Recently, United Airlines merged with Continental Airlines and adopted their PetSafe policy, which actually runs quite nicely within the U.S., but causes problems of nightmarish proportions for those of us who reside overseas and have to relocate every couple of years.  Seeing the financial hardship for military families, United has made some exemptions for the group, but they refuse to extend the courtesy to diplomats.  Frequently, we are forced to use United due to government contracts and the Fly American Act, requiring us to use an American carrier when possible.  It is not simply a matter of expense, as many folks are finding that there are no options for cargo flights in their assigned countries and  are being forced to leave pets behind.  I have written extensively about this on my personal blog http://volciakvoyagers.wordpress.com/ . I encourage you to read more and consider joining the effort to help thousands of Foreign Service workers to keep their families together.  We could not imagine our life without Harlee and Melodie.  They are integral parts of our family and we could never abandon them!