Airline Pilot and a Fallen Soldier

[mattbrowne]

A long read but a great read. A airline captain that sure did the right thing.


This message is from an airline captain about a recent flight of
his.........


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 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 on his own. 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 preflight 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', he said. He 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 he asked me if
there was anything I could do. 'I'm on it', I said. I told him that I would
get back to him.

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 onboard 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 this 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 planeside. 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 planeside to watch the remains
being loaded for the final leg home. Captain, most of 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 copilot 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 United States of America

Tom Hammond

Saluda, SC
____

[Buzz]

Very moving story. Great to see that the right thing was done by the pilot and all involved.

[Ron61]

I agree with Buzz. That is a very moving story and a great thing the Captain of the Airline did. Also all they did for the family was great.

Ron

[Fordzilla]

Yes, A great read. Thanks for posting.

[lineslinger]

Great post, thanks for sharing it.

[Gregg(What's his name)?]

Thanks I needed a good heart warming story. That is tough duty for anybody. God Bless are Military.

[twobjshelbys]

This Pulitzer Prize winning photograph was part of the former Rocky Mountain News special section titled "Final Salute".



The article is about the group of Marines stationed at Buckley AFB (near Denver) that makes the calls on the families of fallen soldiers. Jim Sheeler (writer) and Todd Heisler (photographer) both won Pulitzers for this. Sheeler followed up with a book.

Alas, the Rocky is no more.