Hainan Airlines flying with pets

What is Hainan Airlines’ policy on pet acceptance?

Only house-trained dogs and cats are considered pets by Hainan Airlines, no other animals being allowed for transportation. Moreover, a passenger is permitted to travel with two pets only.

However, not all Hainan Airlines flights will accept pets for carriage, so contact the airline before deciding to travel accompanied by your animal companion.

What pets are allowed in the passenger cabin and what as checked baggage?

Pet transportation in the passenger cabin is limited to specific direct domestic flights.

Consequently, on all international routes, all pets must be checked as baggage and carried according to special, predetermined conditions.

Pets are not accepted for carriage in the following situations:

• The pet is less than 6 months old.
• The pet is pregnant or has given birth within 48 hours before the flight.
• The pet has a disease or has undergone surgery within 48 hours before the flight.  
• The pet is irritable, weak, sensitive to high-temperature and high-altitude environments, or cannot stay in the pet carrier for a long time.
• The pet is taking sedatives or sleeping pills.
• The pet has a foul odor.

The following pet breeds and their hybrids accepted for carriage: flat-nosed dogs or cats (e.g., terrier, boxer dogs, bulldogs, Burmese cats, Persian cats, etc.), fighting dogs (e.g., Pitbulls, Tosa, Fila Brasileiro, etc.), breeds unsuitable for high temperature and/or high altitude environments (e.g.Samoyed).

What responsibilities do I have?

If you decide to transport your animal with Hainan Airlines, call their service hotline or contact your local ticket office at least 24 hours prior to departure. After submitting your request and receiving their consent to travel with your pet, you must fill in an Animal Transportation Application form, whether by downloading it from Hainan’s official site, or by acquiring it directly from the airport’s ticketing office / check-in counter on the day of the scheduled departure. However, this application must be filled out in three copies.

You need to consider certain prior preparations when deciding to travel with your pet. First of all, in order to limit the amount of stress your pet will be exposed to, try to accustom it with the container in which it will be held during the flight. You can even try and place a special treat or favourite toy inside.

Secondly, you should consider taking a direct flight to your destination, as this will limit the amount of handling that your pet will have to suffer during loading and unloading procedures, and definitely not in extreme weather conditions (very hot or extremely cold periods). If, however, you must travel in a summer day, try and book your flight as early in the morning or late in the evening as possible, to avoid the high temperatures during the mid-day.

Thirdly, try not to give any medication to your pet, neither before nor during the flight, as this may negatively impact its health at high altitudes!

You will need to be present at the airport at least 2 hours prior to flight take-off, in order to allow yourself plenty of time to go through all the necessary procedures for your pet (check-in, container packaging etc.). If you need assistance with filling in the Animal Transportation Application form, the airport’s ground staff will definitely help you.

Documents

Deciding to travel accompanied by your animal friend involves certain responsibilities, informing the local sales office being the first of them. The following step involves preparing all the necessary documentation in advance, and in order to do this properly you might want to contact the embassies and relevant government authorities for more information, so that you would know exactly what is required of you.

There are certain important documents that you must have upon yourself if you decide to travel with a pet on a domestic route:

• A valid Animal Quarantine Certificate issued by the Animal Health Supervision Authorities, attesting the transport carrier sterilization and with the animal health supervision and quarantine seal applied.
• Pet vaccination certificate.

For international flights, you must provide the following travel documentation for your pet:

• Valid health and rabies vaccination certificates, accepted by the government authorities of the countries of departure, transit and arrival, together with any additional documents required by those authorities.
• Valid import and / or export certificates, issued by the government authorities of the countries of departure and arrival, and also of transit.
• When leaving the country, a valid Animal Quarantine Certificate issued by the Animal Health Supervision Authorities, attesting the transport carrier sterilization and with the animal health supervision and quarantine seal applied.
• Any other special documents the embassies or your local Hainan Airlines sales office mention that you should bring along for the journey.

Remember that each country may have its own inspection and quarantine procedures, so try to inform yourself thoroughly before travelling with your pet.

Pets in the Passenger Cabin

Pet transportation in the passenger cabin is limited to specific routes: Changsha, Dalian, Guangzhou, Guilin, Haikou, Harbin, Hefei, Jinan, Kashi, Nanning, Qingdao, Shanghai Hongqiao, Shenzhen, Taiyuan, Wuhan, Xiamen, Xi’an, Zhengzhou. Also, pets are accepted on direct flights only in the Economy cabin, and a maximum of two pets are allowed per flight and one pet per passenger.

The total weight of each pet and pet carrier must not exceed 5 kg. The pet carrier must not exceed 35 x 28 x 24 cm (length x width x height).

The charge for transporting a pet in the passenger cabin is CNY 800 per flight segment / per pet.

Checked Pets

All animals carried with Hainan Airlines on international routes are transported as checked pets, with only one exception – Service Dogs.

Pet Carrier Requirements

With Hainan Airlines, you can travel accompanied by two pets. Each pet will be transported as checked baggage and must be enclosed separately in a kennel specially designed for this purpose, so it could have a safe and comfortable journey.

First of all, the container in which you will decide to transport your pet must be made of solid materials, have a fixed top and a secure metallic door. Secondly, make sure the container is properly ventilated on three of four sides. These are just some basic requirements in order to make sure your pet’s journey will go as smoothly as possible.

Thirdly, do not forget that the bottom of the kennel must be covered by an absorbent pad, so that the excrement of your animal would not leak out of the container. A blanket, a towel or even some white paper would be appropriate, but do not use newspapers, as the ink may contain certain harmful substances.

The container itself must meet a series of requirements, in order to be accepted for pet transportation:

• You should enclose only one pet in a single container.
• The kennel must be spacious enough and allow your pet to stand, sit, lie down and turn around.
• All the container’s fittings must be sturdy, fastened in a proper manner, and in working condition. The eventual wheels must also be fastened, so the container wouldn’t glide during flight, and the door locked (you wouldn’t want your animal to escape during the journey).
• The container’s bottom must be flat and stable, preventing it from sliding or turning upside down.

Conditions

Keep in mind that not all Hainan Airlines flights permit the carriage of pets or assistive animals, so always contact them before preparing to travel with your animal companion. Only with their prior approval will you be able to board together with your pet.

There are several circumstances under which Hainan Airlines will not accept pets for transportation:

• The animal which you intend to transport has been prohibited by the government of the countries from / to which it is being carried.
• If your pet does not meet all the regulations of the countries of departure, transfer and arrival.
• If at any point (departure, stop point, destination) during transportation, the forecast temperature is less than -12oC or more than 30oC.
• On domestic flights from Jining Airport and the following international routes: Australia, Bali, Chita, Ireland, Irkutsk, Malé, New Zealand, Paris, Okinawa, the United Kingdom, and Haikou – Chongqing – Rome.
• When your journey is divided into multiple segments sustained by more than one carrier, and your pet does not meet the requirements of all the carriers involved in the itinerary.

Fees

All pets will be considered excess baggage, and the transportation fee for them will be calculated depending on the total weight of the container, the animal inside of it and its food and water:

• Domestic flights (Weight Concept) – the charge is total weight in kg x fee per kg (1.5% of a one-way direct Economy Class ticket).
• International flights (Piece Concept) – the charge is the fee for one additional piece of checked baggage for Economy Class x multiplier according to the weight and size of the pet container:

Service Animals

Hainan Airlines define Service Animals as certified guide dogs, or trained dogs for people with disabilities (hearing or visual impairments). The only assistive animals allowed in passenger cabin are canines – assistance dogs, guide dogs and hearing dogs.

Regardless of the fact that they will be accepted for carriage in the passenger cabin or as checked baggage, Service Animals will be transported free of charge.

However, try to make sure that, before boarding, you have upon yourself all necessary travel documentation and valid qualification certificates for your Service Animal.

More information here >>