BENGALURU: A Bengaluru-based marketing professional who flew from Ahmedabad to Bengaluru for the first time with his pet on a flight, lashed out at Akasa Air on Monday for a “horrible’ experience. The airline on Tuesday issued a detailed statement refuting his charges.
Pathak, a marketing and communications professional, travelled with his wife and pet Shih-Tzu by QP1332 on January 26, he wrote in his post on Linkedin. Pathak claimed that comfortable travel for his pet for Rs 5,000, was far from the truth.
Specifying details, he said the flight left Ahmedabad at 1.40am (January 27) which was three hours behind schedule. The couple had reached three hours in advance for the scheduled 10.20pm flight on January 26, as it was their pet’s maiden travel. This resulted in six hours at the airport with the pet.
Ground staff and CISF at the airport did not permit the pet out of the container even once during the long wait, he charged. They did not facilitate their leaving the terminal and returning too, he added. There was no provision for pets to relieve themselves, and the blowers in the washroom would intimidate them, he added.
There was no special seat provided for the pet, and he was told to place it near the leg space, the post alleged. “Boarding took 40 minutes, during which my pet got heated up. We were also sweating because the ACs were not yet switched on. For the first 45 minutes of the flight, my dog kept crying and to console him, I placed his container in my lap, so that he was able to breathe. I just let his head out for a while...I had to forcefully shove my crying pet’s head inside the container multiple times, “ the post said. The steward kept threatening the flyer that if the issue was reported to the captain, the flight would be turned back.
Akasa Air’s statement said it had carried 2,500 pets so far with well-defined protocols to ensure the safety of customers and crew. “The scheduled flight was at 10.30pm and passengers were informed of the rescheduled time of 11.59pm close to 12 hours in advance,” it said. The flyer was given the option of taking the pet outside the terminal and returning, but he declined to do so as security checks had to be repeated.
Priority check-in is given for pet parents in line with its policy, the airline added.