Cool Story - Airline Captain and H.R.

[Phlyer]

Letter from an airline pilot: He writes:

My lead flight attendant came to me and said, "We have an H.R. On this flight."
(H.R. Stands for human remains.)

"Are they military?" I asked.

'Yes', she said.

'Is there an escort?' I asked.

'Yes, I've already assigned him a seat'.

'Would you please tell him to come to the flight deck. You can board him early," I said..

A short while later, a young army sergeant entered the flight deck. He was the image of the perfectly dressed soldier.
He introduced himself and I asked him about his soldier.
The escorts of these fallen soldiers talk about them as if they are still alive and still with us.

'My soldier is on his way back to Virginia ,' he said. He proceeded to answer my questions, but offered no words.

I asked him if there was anything I could do for him and he said no.
I told him that he had the toughest job in the military and that I appreciated the work that he does for the families of our fallen soldiers.
The first officer and I got up out of our seats to shake his hand. He left the flight deck to find his seat.

We completed our pre-flight checks, pushed back and performed an uneventful departure.
About 30 minutes into our flight I received a call from the lead flight attendant in the cabin.
'I just found out the family of the soldier we are carrying, is on board', she said.
She then proceeded to tell me that the father, mother, wife and 2-year old daughter were escorting their son, husband, and father home.
The family was upset because they were unable to see the container that the soldier was in before we left.
We were on our way to a major hub at which the family was going to wait four hours for the connecting flight home to Virginia .

The father of the soldier told the flight attendant that knowing his son was below him in the cargo compartment and being unable to see him was too much for him and the family to bear.
He had asked the flight attendant if there was anything that could be done to allow them to see him upon our arrival.
The family wanted to be outside by the cargo door to watch the soldier being taken off the airplane.
I could hear the desperation in the flight attendants voice when she asked me if there was anything I could do. 'I'm on it', I said. I told her that I would get back to her.

Airborne communication with my company normally occurs in the form of e-mail like messages.
I decided to bypass this system and contact my flight dispatcher directly on a Secondary radio.
There is a radio operator in the operations control center who connects you to the telephone of the dispatcher.
I was in direct contact with the dispatcher. I explained the situation I had on board with the family and what it was the family wanted.
He said he understood and that he would get back to me.

Two hours went by and I had not heard from the dispatcher.
We were going to get busy soon and I needed to know what to tell the family.
I sent a text message asking for an update.
I saved the return message from the dispatcher and the following is the text:

'Captain, sorry it has taken so long to get back to you.
There is policy on this now and I had to check on a few things.
Upon your arrival a dedicated escort team will meet the aircraft.
The team will escort the family to the ramp and plane side.
A van will be used to load the remains with a secondary van for the family.
The family will be taken to their departure area and escorted into the terminal where the remains can be seen on the ramp.
It is a private area for the family only.
When the connecting aircraft arrives, the family will be escorted onto the ramp and plane side to watch the remains being loaded for the final leg home.
Captain, most of us here in flight control are veterans.. Please pass our condolences on to the family. Thanks.'

I sent a message back telling flight control thanks for a good job.
I printed out the message and gave it to the lead flight attendant to pass on to the father.
The lead flight attendant was very thankful and told me, 'You have no idea how much this will mean to them.'

Things started getting busy for the descent, approach and landing.
After landing, we cleared the runway and taxied to the ramp area.
The ramp is huge with 15 gates on either side of the alleyway.
It is always a busy area with aircraft maneuvering every which way to enter and exit.
When we entered the ramp and checked in with the ramp controller, we were told that all traffic was being held for us.

'There is a team in place to meet the aircraft', we were told.
It looked like it was all coming together, then I realized that once we turned the seat belt sign off, everyone would stand up at once and delay the family from getting off the airplane.
As we approached our gate, I asked the co-pilot to tell the ramp controller we were going to stop short of the gate to make an announcement to the passengers.
He did that and the ramp controller said, 'Take your time.'

I stopped the aircraft and set the parking brake.
I pushed the public address button and said, 'Ladies and gentleman, this is your Captain speaking I have stopped short of our gate to make a special announcement.
We have a passenger on board who deserves our honor and respect.
His Name is Private XXXXXX, a soldier who recently lost his life.
Private XXXXXX is under your feet in the cargo hold.
Escorting him today is Army Sergeant XXXXXXX.
Also, on board are his father, mother, wife, and daughter.
Your entire flight crew is asking for all passengers to remain in their seats to allow the family to exit the aircraft first. Thank you.'

We continued the turn to the gate, came to a stop and started our shutdown procedures.
A couple of minutes later I opened the cockpit door. I found the two forward flight attendants crying, something you just do not see.
I was told that after we came to a stop, every passenger on the aircraft stayed in their seats, waiting for the family to exit the aircraft.

When the family got up and gathered their things, a passenger slowly started to clap his hands.
Moments later more passengers joined in and soon the entire aircraft was clapping.
Words of 'God Bless You', I'm sorry, thank you, be proud, and other kind words were uttered to the family as they made their way down the aisle and out of the airplane.

They were escorted down to the ramp to finally be with their loved one.

Many of the passengers disembarking thanked me for the announcement I had made.
They were just words, I told them, I could say them over and over again, but nothing I say will bring back that brave soldier.

I respectfully ask that all of you reflect on this event and the sacrifices that millions of our men and women have made to ensure our freedom and safety in these USA, Canada, Australia New Zealand, England.

[BrianS]

Great Story

[Aviatard]

This has been circulating since at least 2008. It doesn't have the ring of truth. Sounds like another of those hoax letters.

[Schooner69A]

Yup. SNOPES snooped and could not verify the story. My B.S. bat is in the vertical position.

J

[Big Pistons Forever]

I would like to hope it is true and I have personally witnessed on several occasions, airline staff go the extra mile for Armed Forces members in uniform....in the United States. Unfortunately in Canada it is a different story.

[frozen solid]

Also, even if it were true, I hate these "letters". Although I applaud the sentiment behind the event that unfolded, I consider it poor form to write a big long story about your own actions. I can't think of any reason to have written this about yourself other than seeking praise for your benevolent act. If the writer's heart was truly in the right place, the satisfaction of having committed the act in the first place would have been sufficient and it would have shown some praiseworthy humility not to have trumpeted it to everyone else after the fact. Basically, if the letter describes a real event, it's nothing more than some guy shouting "look at me! Look how much respect I have for veterans! Who can top that?"

[watermeth]

I would like to hope it is true and I have personally witnessed on several occasions, airline staff go the extra mile for Armed Forces members in uniform....in the United States. Unfortunately in Canada it is a different story.

It would be nice to see them doing that for customers...

[Pop n Fresh]

True or false, I read it as a story about all the ground crew going way above and beyond to set things up at the airport finished by the unlikely event all the other passengers let the family out before the shoving match for the door.

The captain just called dispatch on the radio. Though if he had not I suppose the others would not have done all their good work.

Touching either way for me.

[HHI]

Not sure how much accuracy there is in the original post in this thread.

Here's a link to how these are handled (unfortunately far too often) in Toronto.

http://www.ourmanitoulin.com/Air_Canada ... member.pdf

This article is about how AC employees (on their own initiative) created a process to show respect for our soldiers.

I don't doubt that employees of our other airlines have, or would have done something similar if a fallen soldier's final journey was on their airline.

Henry
(Retired AC)

[bizjets101]

Most likely is true and correct, whether the exact details are correct with 4,489 USA fatalities in Iraq and 2,310 in Afghanistan - they have plenty of experience. Anyone who has lived in the USA knows how serious they take this event.

It's also not like the passengers aren't going to notice all the activity.

[photofly]

Shame people have to be dead before they get some respect.

[Nark]

I am often stopped by strangers thanking me for my service (My airline ID hangs on a USMC lanyard). Even members on this forum have gone above and beyond to show support for me. I'm forever grateful;one of my biggest fears is being forgotten. I do my best to pass along the gratitude I receive.

We honor our vets quite often at the airline I "expressly-connect." Free upgrades and I've made several PA's asking for passengers to remain seated and let service-members off first. I haven't yet made an Angel Flight, however I would be honored to do so.

This story is most likely a conglomeration of several flights.

[single_swine_herder]

I could care less whether Snopes validates the letter or not.

The sentiments expressed are valid, and a terrible price is paid by the families and friends of service people who come home to their final resting place after having lost their lives in the call of their country.

You may not be familiar with Nark's reference to "Angel Flight." Take 4 minutes and 8 seconds to watch this aviation video and listen to the lyrics.

http://youtu.be/70Ikj1hZDnw

[Schooner69A]

NARK and SSH: I, too, spent time in the military and lost several friends; fortunately, none of them to unfriendly fire. But, they were gone, just the same; leaving friends and family to grieve.

I have no quibble with true stories of respect shown by anyone, anywhere, to the fallen of whatever country. But, don't be trying to solicit sympathy from me or anyone else with a carefully crafted story and passing it off as an actual event. Regardless of the 'best of intentions', a disservice is done to you, me, and all who have fallen whenever such a tale is foisted upon us.

John