It seems that the flying public has gotten around having to pay to travel, fly with support animals. Airlines charge up to $125.00 to allow you to fly with your pet. However call your duck, kangeroo, ant eater, rabbit an emotional support animal and it get’s to fly with you in the cockpit. I can see why the Airlines are not happy about this and are  calling on the Government to act and define and or restrict what animals can be brought on an airplane.  I have no problem with people with severe disabilities traveling with a pet but the last thing I want to see is an ostrich in the seat next to me. 

Airlines urge Trump administration to tighten rules on emotional service animals

by Joe Williams

 | July 11, 2018 05:36 PM

Three top lobbying groups earlier this week said that the amount of passengers attempting to fly with emotional support pets grew 56 percent in one year.

The airline industry is pressuring the federal government to tighten rules governing which customers are permitted to bring emotional-support service animals on flights.

In comments earlier this week to the Department of Transportation, which is reviewing current regulations on the matter, three top airline lobbying groups claimed that passengers who don’t have disabilities are bringing emotional support pets – including animals like ducks, kangaroos and peacocks that aren’t properly trained – on planes.

“These animals, which are primarily dogs but also include wild and/or untrainable species, often are unable to behave appropriately in a public setting, including within the confines of an aircraft cabin,” they wrote. The carriers want to change the definition of “service animal” to align with the Americans With Disabilities Act, a shift that would mandate the animals be trained to accomplish a specific role.

At issue for airlines, among other things, is lost revenue from pets that are labeled as providing emotional service. Carriers charge as much as $125 to fly with a pet, while service animals fly for free, accordingto the Wall Street Journal. 

“If DOT adopts our proposed changes, it will likely reduce regulatory burdens on qualified individuals with a disability who travel with a service animal, thereby facilitating improved access to air transportation for those passengers,” Airlines for America, the Regional Airline Association and the International Air Transport Association wrote in a 77-page letter.

The three groups said the number of trained service animals transported on U.S. airlines rose 24 percent from 2016 to 2017. The number of passengers who sought to travel with emotional support animals, however, grew 56 percent in the same time frame.

Congress is also putting pressure on the agency to act. A House-passed bill to fund the Federal Aviation Administration includes a provision that would require the department to craft rules to define “service animal.”

Delta Air Lines said earlier this yearit would begin limiting the number of service animals passengers can bring aboard an aircraft and will require additional documentation from owners.