In today’s world, when you hear about an airline in the news, it is almost always about something negative, such as missing baggage, increased charges, or smaller seats. Because of this, the news that an airline went out of its way to show compassion and kindness to one of its customers came as such a welcome and joyful surprise.
Peggy Uhle was on route from Chicago to Columbus, Ohio, on a Southwest flight when the aircraft she was aboard made an emergency landing and returned to the gate while it was still taxiing. Peggy was informed by a flight attendant that she needed to exit the aircraft when it came closer to the destination.
Peggy at first believed that she had boarded the incorrect aircraft; however, the gate agent informed her that she needed to phone her husband as soon as possible.
Then she found out that their son, who was living in Denver, Colorado at the time, had suffered a brain injury and was being treated in the local hospital.
Peggy immediately began the process of figuring out what steps she needed to do in order to go to her kid as soon as possible, but the gate agent told her something that was almost too wonderful to be true: they had already taken care of everything for her. Peggy began to question whether or not the agent was telling the truth.
Peggy said that “the gate agent already knew what was going on and put me on a direct flight to Denver that was leaving in two hours.” Peggy was referring to the fact that the gate agent was already aware of the situation. “They provided me with a quiet spot to wait, relocated my baggage, allowed me board the aircraft first, and prepared me a meal for when I arrived in Denver after the flight. My baggage were delivered to the location where I was staying, and Southwest even phoned to check on the well-being of my kid.
And none of it came at a financial cost to her.
Peggy was astounded by how diligently Southwest worked to get her to her son in the shortest amount of time and with the least amount of hassle as possible.
Peggy said that the level of attention she received was unparalleled. “Southwest Airlines has always been one of our favorites, but these days we just can’t say enough good things about them,”
Peggy’s son suffered a catastrophic brain injury, and although he is still making progress in his recovery, she will be able to be with him while he does so. We are keeping Peggy’s kid and the Uhle family as a whole in our thoughts and prayers as they go through this difficult time.