On Facebook, cat owner Mikhail Galin said that he was flying from Sheremetyevo to Vladivostok, but was not allowed to take his cat Viktor on the plane because it weighed too much and had to be checked in as a carry-on. "The cat weighed 10 kg, while the maximum allowed weight for hand luggage at Aeroflot is 8 kg," Galin wrote. To avoid this procedure, during the check-in process, Galin presented another cat that looked like Viktor but was lighter to bypass security and successfully check in to business class.
Mikhail Galin and his fat cat on the flight
When he got home, the passenger innocently posted a photo of Viktor sitting on the plane with him while enjoying a glass of wine. The post immediately caught the attention of "Russian cat lovers". Some people thought Galin's actions were shameful. Others feared that Galin's case could lead airlines to tighten regulations on bringing animals into the passenger cabin.
Aeroflot conducted an internal investigation and found that the passenger with his cat had committed a “series of serious violations”: he failed to check the pet in as baggage, took it out of its cage upon boarding, and committed fraud during check-in. This was confirmed by security cameras. Aeroflot has removed the passenger from the Aeroflot Bonus program (the airline’s mileage program).
"Aeroflot has made the decision to remove this passenger from the frequent flyer program. All miles collected during his flights will be canceled," Aeroflot announced. So Mikhail Galin lost nearly 400,000 accumulated miles (644,000 km).
