United (we are not)

It turns out that the cat can go on the plane with our luggage for about £70 - bargainacious, compared with the previous quotes.

Ah, the joy of United Airlines call centres. I was told that the cat had been booked on the flight, and given the dimensions of the container that it had to be in. It seems that the cat was to carry on baggage – which sounds like an awful lot of effort. And it also had to be in a container that would fit under a seat – which sounds like something of a squish.

So I rang United Airlines, and got through to their (Indian sounding) call centre. The first person I spoke to was very friendly, but didn’t seem to have the faintest idea what they were talking about. I asked to check the dimensions, and they said “Small is …., medium is …, large is …”. None of these sizes sounded like they fitted under a seat, so I thought I’d try again.

The second person I spoke to at United Airlines also seemed very friendly and nice. And what they said didn’t relate to what the first person said. I was given a new set of dimensions – 9 inches high, which sounds like it will fit under a seat, but doesn’t sound much fun for a cat for 12 hours or so. They also said that I had to know the size and weight of the container (with the cat in it) before I could confirm the cat on the flight. However, the first person I spoke to had already confirmed the cat on the flight – which I told them. The fact that what they had just told me was blatant nonsense, and that, therefore, I didn’t trust anything else they said.

The airline might be united, but their staff are not. (Hahaha.)