Virgin’s letting the dogs out!

Virgin Australia announcement. . Picture: Alex Coppel

Edited by Travel Weekly

Virgin Australia has announced its intention to be the country’s first airline to operate flights with pets onboard under a plan unveiled today.

The Australian-first service, which will have pet-lovers rejoicing around the nation, is subject to regulatory approval, and is expected to launch within 12 months.

In a social media survey of Virgin Australia’s Facebook followers in 2021, 85 per cent of respondents voted in favour of the airline launching pets in cabin flights.

A more recent research conducted by Virgin Australia with Australian pet owners highlighted nearly 70 per cent of respondents advised they would travel with their pet in the cabin, with 57 per cent saying they would fly more regularly if the service was a reality.

Almost all major carriers in North America offer pets onboard service for domestic flights, including United Airlines and Air Canada.

Proposed pets in cabin in-flight experience

For the comfort of all guests, Virgin Australia has today announced several parameters for pets in cabin flights:

The service will be limited to small cats and dogs on specific domestic routes. Pets will be restricted to a limited number of designated rows and will not be allowed to roam freely or sit on laps and pets must also be carried in a Virgin Australia approved pet carrier under the seat in front of the owner for the duration of the flight

Virgin pets on board. (Supplied)

Speaking at a press conference at Melbourne Airport, Virgin Australia Group CEO, Jayne Hrdlicka, said Virgin Australia is thrilled to finally reveal its plans to be the first Australian airline to offer pets onboard flights.

“Our love for animals has always been in the Virgin Australia DNA and we are excited at the prospect of taking off with Australia’s first-ever pets in cabin flights,” said Ms Hrdlicka.

“Overwhelmingly, our guests tell us they want to travel with their pets, and we are now on a journey to make that a reality. It’s something that commonly happens overseas and is proven to work well.

“Almost 70 per cent of Australian households have a pet, so this announcement is really significant for a large proportion of the country.

“It’s also a great thing for pet-friendly accommodation providers who will benefit greatly from increased connectivity and the ease for travellers to fly with their pets.

“It really will be a whole new economy for pet travel in Australia.”

Melbourne Airport CEO, Lorie Argus, said the airport is looking forward to helping Virgin Australia deliver the plan.

“We’ve been investing significant effort into providing relief areas for assistance animals and these facilities have ample capacity to serve Virgin Australia’s new guests,” she said.

“Animals being carried on board Virgin Australia flights will be required to remain in their approved pet carriers at all other times within the terminal.

“We expect the pets in cabin concept will prove a popular offering and we look forward to working with Virgin Australia to make it a reality.”

No changes to assistance animals

The proposed pets in cabin flights will not result in any change to approved assistance animals being able to travel in the cabin of Virgin Australia aircraft at no additional cost.

The existing procedure for assessing the eligibility of these assistance animals to travel onboard will not change. Additionally, Virgin Australia will continue to offer pets to be transported as cargo through approved pet carrier services, as this remains an important part of the Virgin Australia pet offering.

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