His dog had a first-class seat to San Francisco but flew coach and died. Now he’s suing

It was a seemingly routine cross-country trip from New York to San Francisco.

In November 2023, Michael Contillo and his father, Michael Sr., took Contillo’s two French bulldogs, Ash and Kora, with them on a two-month trip to New York, according to a lawsuit Contillo filed Wednesday in San Francisco County Superior Court.

A veterinarian confirmed that the dogs were healthy enough for the cross-country flight and Contillo bought two first-class tickets so his dogs would be more comfortable riding with him in the roomier cabin, Contillo said in the lawsuit.

But when Contillo tried to fly back to San Francisco with his dogs in February, two Alaska Airlines employees approached Contillo and his father and asked them to move to the coach section of the plane “for safety purposes,” the lawsuit states.

Contillo said he pointed out that the pet carriers his dogs were riding in complied with the airline’s policy and that moving them would be dangerous — potentially fatal — because it could cause the dogs to become anxious and lead to breathing and heart problems, according to the lawsuit. Aisle 11 of the plane, where the airline employees wanted them to sit, also was more crowded, the suit said.

But the Alaska Airlines employees insisted that Contillo and his father move, and so they complied because the flight was about to take off, the lawsuit states.

Ash, Contillo’s almost 4-year-old French bulldog, started “breathing very quickly and heavily, with noticeable anxiety,” the lawsuit states. Contillo was told that the dog carrier must remain closed during the flight; he noticed that Ash had stopped moving, but he couldn’t check on him until the plane reached a certain altitude.

When the plane landed in San Francisco, Contillo found Ash’s stiff body
, according to the lawsuit. He and his father realized that Ash had died and began to cry.

Contillo claims that the flight crew was unsympathetic and that he still hasn’t heard from the airline regarding Ash’s death.

“I’m loudly weeping,” Contillo told the Mercury News. “They see our dead dog. They see me crying. Not a single one of them stops to offer any help or condolences.”

Contillo is alleging negligence, emotional distress and breach of contract against the airline. He is seeking unspecific damages.

An airline spokesperson told The Times that it doesn’t comment on litigation.