A specialist air charter solution was needed to get the rescue animal from North Carolina to Minnesota.
Transporting a sea turtle to its new home
A wildlife rescue in North Carolina, USA, asked for our help moving a sea turtle named Snooki to her new home. A spinal injury had left Snooki with mobility issues, ruling out a return to the wild, so she was permanently relocating to a zoo in Minnesota. Snooki couldn’t be out of water for long and needed to be kept warm, so a temperature controlled flight was needed to get her there as quickly as possible. We set about planning a specialist air charter solution to get this extra-special passenger on the move.
Our Solution
Routes: Wilmington > Saint Paul
Aircraft: Dassault Falcon 20F
Our experts sourced a midsize cargo plane from a trusted operator, who worked closely with us to ensure Snooki’s needs were met during the journey.
To keep Snooki warm, we arranged for the plane’s heating to be turned up and ensured heat packs and blankets were available onboard. It was crucial for the sea turtle to be kept under moisture throughout the flight, so the operator allowed a handler to travel alongside her in the cargo bay with a hand sprayer, using a jumpseat that’s normally reserved for crew.
On the day of the charter, Snooki’s crate was carefully forklifted onto the aircraft and rigged with netting to give the handler access. Everything ran seamlessly and Snooki arrived in Minnesota in good time, ready to settle into her new home.
The Finer Details
Cost-Effective Solution: Knowing the charter was a fund-raising effort, we negotiated the best possible rate for the aircraft charter.
Flight Representation: Our broker was present at the departure airport to meet Snooki and oversee a smooth loading process.