Blog Details
It’s time to BARK high in the sky: US launches the world's first airline for dogs
Ever thought there will be an airline exclusive for dogs? Well yes, you heard that right! Now you can travel with your furry friend in first class thanks to BARK Air, the world's first airline where dogs are treated as VIPS. The airline is launched by a dog toy company BARK in partnership with a jet charter service.
The airline offers a premium travel experience for dogs of all sizes along with their human friends. This boutique airline aims to make the “white paw experience” a reality and describes itself as “the world’s first air travel experience designed specifically for dogs first, and their human companions second.”
An announcement was made last month which said, “BARK Air has taken the white glove experience typical of a human’s first-class experience and redirected all that pampering to pooches – from booking to arrival, to in-flight services and disembarkation, dogs will truly be the VIPs and treated to a positively luxurious, curated experience,”.
Matt Meeker, co-founder and CEO of the airline, said that he’s been working on the idea over 10 years now and that he was inspired by his late Great Dane Hugo. He used to travel with his furry friend but being a big dog, it was difficult to fit him on a plane. So his dog would have had to fly in the cargo uncomfortably. Just to show how uncomfortable it is for dogs to travel in cargo, Meeker himself flew from Florida to New York in a cargo crate as part of Bark Air’s promotional campaign.
But a recent Instagram post shows the maiden flight of Bark Air, which took off from New York to Los Angeles on Thursday. The post read, "Right now, at an altitude of 30,000 feet, there is a flight filled with dogs".
While several airlines have put restrictions for emotional support animals on board in recent years, the launch of Bark Air is a sigh of relief for many. However, for this, people will have to shell out a lot of money for this kind of emotional experience.
The flight between New York and LA cost $6,000 (INR 498,747) for one dog and one human (or one human and two dogs collectively under 50 pounds) in each direction, and one-way flights between New York and London go for $8,000 ( INR 666,120).
Meeker acknowledges the fact that "the price is high, and it’s too high." However, he pointed out that innovations, particularly in the world of transportation, tend to go down in cost over time. He remains optimistic that the airline will follow this trend, becoming more affordable in the future.
The airline offers a premium travel experience for dogs of all sizes along with their human friends. This boutique airline aims to make the “white paw experience” a reality and describes itself as “the world’s first air travel experience designed specifically for dogs first, and their human companions second.”
An announcement was made last month which said, “BARK Air has taken the white glove experience typical of a human’s first-class experience and redirected all that pampering to pooches – from booking to arrival, to in-flight services and disembarkation, dogs will truly be the VIPs and treated to a positively luxurious, curated experience,”.
Matt Meeker, co-founder and CEO of the airline, said that he’s been working on the idea over 10 years now and that he was inspired by his late Great Dane Hugo. He used to travel with his furry friend but being a big dog, it was difficult to fit him on a plane. So his dog would have had to fly in the cargo uncomfortably. Just to show how uncomfortable it is for dogs to travel in cargo, Meeker himself flew from Florida to New York in a cargo crate as part of Bark Air’s promotional campaign.
But a recent Instagram post shows the maiden flight of Bark Air, which took off from New York to Los Angeles on Thursday. The post read, "Right now, at an altitude of 30,000 feet, there is a flight filled with dogs".
While several airlines have put restrictions for emotional support animals on board in recent years, the launch of Bark Air is a sigh of relief for many. However, for this, people will have to shell out a lot of money for this kind of emotional experience.
The flight between New York and LA cost $6,000 (INR 498,747) for one dog and one human (or one human and two dogs collectively under 50 pounds) in each direction, and one-way flights between New York and London go for $8,000 ( INR 666,120).
Meeker acknowledges the fact that "the price is high, and it’s too high." However, he pointed out that innovations, particularly in the world of transportation, tend to go down in cost over time. He remains optimistic that the airline will follow this trend, becoming more affordable in the future.
Source: Times Of India
