In an act of extraordinary kindness, a Southwest Airlines pilot delayed his plane by 12 minutes to ensure a passenger would be able to say goodbye to his murdered grandson.
The man’s three-year-old grandchild had been killed by his daughter’s live-in boyfriend in Denver and was due to be taken off life support ahead of donating his organs…
Having been in Los Angeles on business, the man’s wife had arranged for him to transfer at Tucson airport in Arizona onto a flight bound for Denver to be with his bereaved daughter…
Yet, despite arriving at Los Angeles International Airport two hours before his flight was due to depart, lengthy check-in lines meant he faced a race against time to board on schedule.
Even after sprinting from the security checkpoint in his socks, the grandfather still arrived at the departure gate 12 minutes late…
According to a letter written to travel blog Elliott.org by the man’s wife, he was greeted by the pilot and ticketing agent with the words: ‘Are you Mark? We held the plane for you and we’re so sorry about the loss of your grandson…’
The letter continues: ‘As my husband walked down the Jetway with the pilot, he said, “I can’t thank you enough for this.”
‘The pilot responded with, “They can’t go anywhere without me and I wasn’t going anywhere without you. Now relax. We’ll get you there. And again, I’m so sorry.”’
Thanks to the kindness of the pilot, the man was able to reach his daughter in Denver and bid farewell to his grandson…
A Southwest spokesperson said the airline was ‘proud’ of the pilot’s behaviour.
My kind of pilot. My kind of airline. Rare enough that a corporation remembers that human beings are the source of their income.
“Don’t be surprised by the stubble,” said Poelvoorde. “We have decided to stop shaving for as long as Belgium has no government. Let’s keep our beards until Belgium rises again.”
