NOTE: Updated with data from 2016 to 2018!

Two days ago, a dog suffocated to death on United Airlines flight 1284 from Houston to New York because a flight attendant stuffed him in the overhead bin.

Folks are raging about it and United Airlines has publicly disavowed the incident, so I’ll spare you my rage (it’s *!@#& insane) and focus on the facts— What’s the safest airline for pets?

Horizon/Alaska Airlines was the #1 safest overall airline (+49% safer than average) for pets .

for pets In general, long-haul airlines were 193% more dangerous than short-haul airlines . Long-haul travel, by its very nature, is more dangerous for animals.

than short-haul airlines Long-haul travel, by its very nature, is more dangerous for animals. However, United Airlines was by far the most dangerous airline. United Airlines was 678% more dangerous than the safest airline, 379% more dangerous than all other airlines and 180% more dangerous than all other long-haul airlines.

Here’s a pretty graph:

Summary

Horizon/Alaska Airlines is the #1 safest overall airline — they’re +49% safer than the average airline. If you can fly with them, you should. Whatever they’re doing, they’re doing right: they fly a lot of the same routes as the bigger carriers and they fly a lot of animals (260,703 in the last two years), but they’re able to do it safely and consistently.

If you can’t fly Horizon/Alaska, most regional airlines are relatively safe. Depending on where you live and which airline serves your area, there’s usually one best choice though:

West Coast: Just stick with Horizon and Alaska.

Just stick with Horizon and Alaska. South: If you’re flying around the South, ExpressJet Airlines is the next-safest at +43% safer than average.

If you’re flying around the South, is the next-safest at +43% safer than average. Midwest: If you’re flying in the Midwest, Horizon/Alaska and ExpressJet Airlines are both very safe airlines (but Horizon/Alaska is a bit safer).

If you’re flying in the Midwest, and are both very safe airlines (but Horizon/Alaska is a bit safer). Northeast: In the New England area and broader Northeast, CommutAir is the next-safest at +40% safer than average.

Big, long-haul carriers are where things start getting dicey. On average, it’s 193% riskier to fly with your pet on a long-haul route/airline.

That said, if you absolutely have to fly long-haul routes with a pet, American Airlines is the safest long-haul airline, being 32% riskier than the average airline but +73% safer than the other long-haul airlines.

Now, about United Airlines, here’s the rub—

Despite their official disavowals, United Airlines is by far the most dangerous airline for pets. Whether it’s because they’re incompetent or simply don’t care, United Airlines was +678% more dangerous than the safest airline, +379% more dangerous than all other airlines and +180% more dangerous than all other long-haul airlines.

Tuesday (or yesterday) didn’t happen because one flight attendant went rogue, it happened because of poor policies, priorities and processes at United Airlines. If you’re flying with pets, don’t fly on United Airlines.

Full Ranking

Here’s the full ranking of airlines that allow animals, from safest to most dangerous:

Rank Carrier # Animals

Transported Expected Casualties

per 10,000 Animals Relative Safety #1 Horizon Air 33,448 0.26 +49% #2 ExpressJet Airlines 51,854 0.28 +43% #3 Mesa Airlines 24,464 0.29 +42% #4 Republic Airlines 21,713 0.29 +41% #5 Alaska Airlines 227,255 0.29 +41% #6 SkyWest Airlines 89,231 0.30 +40% #7 CommutAir 16,893 0.30 +40% #8 GoJet Airlines 13,744 0.35 +30% #9 Endeavor Air 10,915 0.38 +25% #10 Envoy Air 8,708 0.38 +24% #11 Sun Country Airlines 6,902 0.43 +15% #12 Compass Airline 4,681 0.43 +14% #13 Shuttle America 4,003 0.45 +10% #14 Island Air 506 0.48 +5% #15 American Airlines 115,516 0.66 -32% #16 Hawaiian Airlines 15,028 0.72 -44% #17 Delta Air Lines 138,549 0.74 -48% #18 United Airlines 247,327 1.98 -296%

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