Remember the airline that I spoke about a few weeks ago… you know, the one that doesn’t let humans fly but insists on strictly carrying pets only on airline routes? That’s right – Pet Airways. Yesterday, the airline made its official debut between it’s inaugural cities: L.A., Denver, Chicago, New York and Washington, D.C. Just about everyone who covers the industry speculated that the airline would fall flat on its face, especially in this economic climate. Well, guess what!? The airline has all of its flights booked for the next two months.
To give a quick refresh, the airline runs an operation consisting of all Beech 1900Cs – each with 50 pet ‘carriers.’ Currently, Suburban Air Freight operates the aircraft.
This unique airline is all about the “pawsengers;” the pets get bathroom breaks between connections, and the “flight attendants” are all-animal lovers (some are even veterinary technicians). The company’s pet-friendly atmosphere has gained fame from pet lovers around the country – the airline has already been forced to alert customers that they are over capacity.
Personally, I’m a bit shocked after hearing the news about how well the carrier is performing. No, there aren’t any financial details about the carrier, but from the sound of it, it looks as though they’ve shocked everyone with how successful they are. Best of all, it’s a good surprise to see Pet Airways succeeding. Despite this good news, some pet experts have expressed doubts and frustration with the airline. However, if the carrier continues top notch service and continues to grow, I think even the Pet experts will have to admit that they were wrong. The future success of the carrier strongly depends on the level of service that pets are receiving on the airline. If they can keep up high bookings and high quality, they’ll succeed for sure. As for me, I’m very happy to see this brand new airline succeed.
Here’s a commercial:
