Star Flyer, a Fukuoka-based airline, will allow passengers to bring their small dogs and cats on board all of its domestic flights beginning January in a bid to attract more customers, its website showed Saturday.
After the firm became the first domestic airline to provide the service in March 2022 on flights between Kitakyushu Airport in Fukuoka Prefecture and Tokyo's Haneda Airport, Star Flyer has decided to expand it from Jan. 15 due to its popularity.
Passengers are permitted one pet per person, with each flight allowing up to two animals. Tickets for pets cost ¥50,000 ($350) per animal, and owners will be assigned seating next to their pet's crate in the last row of the aircraft.
Those traveling with their pets are asked not to feed them during the flight, although water is permitted.
From 2024, pets will be allowed on flights between Haneda and Kansai Airport in Osaka Prefecture, Yamaguchi Ube Airport in Yamaguchi Prefecture and Fukuoka Airport, as well as between Chubu Airport in Aichi Prefecture and Fukuoka.
"We would like to improve customers' satisfaction by supporting their travels with their pets," a Star Flyer representative said, adding that there have been around 300 uses of the service on flights between Kitakyushu and Haneda so far.