CARRIAGE OF SERVICE ANIMALS IN AIR TRANSPORTATION INTO THE UNITED KINGDOM AND FOREIGN HEALTH DOCUMENTATION REQUIREMENTS FOR SERVICE ANIMALS IN AIR TRANSPORTATION
NOTICE
July 17, 2007
This notice provides further guidance for airlines and the traveling public regarding the obligation of airlines under the Air Carrier Access Act (ACAA) and its implementing regulation 14 CFR Part 382 (Part 382) to transport service animals into the United Kingdom (U.K.). In addition, this notice addresses the general question of whether carriers may require health documentation for carriage of service animals on flights from the U.S. into countries other than the U.K. On February 26, 2007, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Aviation Enforcement Office issued a guidance document to assist carriers and passengers with disabilities in complying with both U.S. and U.K. regulations concerning the transport of service animals on flights from the U.S. to the U.K. by: 1) explaining the procedures passengers must follow to comply with the U.K.’s Pet Travel Scheme (PETS); 2) explaining the procedures U.S. and foreign carriers must follow to obtain an approved Required Method of Operation (RMOP) from the U.K.’s Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA); and 3) notifying both U.S. and U.K. carriers operating flights between the U.S. and the U.K. that failure to obtain an approved RMOP from DEFRA will be considered a violation of the ACAA by the Department’s Aviation Enforcement Office and may subject such carriers to enforcement action.1
The purpose of this notice is to respond to inquiries from airlines and the traveling public since issuance of the February notice regarding foreign requirements for health
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