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In your professional opinion is it that important that pet owners put their pet on a non stop flight or would one connection make that much of a difference?
I read posts that talk of driving from the East coast or other distant locations to CA to avoid a connection. Each to their own but that seems like overkill to me; they probably wouldn't do that for their kids or grandkids...
Kids or grandkids aren't subjected to potential connection waits on hot tarmac that can affect their health. I'll drive twelve hours to SFO to put them on a nonstop if that's what it takes.
Kids or grandkids aren't subjected to potential connection waits on hot tarmac that can affect their health. I'll drive twelve hours to SFO to put them on a nonstop if that's what it takes.
For what it's worth, a transfer in Honolulu to a B.I. flight is a Lot simpler, faster, less hassle than driving to SFO from Seattle as you describe. I have flown with my [service] dogs from Seattle to / around Hawaii. Fly to Honolulu, check through the Dept. Ag. there for fastest, most efficient service, walk your buddies around till the next flight for B.I. -- never leave airport area. Fast, simple, cheap. Nothing to it. Compared to 20 hours of driving to SFO from Seattle, and related expense?
woof!
btw: dogs fly in temperature-controlled baggage compartment ... there are few, if any, long waits on hot tarmac for inter-island hops ... if temps are too high for animal safety, the airlines won't accept the dogs for that flight ... if you have pug-nosed breeds that are particularly sensitive to the heat, the airlines also will not allow them to fly under dangerous conditions ... if you schedule your flights thoughtfully in advance, you can arrive / depart early / late enough to be between flights at cooler hours ... anyway you do it, all will take less than driving 1000 miles to SFO.
Last edited by nullgeo; 06-29-2010 at 01:43 PM..
Reason: add info
Ya know, Nullgeo has a really good point! It's only about a forty-five minute flight between Honolulu and Kona. The Honolulu airport isn't that large that you can't walk the carrier from the airline to the quarantine area (that is, if it is still right there at the airport where it was decades ago, I haven't imported a critter in a long time). Flights go from Honolulu to Kona several times a day and it is much easier to get a flight from the mainland to Honolulu than from the mainland to Kona.
Once your dog is in Hawaii, flying inter-island doesn't require paperwork.
Hmm, so I guess the question is why is it so important to have a non-stop flight to Kona? Wouldn't a non-stop flight to Hawaii be the more important thing? Once you are in the state things are much easier and there are a lot more services in Honolulu if you needed a vet or anything.
In your professional opinion is it that important that pet owners put their pet on a non stop flight or would one connection make that much of a difference?
I read posts that talk of driving from the East coast or other distant locations to CA to avoid a connection. Each to their own but that seems like overkill to me; they probably wouldn't do that for their kids or grandkids...
I am not a vet or animal transporter so this is more logistics. Its a combination of all things. Its the time you give your dog to the airline to the time you pick it up and whats going on enroute. You just want to keep the non-flight time to the minimum. A 12 hour straight flight is much better than 10 hours with a 3 hour flight, 4 hours on a layover somewhere and another 3 hour flight. But as others said, your animals can't have access to the comforts that human have in terminals and airplanes.
Nullgeo also made a good point that Honolulu is much easier to deal with than many other airports. You can schedule your arrival early and connecting flight later. You have many more options getting to Hawaii. You have more interisland options. You have many more flights and schedules. And it give you the chance to take the creature for a walk inbetween flights.
I'd mentioned on a previous thread that my wife who is a small animal vet shipped the animals she had rescued over the years and adopted to Kauai from a regional airport in Kentucky (Three dogs, 6 cats and 1 noisy parrot,). After who knows how many connections young and old arrived in great shape; the cats were purring and the dogs wiggling and drooling as they were let out of the kennels.
PS: I'm actually thinking that nowadays the animals probably get better treatment from the airlines then humans, lol.
@ mdand3boys: it's not the hot weather, it's the possibility of the animal dying of dehydration or being subject to no air flow and no water for hours on end in the belly of a grounded airplane.
I did call Alaska, and BOY I'm glad I did! This time I called the Portland Office:
"Oh, we aren't sending animals cargo to Kona until maybe August or September." Aha! Good to know! I won't be bringing my furbaby until December, so it works out for me. Sooner than that, and man, I'd just go with Honolulu to Kona- the transfer is so chill and the flight is really quick The only problem I see is maybe them not letting you fly out if it's in the heat of the day?
And as for many pet owners, our pets ARE our kids. I'm not into kids, but I'm into pets---to each his own!
I don't think the airlines check the temperatures before letting animals fly inter-island but I don't know for certain. I suppose you could call and ask the airlines specifically. Also it is rare for the temperatures to get over ninety in Hawaii. The inter-island flight is only about forty five minutes long and folks would be picking up the animals as soon as they are unloaded. They usually bring the critters to the side of baggage claim so you can pick up your luggage and your critter at the same spot. Having strap on wheels for your animal crate (if it's a big dog) might make the whole episode easier although most airports have those luggage carts which a crate will fit on, too.
"Sending animals cargo to Kona" is different than "sending animals as checked in baggage to Kona". If you are looking for cargo, then you can call Aloha Airlines, their cargo planes are still flying although they stopped passenger service several years ago.
Ya know, Nullgeo has a really good point! It's only about a forty-five minute flight between Honolulu and Kona. The Honolulu airport isn't that large that you can't walk the carrier from the airline to the quarantine area (that is, if it is still right there at the airport where it was decades ago, I haven't imported a critter in a long time). Flights go from Honolulu to Kona several times a day and it is much easier to get a flight from the mainland to Honolulu than from the mainland to Kona.
Once your dog is in Hawaii, flying inter-island doesn't require paperwork.
Hmm, so I guess the question is why is it so important to have a non-stop flight to Kona? Wouldn't a non-stop flight to Hawaii be the more important thing? Once you are in the state things are much easier and there are a lot more services in Honolulu if you needed a vet or anything.
They are boxers and have never traveled before. I'll be traveling by myself, so I don't want to wrangle both dogs and crates through HNL...I've heard horror stories about waits, etc. UAL (according to the vet I spoke to) has their act together, and their Kona airport release process is the most defined. There are too many things that can go wrong in a connection.
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The only problem I see is maybe them not letting you fly out if it's in the heat of the day?
