In recent years, pets have become increasingly likely to join their jet-setting owners on trips. 

In fact, the American Pet Products Association reported that animals are highly likely to accompany their owners on vacation, even when the trip involves air travel.

Anyone traveling with pets needs to be careful, though, as a lot can go wrong on a plane. In fact, there is actually an airline that appears to be repeatedly losing cats.

Here’s what’s happening with the airline, along with tips on how to keep your feline and canine friends safe.

Pet owners are flying with pets more often

As a growing number of people treat pets as family members, it’s not surprising that so many “fur kids” are being brought along on trips.

What is a little surprising, though, is how many people are bringing pets on airplanes, especially given that many airlines charge a hefty pet fee.

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• United Airlines passenger incident triggers quick response

Still, the data don’t lie, and the American Pet Products Association offers some surprising numbers

Statistics on travel with pets

• 55% of dog owners and 36% of cat owners have adjusted travel plans to accommodate a pet.
• 88% of dog owners and 90% of cat owners have taken their pets in the car with them while traveling over the past year.
• 68% of dog owners and 80% of cat owners have flown on a plane with their pets in the past year.
• 22% of both dog and cat owners have taken their pet on three or more plane trips.

Here’s what the American Pet Products Association CEO had to say about this trend:

“The enduring emotional connection between humans and their pets remains deep… As an overwhelming majority believe that their pets bring them happiness and emotional support, increased quality time spent and travel with pets follow suit.”

This airline is losing cats

If you fly with your pet, you probably expect your animal to get to your final destination when you do. Sadly, this is not always what happens.

Simply Flying reported recently on a Greek Airline called Aegean Airlines, which seems to be having a hard time keeping track of passengers’ pets.

Aegean Airlines pet incidents:

• Aegean Airlines recently lost three cats rescued by a newlywed couple. The cats were allegedly left behind in the cargo hold of the airplane in Paris, according to their owner. Aegean Airlines claimed the cats weren’t lost, but admitted there was a delay in unloading them for “operational” reasons. Regardless, the cats were not returned to their owners until the evening, and Aegean Airlines had originally told the couple it would take two days to get them back home.
• Aegean Airlines also lost a kitten last year. That kitten, Rodri, was in a pet carrier and handed over to staff by his owner, who was flying from Crete to Munich, Germany. Unfortunately, the owner found during a stopover that Rodri had escaped when the carrier became damaged. CNN reported that months later, the pet’s owner still didn’t know what had happened to the kitten.

These losses are impacting the owners, but also the pets. Here’s what one of the newlyweds had to say about the cats left in the Paris cargo hold.

“When they arrived, they were absolutely traumatised, they wouldn’t eat, we had them in the emergency vet.”

Pet owners must be cautious about flying with pets

This is not the first time an airline has lost a pet. There are plenty of examples of airlines across America having these issues.

• CBS reported on a two-year-old rescue Winston whose owners say their dog was routed to the wrong place in 2015 because the kennel was mislabeled. The dog went on a long journey through Iowa and Chicago, leaving him without food or water for 14 hours.
• CNN reported on a six-year-old dog named Maia who was lost at Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson Airport for three weeks after the pet got loose on the runway when staff opened her kennel as she was being transported to the plane.

Alaska Airlines also reportedly lost a pet during loading, and an 8-week-old puppy was sent by Delta to Las Vegas and Salt Lake City instead of Boise, where he belonged.

Ultimately, this is always a risk when you separate from your pet en route. 

Owners need to do their research into airline pet policies, check reports for past histories of problems, and consider finding methods of traveling that don’t require leaving pets unattended with airline staff. 

Related: TSA warns against flying with item used by over 60% of Americans