Flying with a horse- any advice/experience to share?

[Speedy_Alice]

I’m flying FRA-ORD next week with my Lipizzaner - a dream come true! - on a Lufthansa cargo flight, and would love to hear any advice/experience/heads up etc .
There will be a professional groom on board as well (I paid for my seat), but I’m told I can go back and be with my horse aside from take off & landing.

I’ve asked questions about whether there’s food on board (I’m told yes - no idea what kind), but don’t know what the seating is like, accessibility to carry-on, etc. and I’m sure there are questions that I don’t even realize I should ask/would want to know the answers to.

I have no idea what to expect. Thanks for any experience you can share!

[PrincessPonies]

I used Tex Sutton to move my horse a few years ago. We left from Baltimore MD, stopped in Lexington KY and then landed in Ontario CA. We payed for a stall and I traveled along. There were multiple groom with the plane, flight attendants for horses. A few other people were traveling with horses.

We sat at the very back of the plane and each had a row of seats to ourselves. The bag I carried with me sat right next to me. Other things included a saddle and small plastic tack trunk went into cargo.

I got up to see my horse twice during the trip, but stayed in my seat most of the time. They fed us boxed lunches from Panera, most likely it was just whoever provides box lunches. I did however bring some snacks, with the trailering to and from the airport added on I was traveling for a long time and was glad for it.

I’m not sure how much this will help since it’s a different company and depending on the company will affect these things.

The biggest thing in all horse flights is it’s cold. With the horses on board it can heat up very easily so the plane is kept cold, think frost formed on the meta inside of the plane in the back away from the horses. I had a sweater and a couple of blankets. A few guys had sleeping bags, traveling with race horses and had done it all before.

good luck and safe travels.

[Kemosabe]

I flew with my horse from JFK to Brussels, returning to the US seven months later from Frankfurt to JFK. Both were cargo flights. The first flight was Saudi Air, a 747. The only space for passengers was the first class cabin, the rest was cargo. All the seats were removed except for two, and a mattress and pillows, blankets for naps. I was the only passenger/groom. There was a ton of food.

The return flight was Lufthansa, cargo, with 10 seats for grooms. Don’t recall much about the food. We had twenty horses on that flight and 10 grooms including me.

Oxygen levels are adjusted for animals traveling in cargo, so the horses tend to be sleepy/relaxed, and don’t eat much although they have hay nets. There is a medical kit on board. Luckily we never had to use it.

We made frequent trips down into the cargo (via a ladder into the hold) to check on the horses.

I don’t remember either flight being especially cold, at least where we were sitting. The pilots of the Saudi plane explained to me about the oxygen. My horse was the only horse on that flight which stressed him a bit. But the worse part was when they unloaded his crate and my assorted trunks, etc, and just left me and the horse on the tarmac for an hour waiting for someone to move his crate into quarantine at the airport.

[Speedy_Alice]

Thank you very much for your input!
PrincessPonies, I wondered about the temp in the plane. Good to know, just in case, so I can have an extra jacket accessible. Do you know whether this was an actual cargo flight, or was it one of the combis with passenger seats in front/cargo in back? And do you have to go down a ladder/through any kind of plastic netting to get to your horse, or did you just open a door that separated passengers and horses?

[Speedy_Alice]

Thanks for taking the time to share your experience, Kemosabe! I’m guessing the Lufthansa cargo flight my horse is on would be the same aircraft as the one yours was on, or at least, pretty similar. There is just one air stall with three horses on it, and one pro groom.
One thing I was told is that I could have a carry on & a checked bag, and any tack would have to be in a box and would be charged what sounded like a rather substantial fee. I wouldn’t get the checked bag and horse stuff until I picked up my horse from quarantine.
Does that match what you experienced? I’m wondering if carry on is a strict as in regular flights… I put my boots into a backpack and had a regular carry on, but would love to just carry the boots separate from the backpack.

Climbing a ladder down into a hold sounds rather exciting…! I’m glad there are two other horses traveling w my boy… I’d think it would help to have company (if calm) along. Awful that they kept him standing on the tarmac for so long. 😞

[JustTheTicket]

I flew from Amsterdam to JFK as a groom and it was a pretty straightforward experience. It was a normal passenger plane, and the horses were in the cargo area. I had my normal checked bag (I don’t remember if I had a carry on or not). Another groom was also flying with me, so she was the one who I’m assuming loaded and unloaded the horses so I don’t have experience with that.
There was just a door right behind the back row, where I was sitting, so I just went back there and stood with the horses for take off and landing. They had access to hay and we could go back and offer water/check on them whenever. Their shipping container is basically a trailer without wheels.
As for food, etc, again, this was a regular passenger jet, so there were flight attendants and snacks and all that jazz. I’m guessing none of the passengers even knew there were horses on board, tbh. So the whole experience is really not a big deal. If you’re flying in a cargo FedEx/UPS style plane, that’s a whole different deal. I have no idea how that works.

[vagabondrider]

@JustTheTicket

I flew from Amsterdam to JFK as a groom and it was a pretty straightforward experience. It was a normal passenger plane, and the horses were in the cargo area. I had my normal checked bag (I don’t remember if I had a carry on or not). Another groom was also flying with me, so she was the one who I’m assuming loaded and unloaded the horses so I don’t have experience with that.
There was just a door right behind the back row, where I was sitting, so I just went back there and stood with the horses for take off and landing. They had access to hay and we could go back and offer water/check on them whenever. Their shipping container is basically a trailer without wheels.
As for food, etc, again, this was a regular passenger jet, so there were flight attendants and snacks and all that jazz. I’m guessing none of the passengers even knew there were horses on board, tbh. So the whole experience is really not a big deal. If you’re flying in a cargo FedEx/UPS style plane, that’s a whole different deal. I have no idea how that works.

JustTheTicket, what transport company did you use? I’ve spoken with some that will only allow their own grooms to fly with the horses. I assume that regardless of the horse transport company used, the flight between Amsterdam & JFK was on a KLM flight?

[JustTheTicket]

@vagabondrider

JustTheTicket, what transport company did you use? I’ve spoken with some that will only allow their own grooms to fly with the horses. I assume that regardless of the horse transport company used, the flight between Amsterdam & JFK was on a KLM flight?

It was KLM, yes. I don’t really know more details because my situation was a bit weird, I suppose. I was working for a dealer in Holland, and when it was time for me to go home, they just sent me with a load of their horses. So I basically showed up and did what they told me.

[Speedy_Alice]

JustTheTicket, thank you for sharing. Yes, KLM flew a lot of the combis (passengers and horses), but apparently has decreased the size of that fleet (I have learned, during this process…).

The Lufthansa flight I’m on is strictly cargo (with someplace they’re strapping me and the pro groom in!). I chose this route because - living in Michigan - I wanted my horse to have an easy 3-4 hour trip from Chicago to MI, vs several days with probably a lot of stops coming from NY.

This would apply to any horse flying, though - what kind of leg/joint/tail protection did you use, if any? I have read that leg wrappings and boots are discouraged, in case they come off during the flight. I was told that tail and front leg boots are ok.

Did you use/recommend any protection?

Also curious - how did the horses handle the experience? I’ve seen photos and videos of horses on the tarmac looking at planes… hard to believe that isn’t scary for them. If they’re in a container where they can’t see the planes, that would make sense to me, that they’re calm. I thought they were always completely enclosed once in the air stall, but those videos showed otherwise.

[JustTheTicket]

As I recall, the horses shipped naked. It makes sense, because their boxes are small and you can’t really get into the stalls with them to fix any wraps or boots.

The horses I went with were not all all concerned about the experience. I only met up with them after they’d been loaded, so I don’t know if either of them made a fuss about that, but once they were in the cargo hold, they munched their hay and couldn’t have cared less. They can’t really see much out of their box, so visually there wasn’t much to get worked up about. As long as the horse has been in a trailer before, I imagine it will see the experience of flying in the same way.

[Puddin_Pie]

Make sure you take pictures for us!

[Postandrails]

I thought these videos might be good to give you a visual. The link is for video 1 from a series of 5 videos about flying a horse from Australia to the Netherlands.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G4Z-7KQ9F-4&pbjreload=10

[Speedy_Alice]

JustTheTicket, thank you - that’s super helpful. I have read accounts that mostly echo your experience, but every now and then I read one about a horse that freaked out… 😳 For a horse who hasn’t been trailered much, he did well on the 8 hour drive to Frankfurt, and settled in well to the Animal Lounge. Hopefully the flight will be the same.

[Speedy_Alice]

Postandrails, thank you! Just watched the first video at breakfast before heading over to the Lufthansa Animal Lounge. I’ll be there all day - our flight isn’t until this evening - looking forward to seeing the rest.

[DiamondJubilee]

How exciting Speedy Alice! Safe travels and looking forward to seeing some pictures

[Speedy_Alice]

Thank you, DiamondJubilee!
We made it back to US just in time, before COVID 19 travel restrictions impacted the ability to transport horses from Europe to the US.
Traveling with my horse was such an interesting and fun experience! IRT did a fabulous job coordinating everything; the professional groom who accompanied us was wonderful and really knew the ropes. I have pics/video in a public FB album: https://www.facebook.com/jorie.sligh/media_set?set=a.10221054015490125&type=3
I’ve been so busy with horse (barn is 1/2 hour away) that I haven’t had time to post much follow-up since we got home.
Very relieved and grateful that he’s here safe and sound! Thanks again for all the shared insight.