Yesterday was an incredibly sad day for aviation in the United States, with Spirit Airlines ceasing operations. While the outcome was inevitable, that doesn’t make it any easier for the thousands of employees at the company who are now finding themselves without jobs.
No matter how competitive airlines are with one another, the entire industry comes together in difficult times, and here’s the prime example of that…
Retiring Spirit captain gets water cannon salute, party
There’s no point in paraphrasing here, so let me just share the story that Southwest Airlines published on its Facebook page yesterday:
Today was supposed to be Capt. Jon Jackson’s retirement flight with Spirit Airlines. After the airline’s sudden shutdown, he found himself heading home as a passenger, seated in the back of a Southwest flight with his son, Chris, a Southwest First Officer.
Chris casually mentioned to the flight’s Pilots that this would have been his dad’s retirement flight. They seized the opportunity to change the course of the day for Capt. Jackson. They alerted Dylan, a Southwest Dispatcher, setting into motion a plan that resulted in a proper retirement party when the flight landed in Baltimore. The Baltimore Airport Fire & Rescue met the aircraft with a traditional water cannon salute, and the Baltimore Ground Operations Team was waiting at the gate to welcome him with cheers and bottle of bubbly.
It was a powerful reminder of the aviation community’s ability to show respect, compassion, and solidarity when it matters most. Above all, this moment was about honoring a fellow aviator. Congratulations, and thank you for your service in the skies, Capt. Jackson.
Beautifully written, Southwest, and well done to all involved who made this so special for the pilot.
Spirit captain makes emotional final announcement
While we’re on the topic of Spirit captains during their final hours working for the company, a video is also circulating online about an announcement made by a Spirit captain who was operating one of the carrier’s last flights. As you can tell, he had nothing but positive things to say, and this can’t help but tug at your heartstrings.
Bottom line
Say what you will about Spirit’s customers, but the company always had a really great culture among employees, and most people working there really seemed to enjoy the company. It’s nice to see these employees getting the respect they deserve.
While I suspect the captain who missed his retirement flight won’t be operating any more commercial aircraft (for obvious reasons), I hope other Spirit employees can find new careers ASAP.
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