India. The cat owner, however, refuted this.
“All passengers and pets who could not travel on Sunday have been informed that they can travel on the next available flight to Kolkata with their pets at no extra charges,” the official added.
One of the aggrieved passengers who had been booked to fly with her cat in the cabin took to social media to highlight problems faced by pet owners. “I reached airport at 1 am sharp for my flight which was scheduled at 6.15 am. Staff checked the required documents of my cat and everything was fine. I paid Rs 2100 to fly my cat. Then around 4.45am, I was informed that the captain doesn’t like flying with cats,” tweeted R Chakraborty, a media professional who cancelled her ticket. She later said that Air India had rescheduled her flight for Monday morning with the cat.