Residents who have left Hong Kong are chartering private jets for their pets — the only way many of them find to take their pets with them, as restrictions imposed by the pandemic have reduced cargo space on commercial flights.
With the Covid zero regime in the city leading to an increase in freight rates and flight cancellations, groups are formed to hire private jets at a cost of approximately 200 thousand Hong Kong dollars (equivalent to R$ 140 thousand) per passenger, with their pet, according to the companies and people who adhered to this idea.
“There’s a huge demand,” says Chris Phillips, manager of medical and pet freight at Air Charter Service, a private jet agency. “People want to take their pets back [para seus países de origem], their cats, dogs and rabbits, and they just can’t do it for commercial companies.”
Hong Kong authorities this month banned passenger flights from eight countries as part of tough policies to eliminate the coronavirus, causing a wave of flight cancellations and prompting airlines to keep up with changing regulations.
The strict quarantine regime in the autonomous Chinese territory is prompting some foreign residents to flee the city, while a growing number of local citizens sign up for immigration schemes that were set up by the UK, Australia and Canada after political unrest in the territory in 2019. .
Hong Kong’s efforts to contain the virus have extended to pets, with the government exterminating more than 1,000 hamsters over the past weekend and quarantining about 150 pet store visitors for fear of transmission from animals to animals. humans.
Hong Kong’s population dropped 1.2% in the first half of 2021, according to the latest Census records. Those who can afford it are bringing their pets, but this is made increasingly difficult by the shortage of flights, causing demand for private jets. “There’s this new fad of group charter where people get together and try to agree on a date to leave,” says Phillips.
Steve Pheby, a consultant at Ferndale Kennels and Cattery, says that before the pandemic, his business was generally balanced between importing and exporting pets, but that it is now based on 90% to 95% of exports. According to him, transporting a Labrador and its owner to the UK can cost up to HK$150,000. “What’s sad is that for a lot of people the dog is part of the family, they go out of their way to pay these extremely high fees.”
Hong Kong-based Pet Holidays said it organized 18 private jets last year to transport animals — with flights mostly to the UK, Canada, Taiwan and Singapore — up from none in 2020. The agency expects to charter another 20 flights. this year, with about a third of those customers migrating from commercial airlines.
Ada Lo of Dog Express says the company has already booked three private flights to the UK in the coming months, and Gary Costello of British operator PBS International Freight reports “a big increase” in demand from Hong Kong residents.
Professor Annett Schirmer says she plans to move to Europe in May and is trying to arrange a flight for her three dogs and a cat via social media. “The flights [comerciais] are often canceled at the last minute, which makes it very difficult because the animals need to have paperwork and veterinary checkups done at a certain time before the trip.”
Another business aviation company, Top Stars Air says it now receives about 20 such quote requests a day. There is already a flight scheduled for London in February, for six people and seven pets – the jet that will pick them up in Hong Kong will depart from Dubai, and the crew will not be able to disembark, due to strict quarantine requirements in the territory.
Bianca Ho moved with her 5-year-old dog Caviar to the UK on a chartered jet after waiting more than six months for a place with a traditional company. “In addition to the delay, we were concerned about the possibility of leaving the dog in the luggage compartment for 12 to 13 hours. He is very emotional and sensitive”, he says. “Even though it was very expensive for us, it was a special experience.”
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