Eurowings GmbH is a German low-cost airline headquartered in Düsseldorf and a wholly owned subsidiary of the Lufthansa Group. (Wikipedia)
Eurowings Customer Services ticket: 2967832
It appears that you can only fly with your dog in the cabin of the aircraft if the dog is quite tiny, in a bag, quite small, small enough to squeeze under the seat in front and not worry about it's well-being.
Here's my experience.
My dog was just under the required size and well under the maximum weight which allowed her to travel with me in the cabin. The rules were clearly stipulated on the Eurowings website.
Travelling with pets in the EU, health and passport requirements were all in order and up to date.
I had a dog carrier custom-made, slightly below the Eurowings maximum size requirements so that my dog can stand, turn and be comfortable in the carrier.
The requirements for animal transportation in the cabin is very clear on the 'Pet-In-Cabin' form that I had to sign. You can see the complete form here.
'Pet-in-Cabin' Checklist
I felt confident that I could travel with my small dog from Berlin to Málaga.
To add, I am not interested at what airline Eurowings choose to operate.
Reply from Eurowings Customer Service Team on behalf of Ermalinda Istrefi
I booked the flight with confidence but unfortunately, the time of the flight was later changed by the airline. it was brought forward to a much earlier time of 05.30am. A horrible time but I'm sure it was necessary.
On the morning of the flight, we arrived at Brandenburg Airport in plenty of time. My dog was calm and appeared to be quite happy in her carrier.
Then the problems began.
At Eurowings check-in, I was told that the carrier was too big to 'stow under the seat' -
the bag was actually 55cm x 39cm x 22cm, slightly smaller than the maximum size permitted.
There was no mention of the carrier requiring to be stowed under the seat. Clearly, a container of this size would never fit under an airline passenger seat. The supervisor was called and she agreed with her colleague.
I was told that the top of the bag (the 39cm dimension), had to be lower and she agreed that it could possibly be adapted.
I went to the floor below to borrow a knife from the Burger King restaurant and managed to take two pieces of framework away. This satisfied the check-in supervisor and I was given a 'Pet-in-cabin' label but was then warned that the final decision as to whether my dog in her carrier would be able to board would be that of the cabin crew.
It appears that the worry was not over and at this point, I still wasn't sure if we'd be allowed to board.
I proceeded to the boarding gate and boarded the aircraft without any questions.
I was seated when a cabin crew employee pointed at my pet carrier and asked "What's that?" - I told her. The pet carrier was in the foot-space of the seat next to me. Despite the fact that I booked extra legroom, there was no room for the carrier to share the footspace with myself. She told me to move the carrier up to the window.
Another cabin crew member told me that once the aircraft was fully boarded, I could move to an empty row of seats as the aircraft was not full. This, I think was my saving grace.
The flight took off and my dog and I actually made it to Málaga.
The question is, was my ticket sale fraudulent?
Clearly, I was sold something that didn't exist.
The pet carrier was exactly to Eurowings' specifications but point of sale says one thing, staff at check-in say something completely different and with the potential for cabin crew to say something completely different again!
My letter of complaint -
Eurowings reply on behalf of Ahmed Ali - 23rd April 2024
As you can see, the reply was not particularly helpful, the customer service member simply repeated the information on the website, which I already new, so I wrote back and made my questions very clear. This time I addressed it to Ahmed Ali directly.
Email to Ahmed Ali - 23rd April 2024
Eurowings reply on behalf of Marie Päßler - May 10th 2024
Just to point out, this is an image of 'under the front seat' Eurowings speaks of above.
The bag, again within their own specifications containing a live animal should be crammed, sideways under there. Not a chance!
If Eurowings choose to 'wet-lease' to another airline, the rules and 'Pet-in-Cabin' conditions should still apply.
I wrote back yet again and made points that I need clarified in detail.
My email to Frau Päßler as I attempted to get my complaint to a senior member of the Customer Service Team - 15th May 2024
This letter was sent on May 15th 2024. I am yet to receive a reply to the four questions.
I am now in Málaga with my dog and have no Idea wether I can return with her.
Should I run the risk of booking myself and my dog on another Eurowings flight back to Berlin?
Who knows what staff will be operating Eurowings check-in?
Will the flight be 'wet leased' to another airline who have their own 'Pet-in-Cabin' rules?
Who knows what cabin crew will be operating the return flight... will my dog be allowed on board?
I strongly feel that I was sold the flight ticket under false pretences. The question is, is the sale of 'Pet-in Cabin' tickets legal, given that the permission of the pet and carrier on-board is not necessarily permitted?
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After prompting a response for a reply and sending the link to this blog on June 13th 2024, on 18th June 2024, I received a reply on behalf of Sarah Darwish at Eurowings Customer Service.
Obvious to see in the email below, again, the four questions are not answered. Why? Because by answering the questions truthfully, they’d be admitting selling airline tickets unlawfully. Fraud.
