Have you ever boarded a flight dreading who might be your neighbor for the next few hours?
Maybe they’ll snore, or encroach on your personal space, or perhaps it’ll be a screaming baby.
Passengers flying on Qatar, Emirates, Etihad or Royal Jordanian Airlines, however, have a unique type of neighbor to worry about — the pet falcon.
On these Middle Eastern airlines, the birds — which have their own passports — are permitted to fly, most often perching on their owners’ arms.
In the Middle East, falcons are the ultimate status symbol.
And it’s become routine for some falcon owners to have their birds join them, un-caged, aboard flights — no matter if they’re traveling in first class or economy.
This week, a photograph of a cabin full of the treasured birds went viral on social media.
Ahmet Yasar, who posted the image on Reddit, told CNN that the falcons were traveling to Jeddah, in Saudi Arabia, and that the photograph was taken by a friend who works as a pilot.
While flying with falcons in the cabin area is not unusual, to have this many on board at the same time is extremely rare — with commercial airlines usually restricting flights to a maximum of six falcons at one time.
A symbol of courage, determination and freedom
Falconry, the sport of hunting with falcons, dates back hundreds of centuries and has become such a significant part of the Middle East’s culture that UNESCO has added it to its Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity list.
Traditionally, the birds were used as a way of obtaining food but nowadays they’re kept as pets and used for sport.
Cultural expert Nasif Kayed, from The Arab Culturalist, told CNN falcons can cost anywhere between 2,000 dirhams ($544) and 70,000 dirhams ($19,058).
“It depends on what you’re looking for and how much money you have, of course,” he said. “It depends on the breed — some are (bred) for speed, others are for long distance hunting.”
In the United Arab Emirates, the birds are required to have their own passports, issued by the Ministry of Environment and Water, to combat smuggling of the birds. The document is valid for three years and costs about $130.
Between 2002 and 2013, the government issued more than 28,000 falcon passports.
Kayed says the birds can be trained within a matter of six weeks and Emirati men develop a strong relationship with the animals.
“For us, they represent courage, perseverance, determination and freedom.”
