“Overwhelmingly, our guests tell us they want to travel with their pets, and we are now on a journey to make that a reality. It’s something that commonly happens overseas and is proven to work well.”

She also said that having pets in the cabins will not change anything in allowing assistance animals to travel at no cost. Both small dogs and small cats, provided they can fit into a space under the seat in front of the passenger would be welcome.

There is also an approved carrier that would be used, so they aren’t walking around freely during the flight. A fee would be charged to those who qualify, but the cost has not been revealed yet.

After being posted, many had questions about the service. These include if someone has an allergy, could they find out if there would be a dog or cat sitting next to them?

Virgin Atlantic replied: “It’s really important to us that there is minimal impact to guests who are not carrying a pet, and for this reason we will be using the next few months to design a safe proposition with strict rules. Rest assured; all of this is being taken care of!”