Pet in Cargo Hold

When you send your pet by cargo flight you might wounder where the kennel is placed at the airplane. 

I attached to this short note a picture to demonstrate the place in cargo hold. All kennels are secured in an area designated for live animals, away from the other baggage and cargo. Kennels are either strapped down individually or otherwise secured with tarp or netting.

The air in the cargo hold is the exact same pressurized, temperature-controlled air that circulates throughout the main cabin. But because the multitude of human bodies sitting together generates added warmth in the more insulated main cabin, the air is always cooler in cargo. To remedy this, most aircrafts have a “high/low” switch in the cockpit that sends additional warm air to cargo, which the pilot sets to “high” whenever there are live animals below. One pilot states that on a Boeing 777, the cargo air averages about 18°C (64.4° F) with the switch set to high, but can drop to below 10 °C (50°F) if mistakenly left on the low setting.

To help prevent such an accident, all pilots are informed on their load manifest when there are live animals “in the pit.” For caution’s sake, it would be wise to ask your flight attendant to confirm the pilot has “flipped the switch” and is aware of your precious cargo below!

PetsVentura Pet Relocation Solutions can assist you with all your questions regards to travel with pets.

©Jim Anderson · PetsVentura Pet Relocation Solutions · 2012