Carriers ramp up pet-friendly services

Domestic airlines are either introducing or expanding services that allow flyers to take their pets along with them in cabin, as demand for such travel surges, with industry observers saying that the trend could satisfy the emotional needs of passengers as well as help the carriers garner more revenue.

So far this year, domestic air carriers such as China Southern Airlines, China Eastern Airlines, Hainan Airlines, Juneyao Air and Spring Airlines have expanded or piloted such services to cater to growing demand.

More pets are now allowed to be brought into the cabin and placed under the seat in front or on an adjacent seat, with the price of a one-way ticket for a pet reaching as high as 2,000 yuan ($278).

"The service can satisfy the personalized travel demand of passengers, and help airlines increase revenue by selling extra flight tickets. Introducing such as service is a way for airlines to increase profits," said Lin Zhijie, an aviation industry analyst.

Since July 1, Guangzhou-based State-owned carrier China Southern has included 10 more domestic airports in the service, besides the existing nine airports.

At present, the total number of pet-friendly routes has exceeded 200, after it first introduced the service in December.

In addition, the carrier has raised the number of pets allowed in each flight from two to four. It has also lifted a ban on short-nosed dogs and cats. Muzzles are only required for dogs, and they must wear them during the entire duration of the journey.

Meanwhile, Shanghai-based China Eastern has also added 16 additional routes since July 1, allowing passengers to fly with pets. The total number of such routes has reached 17, after the airline first launched the service in May.

China Eastern said, as more people regard pets as important family members, the pain point of separation between owners and pets in air travel is becoming increasingly prominent.

Earlier, services related to pet transportation in the country's civil aviation sector were pet consignment. Pets were placed in boxes and transported in the aircraft's cargo hold with oxygen supply, according to regulations.

Separating owners and pets may cause pets to suffer from stress and the owners to feel anxious. Some pets were unable to be consigned due to restrictions on rules such as size and variety.

"The extension of the service indicates that airlines have expanded their service models from transportation to satisfying the emotional demands of passengers. The upgrade of the service serves as an effective way for carriers to cope with homogeneous competition and increase revenues," said Chen Zhanming, deputy dean of the School of Applied Economics at Renmin University of China.

Industry observers added that the service has also promoted the extension of the industry chain to upstream and downstream areas such as quarantine, insurance and tourism. The operation of pet-friendly flights may become the norm, while the improvement and implementation of relevant policies remain the key.

Last year, the number of dogs and cats kept as pets in urban areas in China exceeded 120 million, and the size of their consumer market topped 300 billion yuan, according to domestic pet industry data platform petdata.cn.

zhuwenqian@chinadaily.com.cn