[Flagdu] Delta introduces new requirements for those flying with service or support animals

[Sherrill O'Brien]

Hello all,

 

I hope most have read the email Marion sent to the list regarding Delta’s
new policy for all guide dog handlers who plan to fly on Delta  with their
dogs on or following March 1.

In case you haven’t read the original Delta explanation for their new
requirements, I’ve posted it below my signature.

Sadly, the haphazard and sometimes deceitful manner in which people take
untrained pets, which they claim are emotional support or service animals,
into the plane’s cabin penalizes those of us who have flown for years with
dogs who are acclimated to the flight experience. 

The insistence by Delta that we give 48 hours notice that we will be flying
with our dogs is completely discriminatory. Last year when I needed to fly
to Illinois to be with my Mom, I booked a flight only six hours before my
dog Fallon and I got on the airplane! 

I will also send you the official NFB response to Delta’s policy.

 

Of course we all want to see a crackdown on those who take terrible
advantage of the system currently in place. But surely finding a way do do
so should not create inequality for those of us who are simply going about
our lives with our well-behaved and highly trained dogs.

 

Warm regards

Sherrill

 

> 

Delta introduces enhanced requirements for customers traveling with 

> service or support animals effective March 1 

> <https://delta.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=d37c3b7b351cd7461db4

> 4ec3b&id=54f9925058&e=59093ab52e> 

Delta Air Lines is taking steps to > further protect its customers,
employees and service and support animals by implementing advance
documentation requirements for those animals. This comes as a result of a
lack of regulation that has led to serious safety risks involving untrained
animals in flight. The new requirements support Delta’s top priority of
ensuring safety for its customers, employees and trained service and support
animals, while supporting the rights of customers with legitimate needs,
such as disabled veterans, to travel with trained animals.

> 

> Delta carries approximately 700 service or support animals daily — nearly
250,000 annually. Putting this into perspective, Delta carries more than 180
million passengers annually. Customers have attempted to fly with comfort
turkeys, gliding possums known as sugar gliders, snakes, spiders and more.
Ignoring the true intent of existing rules governing the transport of
service and support animals can be a disservice to customers who have real
and documented needs. Delta has seen an 84 percent increase in reported
animal incidents since 2016, including urination/defecation, biting and even
a widely reportedattack by a 70-pound dog
<https://delta.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=d37c3b7b351cd7461db44ec3b
<https://delta.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=d37c3b7b351cd7461db44ec3b&
id=5e2cd9cc99&e=59093ab52e> &id=5e2cd9cc99&e=59093ab52e>. In 2017, Delta
employees reported increased acts of aggression (barking, growling, lunging
and biting) from service and support animals, behavior not typically seen in
these animals when properly trained and working.

> 

> New Procedures & Updated Requirements

> In compliance with the Air Carrier Access Act, Delta provides in-cabin
travel for service and support animals without charge. The guidelines,
effective March 1, require that all customers traveling with a service or
support animal show proof of health or vaccinations 48 hours in advance. In
addition to the current requirement of a letter prepared and signed by a
doctor or licensed mental health professional, those with psychiatric
service animals and emotional support animals will also need to provide a
signed document confirming that their animal can behave to prevent
untrained, sometimes aggressive household pets from traveling without a
kennel in the cabin. These measures are intended to help ensure that those
customers traveling with a trained service or support animal will no longer
be at risk of untrained pets attacking their working animal, as has
previously been reported
<https://delta.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=d37c3b7b351cd7461db44ec3b
<https://delta.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=d37c3b7b351cd7461db44ec3b&
id=15d2abcdde&e=59093ab52e> &id=15d2abcdde&e=59093ab52e>.

> 

> “The rise in serious incidents involving animals in flight leads us to
believe that the lack of regulation in both health and training screening
for these animals is creating unsafe conditions across U.S. air travel,”
said John Laughter, Delta’s Senior Vice President — Corporate Safety,
Security and Compliance. “As a leader in safety, we worked with our Advisory
Board on Disability to find a solution that supports those customers with a
legitimate need for these animals, while prioritizing a safe and consistent
travel experience.”

> 

> In developing the updated requirements, Delta solicited the feedback and
input of its 15-member Advisory Board on Disability
<https://delta.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=d37c3b7b351cd7461db44ec3b
<https://delta.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=d37c3b7b351cd7461db44ec3b&
id=04b9b029c3&e=59093ab52e> &id=04b9b029c3&e=59093ab52e>, a group of
disability advocates established more than a decade ago and composed of
diverse Delta frequent flyers with a range of disabilities.

> 

> Air Carrier Access Act

> As the Title 14 Code of Federal Aviation Regulations § 382.117 dictates,
“you must permit the service animal to accompany the passenger with a
disability at any seat in which the passenger sits, unless the animal
obstructs an aisle or other area that must remain unobstructed to facilitate
an emergency evacuation.” However, untrained animals that have been
misidentified as service and support animals are regularly reported to
occupy seats, stretch across the aisles and move throughout the cabin during
flight, often without restriction. That same regulation also requires that
airlines determine whether any factors preclude travel in the cabin by a
service animal. Such factors include: “whether the animal would pose a
direct threat to the health or safety of others” and “whether it would cause
a significant disruption of cabin service."

> 

> “We are committed to consistently improving our policies, prioritizing the
safety of all Delta customers and employees,” said Laughter. “We have
received extensive customer feedback through calls, emails and social posts
— many from among those within the disability community — urging Delta to
take action. This new policy is our first step in better protecting those
who fly with Delta with a more thoughtful screening process.”

> 

> What Customers with Service and Support Animals Need To Know

> 

> Any customer traveling with a service or support animal on/after March 1
will need to meet the new requirements as outlined below:

> 

> Traveling with a trained service animal

> 

> Customers traveling with a trained service animal will be required to
submit a signed Veterinary Health Form and/or an immunization record
(current within one year of the travel date) for their animal to Delta’s
Service Animal Support Desk via Delta.com <http://delta.com/> at least 48
hours in advance of travel. 

> Traveling with an emotional support animal or psychiatric service 

> animal

> 

> Customers traveling with an emotional support animal or psychiatric
service animal will be required to submit a signed Veterinary Health Form
and/or an immunization record (current within one year of the travel date),
an Emotional Support/Psychiatric Service Animal Request form which requires
a letter prepared and signed by a doctor or licensed mental health
professional, and a signed Confirmation of Animal Training form to Delta’s
Service Animal Support Desk via Delta.com <http://delta.com/> at least 48
hours in advance of travel.

> Delta is creating a Service Animal Support Desk for customers traveling
with service and support animals to improve their travel experience and
ensure they receive excellent customer service. This desk will verify that
the above documentation is received and confirm the customer’s reservation
to travel with the animal, prior to arrival at the airport. If a form is not
completed, a representative will communicate with the customer via e-mail to
request the missing or incomplete items.

>