Dog Dies On United Flight After Passenger Forced To Put Carrier In Overhead Bin

Well, today United Airlines is in the news again for bad press.

This time, not for beatings of Dr. Dao, but for the death of an innocent dog. United Flight 1284 from Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport to New York’s LaGuardia Airport was rocked by the tragic accident, for very obvious reasons.

A flight attendant “pushed” the pet owner to put her small dog in the overhead bin. The dog was in a TSA-approved pet carrier and contradicts the carrier’s policy, which states in part: “Pet traveling in the cabin must be carried in an approved hard-sided or soft-sided kennel. The kennel must fit completely under the seat in front of the customer and remain there at all times.”

Unfortunately, this is not a first for this company. United Airlines had the highest record for pet deaths among U.S. airlines in 2017 and 2016. In 2017, a total of 18 pets died and 13 were injured among 138,178 total pets transported by United Airlines.

A spokeswoman for United said the airline is conducting a full investigation into the matter.

“This was a tragic accident that should never have occurred, as pets should never be placed in the overhead bin,” she stated. “We assume full responsibility for this tragedy and express our deepest condolences to the family and are committed to supporting them. We are thoroughly investigating what occurred to prevent this from ever happening again.”

Passengers have voiced their concerns online, as seen below.

R.I.P Papacito

Today, I boarded my first United Airlines flight.On my way, I saw a Frenchie that looked identical to my own precious…

Posted by June Lara on Monday, March 12, 2018

 

 

Author:
Erin Whitten is currently CMN's Senior Correspondent and is currently a student at Arizona State University majoring in Mass Communications and Media Studies.