Bringing Small Pets on American Airlines Flights Just Got Easier—Is That Beneficial?

Pet owners can now find it less burdensome to travel with their furry companions on American Airlines flights.

On March 28, American Airlines discreetly updated its website to state that pet owners can “bring one pet carrier as a carry-on if: You pay the carry-on pet fee; Your pet remains in the carrier and under the seat in front of you throughout the flight.” Additionally, the Fort Worth, Texas-based airline allows travelers to bring one more item on board with their pet, which can be either a personal item or a carry-on bag (but not both).

Previously, passengers flying with an in-cabin pet were restricted to just one small personal item. Any carry-ons had to be checked for $35 (or $45 if another bag was already checked).

“You had to pay twice—first for the fee and then for giving up a carry-on bag,” said Gary Leff, an industry analyst and creator of the View From the Wing website, in an interview with Dinogo. “While you still pay more, you don’t have to sacrifice as much under the new policy, making it somewhat more flexible.”

Although the new policy allows travelers to bring a carry-on into the cabin—saving money if they only travel with that—the fee for bringing a pet on board remains unchanged at $150.

The regulations for larger dogs are still the same. In-cabin dogs (except service dogs, who can sit in their owner's foot space) must fit comfortably in a carrier measuring 18 x 11 x 11 inches that can be stowed under the seat in front. They also need to meet specific age and breed requirements. Dogs that exceed these dimensions must be checked in the aircraft's cargo hold. For American Airlines passengers (excluding relocating military members), this means booking the animals as cargo, with rates varying based on the dog's weight, kennel size, and flight distance (for reference, this writer once paid around $900 to fly a 65-pound labrador retriever mix one way from Minneapolis to Anchorage—American Airlines Cargo mistakenly sent the dog to Phoenix for 24 hours, demonstrating that errors can occur when pets travel as cargo).

Over the years, the expense of flying with pets in the cabin or shipping them as cargo has led to an increase in people falsely claiming their dog is a service animal (some of which have caused incidents on planes or attacked both passengers and legitimate service dogs). Leff expressed hope that the new policy will reduce the instances of fraudulent four-legged travelers.

“This new approach does make it easier to bring a pet in the ‘right way,’ which should, to some extent, reduce the number of fake service animals,” Leff stated.

Only time will reveal if other major U.S. airlines will adapt their pet policies to align with these changes.