Sinchew Daily reported that the newest airline made especially for dogs, “Bark Air,” is owned by a dog lover who has been working on the idea for over a decade. It recently launched its first flight, with a ticket price of US$6,000 US dollars for one dog and their human parent.
Fox Business News also reported that Bark Air launched its maiden flight successfully from Westchester County Airport in New York City to Van Nuys Airport in Los Angeles last Thursday, May 23.
Bark Air’s office director, Catherine Enos, said that the first flight carried a variety of dogs, from Chihuahuas to Dachshund, Golden Retrievers to Labradors. None of the canine passengers stayed in the airline box compartment during the flight. Some dogs played in the aisle, some had their meal, some stayed with their humans, and some slept all the way. There were no unpleasantries, and the flight went smoothly.
The company shared on its social media pages that compared to other ordinary aircraft, dogs are the main focus on the flights. “When we started BARK in 2011, we were on a mission to disrupt the dog space and create products designed for dogs and their humans. We are excited to take the insights we’ve learned over the years to create an experience that is truly dog-first, which is drastically different from just accepting dogs – from the ground to the skies,” said Matt Meeker, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer at BARK Air. “We believe this initiative will elevate awareness of our brand’s mission and values, introduce more dog lovers to the BARK family, and help enrich the lives of dogs and their people around the world.”
Matt Meeker added that every detail of the flight experience has been carefully crafted, and the dogs are “neither cargo nor a burden on crew members and passengers.” He claimed that he always wanted to travel with his dog. However, he was often frustrated, so he came up with the idea of creating an airline that would focus on canine passengers. Additionally, he hoped for an airline that could relieve the dogs of their anxiety, reduce stress, and make them feel comfortable and relaxed during a flight.
BARK Air uses small jets that can accommodate 10 dogs and 15 people. Tickets to its maiden flight cost $6,000 for one person and one dog. The aircraft also operates routes to the British capital London, with fares as high as $8,000. “We believe this initiative will raise awareness of BARK’s mission cost-effectively,” said Zahir Ibrahim, Chief Financial Officer at BARK Air. “Given we are not committed to booking flights far in advance, we have a lot of flexibility to opportunistically charter flights during times of high demand. In parallel, we believe the additional traffic to BARK.co will raise awareness of our full offering, benefiting our core business in the long term.”
BARK Air administrators and staff say that while they are still consolidating the company’s operations, ticket prices are expected to lower in the future. Additionally, they may also open routes to Paris, France, Milan, Italy, Chicago, Seattle, Florida, and Arizona.
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