Airlines nowadays co-operate with the pet travel in flight. As they understand the attachment of their passengers with their pets. Air France, the European-based airline, also accept this and launched the Air France pet policy under which you can take your pet on a flight.
So in this article, we will be giving you information regarding the Air France pet policy. This policy will tell you about every possible rule and regulation, restriction, or limitation that Air France has when you are flying with your pet. And the criteria and instructions must be followed.
So before the day of the departure, if you are having a pet along with you who is traveling on the same flight then, Air France has a form for pet owners, which you have to fill out and place at the time of check-in.
You have to download this form and create a hard copy of it.
CLICK HERE to download the form
General guidelines for pets while traveling in Air France
- Before boarding the flight, make sure about your pets, they should be done up with complete vaccinations which are required at the airport and the destination country if travel outside country.
- Pet carrier container is considered to be the additional check baggage and has to pay for that.
- As Air France is basically a Europe-based airline, thus whenever you are flying within Europe with your pet, then the pet should be identified with its unique microchip and even the pet’s European passport.
- You should be done with your pet’s veterinary Doctor’s signature on the passport, which is confirming that your pet is completely vaccinated.
- If your pet is roaming more than one country within the 6 months then your pet cannot enter in the US territory. Officials deny their entry because of the high risk of rabies.
- If you want to travel to china or from china then you cannot travel with your pets. This is prohibited either in-cabin or in the hold.
- The container has a leak-proof base so that the surroundings of the aircraft are free from the specks of dirt and the excretion of the pets.
- Before traveling with your pet you have download the Liability Waiver form which would be fill by you on the behalf of your pet. And If you want to download it then you can click on the link Download the Liability Waiver Form.
- To avoid any problematic situation in the destinations you are going to if you are with your pet. Then before departure day, contact the embassy of your destination which can make you aware of all the rules and regulations of pet transport by flight. For example, when traveling to Ireland, Sweden, the United Kingdom, or Malta, they have other sets of information regarding pet travel.
- While flying with Air France, you should know, if in any case your pet refuses to co-operate with the service of air fly, or does not follow the orders or command of the owner at the arrival of the airport. Then Air France can refuse to make your pet fly in the aircraft and is further not be responsible for the cost incurred caused for the booking of your pet.
Important Notice
Note* New notice is issued by the Air France starting 15th march 2022. Your pet should not less then 15 weeks old while traveling anywhere.
With Air France, you can make your fly-in aircraft in different ways. The first is whether in the cabin, or the second is in the hold and the last one is as in the freight (used in exceptional cases).
Thus which type your pet will be traveling totally depends on your pet’s size and weight and the type of pet you have. So to fly in any one of them, you have to follow certain rules and limitations.
In-cabin
Air France will allow your pet to fly along with you in-cabin, if and only if your pet’s weight does not exceed 8 kg/17 lb with the container it has been kept to carry.
Acceptance criteria:
- In the cabin, you can not carry the loss, you have to lock them in a travel pet container. The size of the pet container must not be greater than 46 x 28 x 24 cm / 18 x 11 x 9 inches in length, height, and width.
(Tip: Air France suggests you carry your pet in a soft bag when flying cabin for better comfort of the pet.) - Pet you will about to fly with must be not less than 10 weeks and must be even properly vaccinated which they required periodic.
- With Air France, you are allowed to carry only 1 pet in each pet container.
- Each passenger is permitted to register for only one pet carrier in-cabin.
- Business cabin or intercontinental flights of Air France are allowed to carry pets as in cabin, you may send them to travel as in hold.
- You are not permitted to put out your pet in the cabin over the whole journey in any case.
About container:
- Should have proper ventilation from every side of the container or the bag.
- Should be big enough in comparison to the size of your pet, so that they can stand, sit, and lie out in their natural way.
- Should be that much small in size so that it fits well beneath the seat in front of your eyes.
Information: From a quiet back Air France don’t accept animal crates in the cabin, in spite of mentioned dimensions due to the safety measure of animals.
In cargo hold
When do you have to send your pet in the hold? Is the most asked question. So under Air France pet policy, if your pet’s weight is exceeding 8 kg/ 17 lb or a maximum up to 75 kg/ 165.3 lb with the container box, then your pet will be traveling in a hold.
Acceptance criteria:
- While transporting your pets on the hold, Air France allows you to transport at least 3 animals per passenger. Though it may change and thus you have to confirm with Air France customer care.
- But you have to put your pets separately in different containers, according to the Air France pet policy.
- You have to inform and get confirmation that your pets are about to fly in the flight’s cargo hold department.
- The age of your pet when you are transporting cargo must be a minimum of 10 weeks.
- Obviously, while traveling on a flight, you should have all pet’s vaccination done early enough from the departure date.
- If you are planning to reschedule or make changes to your flight along with pets then you have to make the request before the departure of the scheduled flight at the booking counter or to the customer care executive.
About container:
While sending your pet as hold in cargo, you have to follow some rules and regulations regarding the container, you are putting your pet in. Under the Air France pet policy, they have a set of measures that are compulsory to go behind it.
If you don’t have a bag or get confused about the bag that is used for pets while traveling in-cabin then you have the option of purchasing the bag from the website of AirFrance. The purchased item can be delivered to many countries like Algeria, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, metropolitan France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Morocco, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Tunisia, United Kingdom, United States.
These conditions for pet containers that will be carried in the hold are been approved by IATA (International Air Transport Association). It has basic information about container dimensions, materials, lock doors, etc. If any of the instructions are found to not match with the pet container, Air France can cancel animal transport even though you may have paid for it.
Charges For Transporting Animals In Cabin and Hold
Your ticket fare does not include the transportation fees for the animals/pets. The passenger must have to pay the additional amount at the airport. The chargeable amount may differ as per your destination:
- If your flight to/from metropolitan France, then you may have to pay €80 for the pet carrier in the hold and €40 for the cabin.
- If your flight is within the Caribbean, then you may have to pay €75 for the pet carrier in the hold and €30 in the cabin but for the flight to/from Miami €55.
- If the flights are in Europe or between Europe & North Africa, then you may have to pay €200 for the pet carrier in the hold and €55 for the cabin.
- If the flights are between metropolitan France & Cayenne, Fort-de-France, Point-a-Pitre, or Saint-Denis de la Reunion, then you may have to pay €75 for the pet carrier in the hold and €55 for the cabin.
- For the other flights, then you may have to pay €400 for the pet carrier in a hold and €125 for a cabin.
Check-In and Flight Procedures
- On the day of the flight, you have to report to the airport at least 3 hours before the departure time, due to the smooth check-in.
- But if you are traveling within France or Europe, you may arrive a minimum of 2 hours before the departure time.
- When you have a connecting flight in your booking, then you should have at least 2 hours, as you have to collect your luggage, check-in for your pet carrier again, and then run for boarding another flight. You should get enough time to let the airline’s staff inquire about all the documents and confirm pet transport.
- While traveling with another country you should have all the required paper to be done, which at the arrival destination airport needs to be shown. You may even check by the police of those particular countries you are flying with your pet.
- As your pet has been traveling in the hold, then in those flight’s piolets has been informed about pet presence in the baggage department. Cause they maintain the temperature, which can make your pet comfortable.
Exception:
- When flying within metropolitan France (including Corsica), your flight with the pet is between metropolitan France and Guadeloupe, Martinique, and Reunion Island. Then Air France accepts 8-week pets at least.
- And if you are flying between metropolitan France and French Guiana, then a pet of 15 weeks is the minimum age to fly in flight.
Breed of animals permitted or restricted in flight
Under the Air France pet policy, animals are categorized in two halves. This is the deciding list of the breed which breed of animal can fly and which does not.
- Category 1:
As on command of the French Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Forestry, dogs that are attackers in nature, i.e which are aggressive and can be dangerous to handle are the breeds of dogs that are not permitted to fly either in cargo or in the cabin.
Breeds like Staffordshire Terrier or American Staffordshire Terriers (pit bulls), Mastiffs, and Tosas. - Category 2:
And in the second category, these breeds of animals are permitted to travel in-cabin or in cargo with proper valid documents for vaccinations and signatures by veterinary doctors.
Thus breeds that come under this category are pedigree Staffordshire Terriers, pedigree American Staffordshire Terriers, pedigree Tosas, and dogs that are the same in morphology such as the Rottweiler breed but with or without pedigree.
Additional breeds that are also prohibited
The breed of the animal who has snub-nosed will suffer breathing problems at a high altitude. And thus are advised not to fly risking their life in flight. Snub-nosed breeds that are not permitted on flights are pugs, bulldogs, boxers, Pekingese, Shih Tzu, or Persian cats. These breeds are not permitted either in the cabin or in the cargo hold or even in freight.
Rates of pet travel in-cabin or in holds
While booking tickets for pets in advance, you have to pay for that and further in the airport, as the pet carrier will be counted as one such baggage so, you have to pay for the charges required for extra baggage or special baggage.
The pet flight tickets amount totally depends on the destination you are traveling to. Fees for pet transport are calculated according to the departure flight and the travel container charges. Moreover, if you are having connecting flights then, fees will be considered on the basis of the departure flight and the final destination you are flying to.
What If my pet cannot travel in-cabin or in-hold?
This situation may arise that your pet cannot travel with you in-cabin in the same flight or in-hold then AirFrance arranges to transport your pet by freight. But there are some terms and conditions for traveling via freight that is given below.
- Your animal and its container combined weigh more than 75kg.
- Your Pet traveling to a country that only authorized the pet only transport through freight.
Sum-up
Air France policy has such instructions and rules which will eventually affect both pets and co-passengers in a good way. So the owner of the pet who wants to make their pets fly in flight should strictly follow these rules of the policy. So that your pet doesn’t face any difficulty during the flight journey. Lastly, the air France official who is authorized for pet care has taken full responsibility for your pets. Their attendant for the pets is trained and has specific skills to manage the pets.
So here if you are facing any queries regarding Air France’s pet policy, contact Air France official site or the customer support team directly to solve your problem. Moreover, you can even contact us, Treknova on the toll-free helpline number +1-800-831-1547 to get possible help from our side.
