Puppy goes missing from Air Sahara flight
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Agency

Tuesday, June 6, 2006 (Bangalore):

One of the worst things to happen to pet owners is when their pets go missing.

Pet owner Priya Mulani recently suffered one such experience.

While traveling on an Air Sahara flight from Bangalore to Mumbai, Priya checked in her female basset hound only to later find out that the puppy was never loaded onto the aircraft.

Her pet was being sent by unaccompanied cargo on the flight, and Priya has all the receipts as proof that she had checked in her six-week-old basset hound.

"At 12.45, I got a frantic call saying the puppy was not on board. I immediately rushed to Sahara.I had already filed a police complaint. Next morning, they managed to get in touch with the loader who had loaded the cargo onto the flight.

"He said that he had only loaded one puppy - a Great Dane booked by somebody else - and that there was no other puppy on the tarmac," said Priya.

Security lapse

The case highlights the ease with which cargo can go missing from airports and raises serious questions about security.

Bangalore airport authorities however, did not wish to comment on the matter and only stated that the responsibility rests entirely with Air Sahara.

Air Sahara officials in Bangalore also declined to comment but admitted their responsibility, and said that while they were still looking for the puppy, airport security did have some role to play.

A basset hound puppy is sold for over Rs 20,000, and perhaps, the person who took her knew the animal's value in the pet market.

"We are willing to pay anything to get her back. Our primary focus is to get her back," said Priya.

This incident should act as a warning for pet owners who check in their pets as unaccompanied cargo and an alarming indication of the loopholes in security at our airports.
 

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June 6, 2006

Agency

Dog follows plane on runway

A couple halted a packed jet just before take-off - after seeing their dog bounding alongside on the runway.

Terry and Susan Smith, both 58, were set to fly to a new life in Lanzarote when they spotted spaniel Poppy pursued by airport security staff.

They shouted for the pilot to halt the Boeing 767 and dashed out to help catch their pet at Manchester Airport.

Terry and Susan, from Blackburn, had paid £800 for Poppy and collie Pelayo to travel in an animal cage on the cargo deck.

But Poppy is believed to have chewed her way out of her crate as the plane was about to taxi to the runway.

The plane left 15 minutes late - without the Smiths, who paid £400 for later flights after Poppy was quarantined overnight.

Retired lorry driver Terry said: "We were in our seats ready for take-off and looking forward to our new life when we suddenly saw Poppy on the runway.

"We obviously had to get off the plane and it took us 10 minutes to catch her. She was terrified by the noise and wouldn't let anyone get near to her. I was really worried about her."

Pet transport firm Animal Airlines said it was the first time a dog had escaped in their 40 years of business