Frontier Flight Delayed Over Three Hours After Dog Defecates

A Frontier Airlines passenger reported that a large dog defecated on a woman's feet and inside the aircraft cabin, causing a flight delay exceeding three hours. The incident occurred before the scheduled 9:25 a.m. Departure from Dallas-Fort Worth to Baltimore on August 14, according to posts in the Frontier GoWild! Pass Holders group shared by the blog Live and Let's Fly.

Video footage from the aftermath shows a man near the front of the plane gathering his belongings and exiting through the forward doorway. An Instagram post caption accompanying the video stated, "He 💩 on her foot." Initial reports indicated the aircraft had already waited for an hour and a half while the airline determined a cleanup procedure.

Airline Policy on Service Animals

Frontier Airlines' policy explicitly lists urination or defecation in the cabin or gate area as disruptive behavior that can lead to a service animal being denied boarding. The airline's decision to clean the cabin aligns with these rules, which are supported by federal regulations. The source notes this action contrasts with a past Delta Air Lines incident where a passenger was reportedly told to clean up another dog's waste themselves.

The Incentive for Misrepresentation

The report suggests the elimination of emotional support animal exemptions has not removed the incentive for passengers to falsely claim pets as service animals. Doing so allows travelers to avoid pet fees and carrier requirements for small animals. For large dogs, it can mean the difference between free cabin access and potentially having to pay to ship the animal as cargo.

The author recounts a personal experience on a Delta flight from New York JFK to Austin that returned to the gate during taxi due to improper documentation for a passenger's dog. That incident resulted in a two-hour delay.

Identifying Non-Service Animals

The source outlines several behaviors purported to help identify animals that may not be legitimate service dogs. These include owners using baby talk to address the animal, animals resting on pillows, passengers traveling with two animals, and animals being part of photo shoots in the aircraft window.

Frontier's cleanup operation ultimately extended the ground delay for the Baltimore-bound flight beyond the three-hour mark.