Dog dies during seven-hour flight after airline gets destination wrong | pet

Jocaone Golden retriever Four years old, he boarded on Monday, April 22nd, on a flight between the Brazilian region of Guarulhos, in São Paulo, bound for Sinop, in Mato Grosso, with his owner. The trip between the two cities would last just over two hours (2h45), however, the dog never got on his owner João Fantazzini’s plane.

Joca continued on a flight to Fortaleza, Ceará. In total, the journey to and from São Paulo lasted almost seven hours and the dog ended up dying.

Brazilian carrier Gol Linhas Aéreas guarantees that it was an “operational failure” and claims to have been surprised by the death of the animal when the plane landed at Guarulhos Airport.

João Fantazzini was informed of the error during the flight to Sinop and decided to return to São Paulo to wait for the dog. According to CNN Brasil, Gol employees sent videos of the animal to its owner during shipment to São Paulo.

João found out about the death of Joca when he picked it up from the airport’s loading and unloading area.

The body was examined by a veterinarian at the airport who concluded that the animal died from “cardiorespiratory arrest for an unknown cause”, writes the Newspaper.

In an interview with the North American television channel, the owner accuses the company of “not having treated” the animal and has already filed a complaint with the authorities who registered the case as a crime of animal abuse.

However, the airline has already announced that it has suspended the transport of dogs and cats in the holds, a restriction that will end on May 23rd. According to a statement cited by Sheetduring these 30 days Gol will investigate the circumstances of the dog’s death.

João Fantazzini says he received authorization from the veterinarian Joca to take the animal on short flights. As it is a large dog, it had to travel inside a carrier that was in the hold along with the passengers’ suitcases.

Ministry of Airports will investigate dog’s death

On Tuesday night, the Minister of Ports and Airports of Brazil, Silvio Costa Filho, announced that the Ministry and the country’s National Aviation Agency (ANAC) “will open a process to determine responsibility” for the death of Joca and, depending on the outcome of the investigation, impose penalties.

According to the Brazilian daily, the minister also added that the rules for transporting pet animals on planes will be reviewed.

This is not the first time that Gol has faced problems with transporting dogs in holds. In 2021, Pandora, a dog that was traveling on one of the company’s planes, was lost upon arrival at Guarulhos Airport and was only found 40 days later. At that time, Gol also suspended the transport of pet animals.