United Airlines faces criticism over seating arrangement for large service dog

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United Airlines faces criticism over seating arrangement for large service dog

Policy

Simple Flying | Simple Flying

By Sky Industry News

Jan 3, 2025

A recent incident on a United Airlines flight has sparked discussion about the accommodation of service dogs on airplanes. A passenger, who shared their experience on Reddit, reported that they had to give up their assigned seat because it was occupied by a large service dog. The flight was fully booked and headed for Denver.

The passenger, whose identity remains unknown, described finding a sizable service dog sitting in their seat upon boarding. The animal was too large to fit comfortably on the floor in front of its owner. When the passenger alerted a flight attendant, they were initially unable to resolve the situation due to the full capacity of the aircraft. Eventually, another seat was found for the displaced traveler.

The passenger expressed frustration with the situation, stating: "A United staff member came onboard and spoke to the passenger but the dog remained. Finally, somehow they located another seat for me. The dog stayed on my seat for the whole flight."

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They further commented on what they perceived as an inconsistency in airline policies: "Your dog should sit in the floor space in front of your seat... It is nasty to have a dog outside of a carrier sitting on passengers’ seats with his butt on the armrests."

United Airlines responded to an inquiry from Simple Flying regarding their policy: "Our policy calls for service animals to sit either in the floor space in front of a customer or in the customer’s lap... Occasionally, we may ask other customers to consider changing seats to accommodate a larger service animal."

This is not an isolated incident; last month, a similar situation occurred on a Delta Air Lines flight when a first-class passenger had to move back to economy class due to a service dog's presence.

Service dogs are trained to assist individuals with disabilities and are generally allowed by airlines under specific guidelines. While smaller dogs can be accommodated more easily, larger ones require additional consideration.