Oh god not again: Dog dies on United flight

Oh god not again: Dog dies on United flight

Yep, it’s happened again – another animal has sadly passed away whilst in the care of United Airlines.

Just a few months after being held accountable for the death of the soon-to-be world’s largest (and most expensive) rabbit, Simon, PR-nightmare magnets United Airlines are back in the spotlight.

According to an ABC affiliate report, a Houston family is blaming the airline for the death of their five-year-old King Charles spaniel, Lulu.

RIP Lulu.

Per the report, the Rasmussen family alleges their dog was in the cargo hold of the plane during a two-hour flight delay before taking off for San Francisco.

During that time, per New York Post reports, is when the family believes the dog died.

It comes in the wake of a report that showed United has the worst track record for keeping transported pets alive, with more dying in their care in 2016 than any other US airline.

In a statement released to Fox News, United said, “We are so sorry to learn of Lulu’s passing and have reached out to our customer to offer our condolences and assistance.

“We are deeply upset any time an animal suffers an injury while travelling with us and especially grieved in the rare instance that one passes away. We are conducting a thorough review of this incident.”

It’s not exactly been a great year for United – or their PR team for that matter – with the violent dragging scandal on an overbooked flight, flying passengers to wrong destinations, and well, just read these three stuff-ups yourself.

Here’s hoping for a better second half of 2017 for the airline.

Meanwhile, United should 100% sign up to our Travel DAZE conference on 25 September – it’s all about how failure is key to reaching success. United, if you’re reading this (or any other keen beans as well) – get your tickets here.

You’ll learn important lessons and hear the failures of plenty of important industry folk, including Carnival VP Jennifer Vanderkreeke, the iconic Wendy Wu, and even Olympic medallist Steven Bradbury.

Email the Travel Weekly team at traveldesk@travelweekly.com.au

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