Today we will explore another service dog issue, this time involving a seat assignment in first class on American Airlines. A passenger indignantly laments that he was moved to accommodate a dog. Should AA be in the business of bumping passengers out of pre-confirmed seats to accommodate so-called service animals?
Claim: American Airlines Moves Man From First Class Seat To Accommodate Dog
Joe Diianni showed up for his American Airlines flight in Charlotte only to be told that his seat had been moved…to accommodate a dog. Diianni, who had paid for his first class seat, was quite upset:
@AmericanAir thank you for changing my fully paid for first class ticket without my approval so you could put a dog in my seat. Thank your local staff in Charlotte for telling me so rudely that I could accept the change or discuss off the plane. Terrible customer service.
@AmericanAir thank you for changing my fully paid for first class ticket without my approval so you could put a dog in my seat. Thank your local staff in Charlotte for telling me so rudely that I could accept the change or discuss off the plane. Terrible customer service. pic.twitter.com/0XQ9varT2e
— Joe Diianni (@joediianni) January 7, 2024
He snapped the picture above onboard. The dog was wearing a red “service animal” vest, which can be purchased on Amazon for about $20.
American Airlines responded that it would look into his complaint, but that a specific seat assignment was not guaranteed:
Our sincere apologies for the rudeness you encountered. We know it’s frustrating when the seating you prefer is changed. We do our best to honor pre-reserved seats, however, sometimes these changes are necessary. DM with your record locator, and we’ll share with leadership.
— americanair (@AmericanAir) January 7, 2024
There are at least two reasons why Diianni’s seat was moved. First, AA’s system aggressively “anticipates” missed connections. The system may have thought he was not going to make the flight and the issue may have little to do with the dog. But since it appears he was accommodated in a different first class seat rather than downgraded to economy class, the more likely explanation is that he was moved so that the dog could be placed in a bulkhead window seat. Dogs are often placed in window seats so that they do not block the egress of other passengers.
The specific reason is far less important than the issue of whether a passenger in a pre-reserved should be moved to accommodate a service dog. Some people may choose window seats for emotional comfort (and I will sometimes book a different flight if a window seat is not available). It seems to me that instead of gruffly telling Diianni to “take it or leave it” the gate agent should have solicited a volunteer in the cabin to swap seats.
CONCLUSION
An American Airlines passenger says he was bumped out of his first class seat (to another one in the same cabin) so that a dog could be accommodated. We can debate whether this is good policy or not, but the general rule is that seats within a cabin are not guaranteed, so while Diianni may have been on the receiving end of poor customer service, he was not guaranteed that particular seat in the first class cabin.
image: @joediianni / X // Hat Tip: View From The Wing
Sounds to me like he was moved from one first class seat to another possibly to put the dog in the window seat for safety? If he was moved to a non bulkhead it seems like a win=win?
Only issue I’d see with this is that some of us have to pee a lot – for various reasons. I drink a lot of water as part of my diet/gym routine, so I’m a frequent “goer”. I prefer the bulkhead aisle so I don’t have to disturb anyone, either next to me or in front of or back of me, to get up. So while not the end of the world to be moved to a non-bulkhead, I’d probably be more…cognizant…of how often I had to pee so as not to be a pain to others around me. But otherwise, I agree that generally the seats don’t differ significantly to get worked up over it.
Issues I see with this include bites , violation of federal rules , inconvenience of paying passengers , and repulsiveness.
Service animal are allowed to fly and be with their handler everywhere they go Including hospitals. Most of the time I don’t even know there is a SA on board until we deplane. They are very well behaved. You can always pick out a fake one. They do not sit quietly by their handler, they bark, go up to other people for attention and sometimes bite. Real service dogs don’t do any of that.
I agree with you on that.
Sometimes it’s how kindly the news is delivered. As Diianni perceived it as rude it set the tone for a complaint that , if handled nicely, would not have happened.
@Maryland … If the dog is growling at one , and attempting to bite one , then it is not kindly delivered news . =
@ Alert I have not found anything about this dog snapping or growling. Have I missed something here?
Also as a lifelong dog owner, I really don’t believe faux service dogs belong on a plane. It is stressful for the pet. My personal view is that if you care for your pet, a dog sitter or excellent kennel is a better choice. And should a dog snap or exhibit threatening behavior, both owner and pet not be allowed in the cabin. Full stop. Again let me know if I missed something here. Thanks
@Maryland … You are correct . Thank you .
Thanks. As dogs would say, I have had a ruff day! Flooded basement and loss of power. Best thoughts to those warm and dry. I envy you.
I personally feel the dog should have been inconvenienced over a full paying FC passenger and if one has a “guaranteed” seat that is obviously not guaranteed why call it “guaranteed”? How about “mmmm maybe guaranteed and dogs come first”. Did the dog or dog owner even make a reservation that obviously needed two seats? I’ve heard so many stories from my dog loving friends that they get this service dog documentation when the dog is actually just a beloved pet. I’m siding with the moved passenger.
@Eileen … +1 .
Almost all airlines have rules that state that a person may be moved at the airlines discretion (due to plane change or other reasons)- it is never a guarantee that your chosen seat will remain yours. This guy had his first class seat switched to….another first class seat so the person with the service dog (who did NOT get it’s own seat) could sit in the window bulkhead. Not sure why you think this person lost their seat to a dog. The dog is on the floor. The person still had a perfectly good first class seat. Not sure what the complaint is about and the OP didn’t explain it either just tried to make it sound like they were taken out of first class such as by using language like “bumped”, when they weren’t. Much ado about nothing.
We only ever hear part of the story, the part that will make the story teller the victim. Suck it up people live your life stop complaining.
My life mantra.
Was the animsl really a service animal? There needs to be something set up for proof of this animal being an actual service animal! I know a woman who uses this excuse do she can take her dog into restaurants, and even flies with her dog claiming it is an emotional support animal! Total BS!
A service dog and an ESA (Emotional Support Animal) are not the same. An ESA is to travel the same way as any other regular pet. A service animal has medical tasks it performs.
All Airlines need to start asking their service animal patrons what service does the animal provide for you. This is allowed under Ada and must be answered by the patron. If it is just as an emotional support dog that dog must fly in the cargo area. Only dogs that care for individuals with sight, heart, endocrine system(ie: diabetes) hearing disorders would be permitted on the plane.