An 81-year-old Bronx grandmother, Maria Fraterrigo, has returned to New York City with her emotional support parrot, Plucky, after being stranded in Puerto Rico due to an airline complication. Fraterrigo encountered resistance from Frontier Airlines when attempting to fly home with her African Grey Parrot, which had previously not posed an issue on her outbound flight from JFK to Puerto Rico on January 4. The New York Post reported that Frontier initially refused their return, citing company policy, which prohibits large birds in the cabin.
At Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport last Saturday, Frontier staff informed Fraterrigo that her bird, weighing a mere 10 ounces, could not accompany her on the flight. Distraught at the notion of abandoning her companion, Fraterrigo expressed her anguish, "I didn't want to live when they told me to get rid of him, that hurt so much, so inhumane," she recounted in an interview obtained by ABC7. This ordeal comes after the 2019 loss of Maria's husband, Richard Fraterrigo, a retired NYPD court officer, who succumbed to 9/11-related cancer, with Plucky serving as a lifeline for her thereafter.
Following multiple appeals, Frontier acknowledged its error in allowing the parrot to fly out of New York without proper checks, offering a refund and a voucher to Maria, as detailed by ABC7NY. Yet it initially stood by its cabin policy. It took concerted efforts, including those of ABC7's Kemberly Richardson and the team from Senator Charles Schumer’s office, to navigate the airline's bureaucratic maze and reinstate Maria's right to travel with her emotional support animal."Robert says you are a hero, you did it all, you did it all, thank you. I only see you on TV, and here I am, covering parade. I get to meet you and thank you, may God grant you all of your wishes." Fraterrigo praised the reporter from ABC7 after her landing this morning.
Ultimately, after, Fraterrigo obtained a certificate of veterinary inspection in San Juan, and proof that Plucky was purchased in the United States from a pet store in Scarsdale — Frontier reversed its decision. Maria and her companion Plucky touched down at JFK International Airport early this morning, where she told ABC7 she was so traumatized she plans to never fly again, preferring instead to remain near her home in Riverdale. Fraterrigo could not be reached for further comment.
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