Teen Boy Flying to Ohio Ends Up in Puerto Rico by Accident: ‘My Heart Pretty Much Sank,’ His Father Says

Frontier Airlines said it “extended its sincere apologies to the family for the error"

A 16-year-old boy who had been traveling alone for the first time hit a stroke of bad luck as he found himself at the wrong destination.

Frontier Airlines told NBC News and Scripps News in a statement that on Dec. 22, a 16-year-old passenger from Tampa, Florida, who had been traveling to Cleveland, Ohio, had “mistakenly boarded” a flight to San Juan, Puerto Rico. The airlines noted that both flights departed from the same gate, but the San Juan flight left first.

The airline said that the teenager was immediately flown back to Tampa and booked on a flight to his intended destination the following day, according to the outlets. Frontier Airlines also said it “extended its sincere apologies to the family for the error.”

Frontier Airlines did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.

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The father of the teenager, Ryan Lose, told NBC News that the flight was the first time his son Logan had boarded an airplane by himself and that he had been nervous prior to the flight.

“He went up there and asked the lady if the flight was boarding, and they said, ‘yes,’ and they also checked his bag to make sure it fit,” Ryan told CNN. “But Logan said they never scanned his ticket. Logan said they just glanced at it and said, ‘Yes, you’re on the right flight,’ and then he boarded.”

He told CNN he initially suspected that something wasn’t right after Logan’s mother called him to let him know that Logan had already boarded at around 8:30 p.m. — which was too early. He said his 9-year-old son looked up the flight status and found out that a plane to Puerto Rico had just left around that time.

Ryan said he had called his son trying to warn him that he was on the wrong flight, but none of the calls got through. So he contacted Frontier Airlines, which informed him that they would give the pilot a head’s up to watch for the teen, according to CNN.

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When Logan eventually landed, he immediately texted his family about what happened.

"I could feel the fear in the text messages. I could feel how scared he was," Ryan told NBC News. "My heart pretty much sank at that point because there was nothing I could do."

Logan took the same flight back to Tampa, landed around 3:30 a.m. and then hopped onto a 7:45 a.m. flight to Cleveland, where he was scheduled to spend Christmas with his mother, CNN and NBC News reported.

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Ryan noted, “This whole ordeal has been stressful for everyone.”

Frontier Airlines told CNN that children over the age of 15 are allowed to fly alone and it does not offer an “unaccompanied minor program,” in which a passenger under the age of 18 can travel with an escort.

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s guidance on kids flying alone notes that “many carriers require unaccompanied minor procedures” if travelers are under the age of 18.

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