To the Rescue! Airline Employees Go the Extra Mile for Sick Passengers

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Are flight attendants the super heroes of the sky? (Photo: Thinkstock)

Airline employees often get a bad wrap. They have to enforce baggage fees, they won’t let you check-in if you miss the deadline, and some flight attendants insist on giving you a cup of Coke when all you want is the entire can. So yeah, they are often criticized, but recent headlines show another side: Sometimes these workers go above and beyond the call of duty.

A flight attendant on Turkish Airlines sprang into action after a Japanese passenger fainted about three hours into a flight from Osaka to Istanbul. During the incident, the traveler hit her head, shattered her glasses, and cut her cheek. Crew member Burcu Kirmaci quickly applied first aid, and looked after the passenger until the flight landed in Istanbul.

But her care didn’t end there.

According to BGN News, upon landing in Turkey, Kirmaci realized that the woman required stitches and would need help getting to the hospital because she didn’t know the local language. “I knew I was the only one who could fully help the passenger given that I speak Japanese,” Kirmaci said.

Related: Passenger Jailed For Threatening to Dismember Flight Attendant

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A United gate agent arranged new tickets for a passenger who was too sick to fly. (Photo: Thinkstock)

The flight attendant went with the passenger to the hospital, conversed with the Turkish doctor, and stayed with the woman until she reached home later that night. Like a true good citizen, Kirmaci said that deciding to help the woman “was not an act of responsibility, but rather an act of empathy.”

And she isn’t the only airline employee to go the extra mile.

A United agent named Victor Cisneros stayed by the side of sick passenger at Mexico’s Guanajuato International Airport. The woman had a horrible stomach bug, had become ill due to severe dehydration, and was too sick to board her plane. Not only did Cisneros comfort the woman during this incident, he also arranged medical care, an overnight stay, and new tickets for her flight home.

Related: Confessions of a Fed Up Flight Attendant: The Absolute Worst People on the Plane

When asked why he extended such kindness, Cisneros told the blog Boarding Area that he would worry about his wife if she were alone in the same predicament. What a guy!

So the next time you arrive at the airport, stressed, and looking for someone to take out your frustrations on, take a breath and use kindness.

After all, one day you might need that airline employee more than they need you.

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