A beloved three-year-old French bulldog died on an Alaska Airlines flight after he and his owner were bumped from first class to economy, a new lawsuit alleges.
The owner, Michael Contillo, slapped the airline with the lawsuit last week after his pooch named Ash suddenly passed away on the flight from New York to San Francisco on Feb. 1, according to court papers.
The alleged ordeal unfolded after Contillo and his father, who both purchased first-class tickets, boarded the flight at JFK and took their fourth-row seats with Ash and his other French bulldog, named Kora, in their pet carriers.
Just before take-off, Contillo claims airline staff approached and asked them all to move back to row 11 for “safety purposes,” the suit filed in San Francisco County Superior Court states.
“Plaintiff explained that moving the dogs at this point before takeoff would be extremely dangerous for the dogs. He further explained that the dog was calm at the moment but would not be calm anymore now that the plane was full of people,” the filing alleges.