If you've ever had to fly your pets on a commercial airline, you'll appreciate this.

The first flight for Pet Airways, the nation's first pets-only airline, recently took off from Republic Airport in Farmingdale, New York. Pet Airways is the brainchild of Alysa Binder and Dan Wiesel after they had to ship their Jack Russell terrier in a plane's cargo hold. Commercial airlines usually allow a limited number of small pets to fly in the cabin, but it's first come, first served. Other pets either travel as checked baggage or in the cargo hold. Both the luggage hold and the cargo hold are dark and noisy, and temperatures can vary wildly.

Pet Airways has been in the works since 2005, but buying a fleet of five planes, setting up airport schedules, and, of course, dealing with federal regulations took four years. There's a shocker.

Pet Airways will fly pets between New York, Chicago, Denver, Los Angeles, and Washington, D.C., with a one-way fare of $250. There is room for about 50 pets per flight, and flights are booked solid for the next two months.

And just what do you get for $250? Service! Get this: Dogs and cats will fly in the main cabin of a plane that has been lined with carriers instead of seats. Pets are escorted to the plane by attendants who check on them every 15 minutes during flight. They (the pets, not the attendants) get pre-boarding walks and restroom breaks, and special pet lounges have been created at the five airports for pets that want "to wait and sniff before flights." Hey, I quoted that, so don't blame it on me.

The planes are smaller freight planes, so they don't have the fuel load to make coast-to-coast flights, so factoring in stops will result in a New York to Los Angeles flight taking about 24 hours, with a major stop in Chicago for a restroom break, playtime, dinner, and an overnight bunk.

Pet Airways representatives (Binder and Wiesel, in other words) say that they plan to add more flights and cities soon, working up to about 25 cities within the next three years.

Of course, there is always a nay-sayer out there for something new and innovative. Anne Banas, executive editor of Smarter-Travel.com, "questions the viability of an airline with such a specific niche." I suspect that Ms. Anne Banas doesn't have a cat or dog, nor any other pet for that matter.

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Jim Frimmer, Realtor
Century 21 Award Mission Valley
California DRE License #01458572
619-729-5701
jimfrimmer@century21award.com

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