Alaska Airlines announced on Tuesday that it will no longer allow passengers to bring emotional support animals on their aircraft for reservations made after January 11. The airline is the first to ban emotional support animals, following new guidelines from the U.S. Department of Transportation on what types of animals should be allowed on passenger planes.
The new rules will not apply to dogs trained to perform specific tasks, such as guide dogs for people with visual impairments.. But the rules will apply to “emotional support” monkeys, peacocks and snakes – all the things people really tried to bring on airplanes recent years.
“From January 11, 2021, Alaska will carry only service dogs, which are specially trained to perform tasks for the benefit of a qualified individual with a disability,” said Alaska Airlines in a published statement. connected.
The Department of Transportation released new rules in early December that were celebrated by some people who complain that unscrupulous people used “emotional support” as an excuse to bring their untrained and unruly pets on planes without a real need. But disability rights groups warn that the new restrictions may prevent disabled people from having equal access to the country’s transport infrastructure.
“Once again, almost systematically, DOT decided to prioritize the airline industry and corporate interests over the rights guaranteed to people with disabilities by law,” Curt Decker, executive director of the National Disability Rights Network, said in a declaration earlier this month, after the Department of Transportation released its new guidance.
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“While it is no secret that we still remain a long way from a truly accessible transportation system in this country, the DOT rule will only serve to exacerbate the existing inequalities for people with disabilities who participate in air travel and, instead, will accommodate almost exclusively the interests of airline industry, ”continued Decker.
Alaska Airlines announced that passengers will now be required to complete an online form swearing that their pet is a “legitimate service dog” and has been properly trained not to disturb the flight.
Guests must complete a DOT form, which will be available on AlaskaAir.com from January 11, stating that their pet is a legitimate service dog, is trained and vaccinated and will behave properly during the trip. For reservations made more than 48 hours before the trip, you must send the completed form by email. For reservations made less than 48 hours before travel, guests must personally submit the form to the Customer Service Agent upon arrival at the airport.
have still many questions about what kind of animals will be allowed on board for passengers with psychiatric conditions and Alaska Airlines has not yet been very specific in that regard. We contacted Alaska Airlines to get more clarity about the new rules and will update this post if we receive a response.
Other airlines based in the United States have yet to announce changes to their official service animal rules, but are expected to do the same soon.
“This regulatory change is good news as it will help us reduce disturbances on board, while continuing to accommodate our guests traveling with qualified service animals,” said Ray Prentice, director of customer defense for Alaska Airlines, in a statement.