[nagdu] Service Animal Policies of Several Airlines
Nicole B. Torcolini
ntorcolini at wavecable.com
Thu Jul 9 00:09:28 UTC 2009
Yes, I get annoyed when they try to put me in the bulkhead . It's only
happened once, and they were able to move me. If you're in the bulkhead,
you cannot have any bags with you unless you get up to get them after take
off.
-----Original Message-----
From: nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf
Of Wayne Merritt
Sent: Wednesday, July 08, 2009 11:48 AM
To: NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users
Subject: Re: [nagdu] Service Animal Policies of Several Airlines
I take my dog's harness off too, mainly because between my long legs and her
long legs, there's not much room under those coach airline seats, and every
inch or millimeter counts when it's for the dog's comfort. I sometimes have
trouble with airline folk who want me to sit in the bulkhead. Truth be told,
at least on Southwest, for me there's no diference in amount of room with my
dog's and my own long legs.
Besides, if there's a wall in front, there's no room for the dog to stretch
out, unless it's to the side. If there's no one sitting there, then that's
fine, but on full flights it can be a problem. Thankfully most of our
flights are only an hour. We're going to Florida in a few weeks and taking
one of those smaller jets part way. I'm wondering how that seating
arrangement will work. Should be interesting.
Wayne
On 7/8/09, Linda Gwizdak <linda.gwizdak at cox.net> wrote:
> Hi guys,
> I always take my dog's harness off while in flight. I take it off at
> my seat and stick it between the wall of the cabin and my seat - I
> ALWAYS try to get a window seat so people don't have to step over my
> dog when they want to get up to go to the bathroom. It's bad enough
> on my legs and feet to have Landon on them for a cross-country flight
(grin!).
>
> Besides "The Seeing Eye" being stamped on the harness, it is also
> stamped on the leash as well. On his collar is a Seeing Eye tag and a
> California Service Dog Tag. He and I are going to fly JetBlue in a
> coouple of months when we go to Vermont.
>
> Hope everyone has had a great convention - I'll be able to go again
someday!
>
> Cheers,
>
> Linda and Landon
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Cindy Ray" <cindyray at qwest.net>
> To: "NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users"
> <nagdu at nfbnet.org>
> Sent: Tuesday, July 07, 2009 7:56 PM
> Subject: Re: [nagdu] Service Animal Policies of Several Airlines
>
>
>>I never take off the harness because mostly it is a hassle to get it
>>back on in the small space. I would think at least in the case of The
>>Seeing Eye ones that they would as they both have the school's name
>>on them.
>>
>> Cindy Lou
>>
>> ----- Original Message -----
>> From: "Nicole B. Torcolini" <ntorcolini at wavecable.com>
>> To: "'NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users'"
>> <nagdu at nfbnet.org>
>> Sent: Tuesday, July 07, 2009 9:08 PM
>> Subject: Re: [nagdu] Service Animal Policies of Several Airlines
>>
>>
>> I always remove Lexia's harness during flight for both safety and
>> comfort .
>> I wonder if the leash and collar would be enough, and, if not, if the
>> vest that I have for her for such times (which has two patches that
>> say service
>> dog) would suffice.
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
>> Behalf Of Angie Matney
>> Sent: Monday, July 06, 2009 9:59 PM
>> To: 'NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users'
>> Subject: [nagdu] Service Animal Policies of Several Airlines
>>
>> The recent thread about Frontier (and my desire to procrastinate) led
>> me to compare the policies for several airlines as posted on their
>> web sites.
>> Some
>> appear not to have been updated since the new regulations went into
>> effect on May 13. Some are pages exclusively devoted to service
>> animals; some include information for people with disabilities
>> generally. I find that Frontier's policy sounds a little heavy-handed
>> in comparison to some others.
>> What do you all think? I put *** at the beginning of the material for
>> each airline. (I apologize that some of the URLs are links while
>> others are not.
>> I'm having formatting issues.)
>>
>> *** Delta Airlines
>> http://www.delta.com/planning_reservations/special_travel_needs/servi
>> ces_tra velers_disabilities/special_concerns/index.jsp
>>
>> We offer special seating for passengers with certain types of
>> disabilities.
>> Passengers who can have special seating include anyone:
>>
>> Who uses an aisle chair to get on the aircraft and can't readily
>> transfer over a fixed aisle armrest.
>> Traveling with an attendant helping them during the flight.
>> Traveling with a service animal.
>> With a fused leg.
>> Return to top
>>
>> ---------------------------------------------------------------------
>> -------
>> ----
>>
>> Service Animals
>> We welcome service animals in the aircraft cabin, such as dogs and
>> monkeys trained to assist passengers with mobility, visual, or
>> hearing disabilities.
>>
>> A service animal must be in the floor space where the passenger sits
>> and may not get in the way of an aisle or any area that needs to
>> remain clear for emergencies. (That's why we can't seat you in the
>> exit row.)
>>
>> Some locations (Hawaii, Great Britain, etc.) have quarantine laws for
>> animals, or might not permit their entry at all. See Health
>> Requirements for more information.
>>
>> We, or your travel agent, will be able to help you find out what the
>> requirements are for your destination. But remember, it's up to you
>> to follow the regulations.
>>
>> Return to top
>> *** Frontier Airlines
>> http://www.frontierairlines.com/frontier/customer-service/travel-supp
>> ort/pla
>> nning-your-trip.do
>>
>> traveling with a service animal
>> We accept service animals trained to assist passengers with
>> disabilities in the cabin of our aircraft at no charge. Here are a
>> few things to know about traveling with a service animal:
>> A health certificate is not required for service animals.
>> Identification of a service animal, including one or more of the
>> following, is required:
>> Animal identification card
>> Harnesses, vests, capes or backpack with appropriate identification
>> Verbal assurance detailing what services the animal provides, as well
>> as the training received A written statement or completion of
>> Frontier Medical Authorization Form
>> 30905 (PDF) by a mental health care professional may be required for
>> passengers wishing to travel with a therapeutic/emotional support animal.
>>
>> Your service animal must be properly harnessed for the duration of
>> the flight(s). A proper harness is considered a collar and leash or
>> guide dog harness. The animal may sit at your feet and may not sit in
>> the aisle or another seat. If the animal is small enough, it may sit
>> on your lap. If you are traveling with a service animal, you may not
>> be seated in an emergency exit row.
>>
>> NOTE: We reserve the right to refuse to accommodate an animal in the
>> cabin if credible proof of service and training is not available, or
>> if the animal is considered aggressive or disruptive.
>>
>>
>> *** JetBlue
>> http://help.jetblue.com/SRVS/CGI-BIN/webisapi.dll?New,Kb=askBlue,case
>> =obj(10
>> 95)
>>
>>
>> Guidelines/Requirements - Service Animals on JetBlue JetBlue welcomes
>> service animals in the cabin, at no additional charge.
>> JetBlue will accept one service animal per qualified individual with
>> a disability; JetBlue will make every reasonable effort to
>> accommodate you in the event that you require the assistance of two
>> or more service animals.
>> You may purchase a second seat so that the animal can be accommodated
>> in accordance with FAA safety regulations or wait until a later
>> flight (if the animals cannot be accommodated together at a single
>> passenger seat).
>>
>> Please note the following when traveling with a service animal:
>>
>> Service animal(s) may not obstruct an aisle or any other area used
>> for an emergency evacuation. Service animals typically should remain
>> on the floor; however if the animal is small and well-behaved,
>> circumstances may permit the animal to remain in your lap during all
>> stages of flight.
>> Certain unusual service animals (i.e. snakes, other reptiles,
>> ferrets, rodents and spiders) pose unavoidable safety and/or public
>> health concerns and will not be allowed to jet with us. The release
>> of such an animal in the aircraft could result in a direct threat to
>> the health or safety of customers and crewmembers.
>> Service animals in training are not accepted.
>> Service animals may not occupy a seat.
>> JetBlue will provide assistance to and from Airport Animal Relief
>> Areas for Customers and their service animals.
>> Currently there are no vaccination requirements for service animals
>> on domestic flights.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> Types of Service Animals
>> Service Animals - A Service Animal has been through some type of
>> training to perform a specific active function, such as path finding,
>> picking up objects, carrying things, providing additional stability,
>> responding to sounds, etc.
>>
>> Emotional Support/Psychiatric Service Animals - An Emotional Support
>> or Psychiatric Service Animal can only be used by persons with a
>> diagnosed mental or emotional disorder and need not have specific
>> training for that function but must be trained to behave appropriately in
a public setting.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> Documentation and Requirements for Traveling with a Service Animal
>> Service Animals
>>
>> Service Animals shall have identifiers such as identification cards,
>> other written documentation, presence of harnesses, tags or "the
>> credible verbal assurances of a qualified individual with a disability
using the animal".
>>
>> Please note: documentation is not required as a condition for
>> permitting an individual to travel with his or her service animal in
>> the cabin unless a Customer's verbal assurance is not credible.
>>
>> Emotional Support/Psychiatric Service Animals
>>
>> Emotional Support/Psychiatric Service Animals require current
>> documentation (i.e., not more than one year old) on letterhead from a
>> licensed mental health professional stating:
>>
>> that the Customer has a mental health-related disability that having
>> the animal accompany the Customer is necessary to the Customer's
>> mental health or treatment that the individual providing the
>> assessment of the Customer is a licensed mental health professional
>> and the Customer is under his or her professional care the date and
>> type of the mental health professional's license and the state or
>> other jurisdiction in which it was issued.
>>
>>
>>
>> International Travel with a Service Animal If you are traveling with
>> a service animal on an international flight, please read the
>> additional health documentation requirements here.
>>
>>
>> *** Southwest Airlines
>> http://www.southwest.com/travel_center/disability.html
>>
>> Assistance Animals
>> Trained Assistance Animals
>>
>> Southwest Airlines welcomes trained assistance animals on all of our
>> flights. In accordance with federal Safety regulations, the animal
>> must be positioned so as not to obstruct Customers' expeditious
>> evacuation in the unlikely event of an emergency. Except when too
>> large to be safely accommodated, a trained assistance animal
>> traveling with and providing assistance to a Customer with a
>> disability will be accommodated in the aircraft cabin on the floor in
>> front of or next to the Customer with a disability.
>>
>> Emotional Support Animals
>>
>> Animals used for a Customer's emotional support are accepted in the
cabin.
>> In order for a Customer to travel with an emotional support animal,
>> the Customer must provide to a Southwest Airlines Employee current
>> documentation (not more than one year old) on letterhead from a
>> mental health professional or medical doctor who is treating the
>> Customer's mental health-related disability stating:
>> The passenger has a mental or emotional disability recognized in the
>> Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders - Fourth
>> Edition (DSM
>> IV)
>> The passenger needs the emotional support or psychiatric service
>> animal as an accommodation for air travel and/or for activity at the
>> passenger's destination The individual providing the assessment is a
>> licensed mental health professional, and the passenger is under his
>> or her professional care AND The date and type of the mental health
>> professional's or medical doctor's license and the state or other
>> jurisdiction in which it was issued.
>>
>> Customers traveling with an assistance animal or an emotional support
>> animal cannot sit in an emergency exit seat.
>>
>>
>>
>> *** United airlines
>> http://www.united.com/page/article/0,6722,1045,00.html
>>
>> United Airlines and United Express welcome service animals
>> accompanying persons with disabilities. There is no fee for service
>> animals, and they may travel in the aircraft cabin as long as they do
>> not obstruct an aisle or any other area used for emergency
>> evacuations.
>>
>> It may be helpful to outfit your service animal with a harness or
>> vest to make the animal's status obvious to airport personnel. If the
>> animal's status is questioned, you simply need to provide credible
>> verbal assurance that the animal is assisting a passenger with a
disability.
>>
>>
>> Please note that quarantine restrictions may apply. Check with your
>> travel agent or a United reservations agent at least one month prior
>> to departure to find out if there are any regulations specific to your
destination.
>>
>>
>> Emotional support animals
>> Emotional support animals are considered to be service animals.
>> However, a customer traveling with an emotional support animal will
>> need to have documentation on letterhead from a licensed mental
>> health professional, dated within the past 12 months, stating that
>> the customer is under professional care for a mental-health-related
>> disability, and that the animal's assistance is essential to his or her
mental health.
>>
>>
>> Therapy animals
>> Therapy animals, which are pets that have been trained and registered
>> by a therapy organization in order to visit nursing homes, hospitals,
>> schools and other facilities, are not considered to be service
>> animals. When traveling with a therapy animal, standard pet-related
>> regulations and restrictions will apply.
>>
>> Destination-specific information
>>
>> Hawaii
>> There are restrictions regarding the entry of service animals into
Hawaii.
>> Customers planning to travel to Hawaii should contact the Hawaii
>> Animal Quarantine Branch manager directly for quarantine
>> requirements. The 24-hour phone number is 808-837-8092. You may also
>> view animal quarantine information at the Hawaii Department of
>> Agriculture web site.
>>
>>
>> United Kingdom
>> United Airlines is permitted to accept service animals on flights to
>> the United Kingdom. Because UK regulations for accepting service
>> animals are very strict, both United and our customers must carefully
>> follow the appropriate procedures.
>>
>>
>> As part of those procedures, any customer who intends to travel with
>> a service animal must obtain a preapproval letter from Defra
>> (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs), a UK government
>> agency. Please note that the preapproval process for transporting
>> service animals to the UK can take up to two months.
>>
>>
>> Visit the Defra web site for more information about requirements and
>> procedures for taking animals into the UK, or contact Defra by phone
>> at
>> +44
>> 870 241 1710, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. UK time.
>> (Please
>> note:
>> Before dialing the number above, you must first enter the
>> international direct dialing code. In the United States and Canada,
>> this code is 011.)
>>
>>
>> Other international destinations
>> Many countries restrict the entry of animals. Restrictions vary by
>> country, and customers should contact the appropriate embassy or
>> consulate at least four weeks before departure to make sure that all
>> necessary procedures are followed.
>>
>> *** US Airways
>> http://www.usairways.com/awa/content/traveltools/specialneeds/animals
>> .aspx
>>
>> Service animals
>> Service animals are welcome on all US Airways flights. There is no
>> charge for trained service animals.
>> The number and type of service animals are not limited provided they
>> can fit on your lap or in the area directly in front of your seat.
>> Aisles may not be obstructed.
>> If the service animal sits on the lap of the passenger, the animal
>> must be no larger than an infant child.
>> .Additional restrictions apply for travel with service animals on
>> flights outside of the continental United States If you're traveling
>> with a service animal and if you would like special seating such as a
>> bulkhead seat, please call US Airways Reservations at
>> 800-428-4322/TTY 800-245-2966 at least 24 hours before your departure.
>> In
>> compliance with safety regulations, if you're traveling with a
>> service animal, you may not sit in an exit row.
>> To show that an animal is a service animal, please provide:
>> I.D. card for the animal
>> Presence of harness or tags
>> Other written documentation
>> Credible verbal assurance of the passenger using the animal
>> Emotional support or psychiatric service animals Please call US
>> Airways at 800-428-4322/TTY 800-245-2966 at least 48 hours prior to
>> your scheduled departure if you're traveling with emotional support
>> or psychiatric service animals.
>>
>> To travel with an emotional support or psychiatric service animal in
>> the cabin, you must provide current documentation dated within one
>> year from the date of the scheduled initial flight on the letterhead
>> of a licensed mental health professional (psychiatrist, psychologist
>> or licensed clinical social worker). Documentation must state:
>> The passenger has a mental or emotional disability recognized in the
>> Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders -- Fourth
>> Edition (DSM
>> IV)
>> The passenger needs the emotional support or psychiatric service
>> animal as an accommodation for air travel and/or for activity at the
>> passenger's destination The individual providing the assessment is a
>> licensed mental health professional, and the passenger is under his
>> or her professional care.
>> The date and type of the mental health professional's license and
>> the state or other jurisdiction in which it was issued
>> ________________________________________
>> Hawaii animal quarantine
>> Hawaii is a rabies-free state. If you're traveling to Hawaii with a
>> service animal, emotional support animal or psychiatric service
>> animal, you must have a health certificate issued within 14 days
>> prior to travel. You must also contact the Hawaii Department of
>> Agriculture to get a Neighborhood Island Permit before leaving the
>> mainland if you're traveling to Maui, Kauai or the Big Island.
>>
>> US Airways will only permit service animals, emotional support
>> animals and psychiatric animals in the cabin for travel to/from Hawaii.
>>
>> When the service animal or emotional support animal, or psychiatric
>> service animal is a bird or for information on requirements for
>> allowing service animals, emotional support animals and psychiatric
>> service animals to enter the state of Hawaii without quarantine,
>> please contact the Hawaii Department of Agriculture.
>>
>> Hawaii Department of Agriculture
>> Animal Quarantine Station
>> 99-951 Halawa Valley Street
>> Aiea, HI 96701-5602
>> Phone: 808-483-7151
>> Visit the Hawaii Department of Agriculture's website UK animal
>> quarantine The United Kingdom is a rabies-free country and its rules
>> governing the entry of animals into the country, including service
>> animals, are strictly enforced. In the past, all animals traveling
>> into the United Kingdom were subject to quarantine for six months.
>>
>> Now, if you meet certain requirements, it is possible to transport a
>> service dog or a service cat in the cabin on a flight into the UK,
>> without a six-month quarantine upon arrival.
>>
>> When making a reservation, or no later than 72 hours before
>> departure, you must notify US Airways of your intention to transport
>> a service dog or a service cat in the cabin on a flight into the UK.
>>
>> At the gate, prior to departure from the U.S., and upon landing in
>> the United Kingdom, you must present a date-stamped official
>> veterinary certificate, signed by a veterinarian licensed by an
>> approved country or an EU pet passport demonstrating that the animal
>> has received:
>> A microchip implant readable by an ISO-compatible scanner or by
>> another scanner compatible with the implanted microchip provided by
>> the passenger.
>> A vaccination against rabies.
>> A rabies antibodies blood test. This test must be completed at least
>> six months before the animal's initial entry to the UK.
>> Treatment for certain parasites.
>> ________________________________________
>> The passenger is responsible for the costs and fees associated with
>> the UK's Pet Travel Scheme.
>>
>> For detailed current information about compliance procedures, go to
>> the UK's Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (DEFFA)
>> website.
>> UK's Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (DEFFA)
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
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My blog:
http://wayneism.blogspot.com
My websites:
www.wayneism.com
www.whitecaneday.org
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