I absolutely love hearing stories that remind me that humanity and common decency still exist and that selfless acts are still happening every day in the unlikeliest of places. Way to go pilot! More people should care about others in this way!
It is really sad that the pilot's common decency and thoughtfulness are so moving to me. Is it so rare anymore for someone to do the right thing? I read the story and was choked up, and as I think about it, the pilot was just behaving as I would expect anyone to behave.
The thing is that everyone one in the Southwest family understands that if the planes aren't in the air, the planes make no money. That's why one occasionally sees flight crew members helping load bags. And while the profitable bottom line is the Mission First orientation, it's their "People Always" that makes them such a joy to fly. I've had excellent flights and I've had mundane ones. I've never had a bad one with SWA. I know my patronage is appreciated. And it's fairly safe to presume that the pilot advised the plane load of pax what he was delaying the ramp departure for a few minutes for an important personal reason, and left it at that. I'm actually surprised that the story came out, as it's been my experience that SWA does what it can to make customers satisfied.
