Delta Air Lines DAL, +1.59% stated on its website that it will no longer allow customers to check their pets with their baggage after March 1, 2016, unless passengers are a member of the military with active transfer orders or require service animals. Certain pets can still travel in the cabin for a fee, and a Delta spokesperson says they can travel in the cargo hold of an aircraft after the policy takes effect when shipped as freight via its Delta Cargo service. Prices for Delta Cargo shipping range from $193 to $1,481.
The move may have been prompted by Delta"™s history of pet incidents. The airline has recorded the highest number of pet deaths between May 2005 and September 2015, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation. On Delta flights alone, 74 pets have died in the 10-year time period, accounting for about 25% of all recorded airline pet deaths in the U.S., and 14 pets have gone missing. However, these numbers are just a small percentage of the thousands of pets that travel on airlines each year…
