Back in October 2013, I boarded a Delta Air Lines flight that I wasn’t originally supposed to be on. I hadn’t been feeling well, so I postponed my flight by a day. Little did I know that this simple change of plans would put me on what would become the most emotional flight of my life. It’s now 13 years later and I still think about that experience often, especially around Veterans Day. Here’s what made this flight so unforgettable.
RELATED: Travel Tip: Give Your Upgrade to a Soldier
Delta Flight 2255 from Atlanta to Los Angeles seemed like an ordinary flight, with the exception of Candy, who was one of the most loving flight attendants I’ve ever encountered. Besides using her Southern charm to quickly defuse just about any situation, she began her welcome announcement by thanking the handful of uniformed service members on board for serving our country. Her heartfelt message was followed by applause from the passengers and served as a reminder that so many of the freedoms we enjoy are made possible by the sacrifices of the brave men and women who serve.
RELATED: 48 Ways to Honor a Veteran For Their Service On Memorial Day and Veteran’s Day
But this transcontinental flight turned out to be anything but ordinary. About 45 minutes before landing, the captain came over the PA system and explained that we were transporting a fallen soldier home. There was a military escort on board and he asked everyone to remain seated for a few minutes after arriving at the gate so the military personnel could exit first. He also told us not to be alarmed if we saw fire trucks waiting for our arrival because Los Angeles would be honoring the fallen soldier with a water cannon salute. The cabin went quiet as everyone absorbed what he had just told us.
A few minutes after touchdown, we did indeed receive a water cannon salute, something I’d previously only experienced on happy occasions like inaugural flights. But this time was different. As the water streamed down the aircraft windows, it looked like tears. Passengers inside the airport must have wondered what was happening when they saw our plane pull into gate 69A with a full police and fire escort, both in front and behind the aircraft.
I was sitting on the left side of the plane and later realized that the fallen soldier’s family was waiting off to the right, along with members of the United States Army Honor Guard. These service members perform ceremonial duties, including providing military funeral honors for fallen comrades. Seeing the military personnel waiting alongside the family made the significance of our arrival even more apparent.
When the aircraft door opened, another military officer addressed the escort, who was standing at attention. The officer then stepped onto the plane and spoke to all of us passengers. He said, “I just addressed the escort. It is a sworn oath to bring home, to the family, the fallen.” He paused for a moment before adding, “Today you all did that, you are all escorts, escorts of the heart.” He thanked us for our time and walked off the plane.
As you can imagine, everyone was silent and no one got up. Not even that person from the back row who always seems determined to be the first one off the plane. I’m sure most of us had meteor-sized lumps in our throats and tears in our eyes, just as I did. I’ve flown millions of miles over the years and experienced countless memorable moments in the air, but I had never experienced anything quite like this.
It only got more emotional when I deplaned. Instead of rushing to baggage claim or hurrying to catch connecting flights, many passengers stopped at the terminal windows to witness something truly moving. Outside, the Honor Guard and the fallen soldier’s family were waiting as LAX baggage handlers and military personnel carefully removed the flag-draped casket from the cargo hold. It was an incredibly humbling scene and one that I’ll never forget.
I watched as a woman, who I believe may have been the soldier’s mother or wife, slowly approached the casket. A few other family members stood nearby, wrapped in blankets, while members of the Honor Guard stood at attention. I couldn’t begin to imagine what that family was going through or how difficult it must have been to wait for their loved one to come home under such heartbreaking circumstances.
As soon as I saw the woman reach out and place her hand on the casket, I walked away.
That was more than I could bear to watch. Even today, 13 years later, I get emotional thinking about that moment and the extraordinary sacrifice that family made.
A flight I will never forget
What began as an ordinary flight became the most extraordinary flight of my life. I’ve traveled all over the world and taken thousands of flights, but this experience stands apart from all the others. It was a powerful reminder that behind every military uniform is a person with family and friends who love them, and that the sacrifices made by our service members affect far more people than we sometimes realize.
I’m grateful to the Delta crew, the military escort, the Honor Guard and everyone at LAX who helped ensure that this fallen soldier was brought home with the dignity and respect they deserved. I’m especially grateful to the men and women who serve our country and to the families who support them, often making sacrifices of their own.
Veterans Day is a time to recognize and thank all those who have served in the United States Armed Forces, while Memorial Day specifically honors those who died in military service. Although this experience involved a fallen soldier, it reminds me every Veterans Day of the courage, commitment and sacrifice of our military members and their families.
To all our veterans and active-duty service members, thank you for your service. And to the families who have lost loved ones while serving our country, please know that their sacrifices are not forgotten.
Thirteen years later, I can still hear that military officer’s words: “You are all escorts, escorts of the heart.” I’ll carry those words, and the memory of that flight, with me for the rest of my life.
Johnny’s note
When I first shared this story and video in 2013, I had no idea how many people it would touch. Over the years, I’ve received thousands of comments and emails from readers, including veterans, military families and people who have experienced similar homecomings. One of the most impactful was a comment left on Yahoo by a reader named Indiana Joan. Her words have stayed with me, just as this flight has.
RELATED READING
- How We Bury the War Dead
- Giving Your Upgrade to a Soldier
- How American Airlines Treats Our Military
- A Very Different Homecoming
Want more travel news, tips and deals? Sign up for Johnny Jet’s free newsletter and check out these popular posts: The Travel Gadget Flight Attendants Never Leave Home Without and 12 Ways to Save Money on Baggage Fees. Follow Johnny Jet on MSN, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and YouTube for more travel stories.
“As soon as I saw her reach out to put her hand on her baby’s casket, I walked away.”
Bawling my eyes out at this line. Nothing worst than outliving your child.
When you see things like this, it reminds you of what military men and women do for our country. Few even think of this, and even fewer show the respect due to them. I salute all military men and women protecting our country and thank you so much for sharing this. It touched my heart.
As an Army Officer, I appreciate the gratitude and respect you have shown to our nations fallen. You, sir, are the reason we continue to fight for this great nation. We are the land of the free because of the brave. Pro Patria.
Thank you for sharing, truly made me tear up.
The transfer was done with excellent grace and dignity that our beloved warriors deserve. To the family who let us see this, thank you and you are in my prayers. Your loved one left this world protecting every American and I for one, am very thankful and deeply respectful. I feel your saddness and I hope one day the pain is not so great. Thank you.
It is very special to see this kind of respect given to our fallen warriors. These powerful images and words convey a moment to most, and a lifetime to the affected families and friends. This type of a welcoming is the very least a greatful nation can do for those who protect it. Rest in piece in the presence of the Lord , you are now home…
Unfortunately there are many who wont even bother to read this piece and continue to bad mouth our military! I for one thank you for the reminder and especially to our many brave heros who walk the line to keep us safe and free!
and do you have any idea how many more lives our actions have saved?
I was deployed to Baghram Afghanistan in 2008. Baghram is the central processing base for all fallen soldiers in Afghanistan. While I was there, many fallen soldiers came through there and then were flown home. Whenever the soldier was to be transported out to the aircraft, everyone on the base would line the streets the entire path and render a salute as the soldier was driven past them. Once out at the aircraft, there was a very somber ceremony that took place as the casket was loaded into the aircraft. I was honored to be standing there to pay respects, and even more so when I was allowed to be a part of the loading ceremony a few times. This ceremony and lining the streets happened every single time a fallen soldier was leaving Afghanistan, no matter what time the flight was to depart. 3 in the morning had just as many military members lining the street as 3 in the afternoon did. It was an honor regardless of the time. hated to see them go, but loved the way we said goodbye.
I got a lump in my thought just reading it. You truly have a way with words to make us feel we were there too.
I’m former military and have had to do this several times for some of my best friends. To see the person’s mother touch the box carrying her child home to her to bury truly is crushing. The hardest thing in the world to do is to hand her the flag off her child’s casket, salute her, thank her for her child…then turn and walk away. That said, I thank G-d every day that that is something that never gets easier to do.
of course, it is a tragedy to lose somebody in war, young, old, ally or non-ally. but did you every once pause to think how many lives have been destroyed and ended tragically thanks to US soldiers in everywhere from iraq, afghanistan, vietnam, to name a few. and do they get an aircraft transfer, a water cannon salute, a big funeral?! no, instead they are left and forgotten, just like every other person killed on “the other side”. i think the american people need to take their heads out of their a**es and wake the hell up, if our government weren’t sending these young poor people to take part in battle then there would not be any flights like this, any fallen soldiers and so on. how many lives has the US destroyed in this war?! how many has it ended?! so this is just paying the price, and i hope it all comes back triple, not to soldiers or the public, but to all of the politicians responsible for this mess. shame on them.
– a concerned US citizen
So, Steven, do you think when we send troops into another country they just kill everyone they see? Our military does not indiscriminately kill people. People die because they are trying to kill us. The rules of engagement were so strict that a soldier could ask to return fire only after bullets were hitting the vehicle. Do you know how many Vietnamese were killed AFTER we left? Millions. How about in Iraq? About 1000 a month. How many did Stalin or Mao kill? Are you happy that we didn’t intervene? Should we had let Hitler have his way? You do not stop evil by ignoring it or negotiating with it. The only way to stop it is to kill it. Be thankful that we have men and women like this fallen hero who are willing to do what you aren’t capable of doing.
So, what about all our citizens killed on 9/11? Are we to just sit back and let them come into our great country and kill us? Thank God for all our brave men and women that volunteer to fight our battles. I do believe it is time for all of them to come home, but we ar not the “killing machine” here, just protecting our own. Better on their land, then ours.
steven says:
November 1, 2013 at 10:24 am “of course, it is a tragedy to lose somebody in war, young, old, ally or non-ally. but did you every once pause to think how many lives have been destroyed and ended tragically thanks to US soldiers in everywhere from iraq, afghanistan, vietnam, to name a few. and do they get an aircraft transfer, a water cannon salute, a big funeral?! no, instead they are left and forgotten, just like every other person killed on “the other side”. i think the american people need to take their heads out of their a**es and wake the hell up, if our government weren’t sending these young poor people to take part in battle then there would not be any flights like this, any fallen soldiers and so on. how many lives has the US destroyed in this war?! how many has it ended?! so this is just paying the price, and i hope it all comes back triple, not to soldiers or the public, but to all of the politicians responsible for this mess. shame on them.
– a concerned US citizen
Steven, You focus is off target. “….thanks to US soldiers….” Currently, it is thanks to Obama. Quit making the soldiers scape goats to these situations. This drums up anger, animosity and hatred toward our military which has been shown so strongly during the “Shutdown” where politicians feel that they can do anything harmful to the military and get away with it because the people call the military, killers. That is what the Politicos want you to do which is protecting the Presidents. You need to thank Obama for the last five years, and the other Presidents…. Obama is the current and sole individual responsible for MAKING ALL OF THE DECISIONS, the deaths of the military, and others. It is he and he alone who is responsible for all of those deaths, not the military! You also have never seen the funerals for those martyrs, they are well attended and given a salute!