I am a witness. I saw it firsthand. In fact, I am a participant.  With the clock ticking towards the euphoric “OFF DUTY” time and status…BING BONG…Trip Assigned…we start the rescue mission.

Ok, maybe it isn’t a rescue mission with a sense of danger or imminent emergency. However, it did involve people stranded in an airport trying to get home.  I’m a hero in my version of the story anyway.

While Hotel Reserve usually ends with an uneventful passing of “Off Duty” time and status, today we are called to action.  With only 45 minutes remaining until going off-duty, a summons to fly starts the process.

Off we go, as we travel to the airfield and launch our rescue jet into the air.  The key to a smooth operation is clear communications.  What’s the status of our aircraft? How is the weather?  Where are we going?  Who are we picking up?  Where do they need to go?  And lastly, can we get a refill on coffee? 

With the smoothness of a well oiled hamster wheel, we start the trek of finding answers to our questions.  From the time of notification, to the “landing gear up” call, we are a success at meeting the 90 minutes timeframe for a Hotel Reserve recall.  Not all heroes wear capes, but we have wings.

Thankfully, our passengers are only a 50 minute flight away.  Due to a little forethought and adding extra fuel, we land uneventfully and quickly turn the aircraft for the second half of the rescue mission…the delivery. 

At this point, we can have two types of passengers about to board. Happy passengers, or…shall we say, Unhappy passengers.  Thankfully, two jovial fellows greet us and are just happy to be on their way home.  A smile and wink later, engines are started, seat belts are fastened and our new friends are enjoying a small sample of the mini bar. 

It’s late into the night now as the city lights dance and twinkle below as we climb into the evening sky.   A nice tailwind compliments the flight as we sail across a few states and glide down as our Air Traffic Controller informs us to “expect the visual for runway 2-3 left.”  

A light chirp of the tires confirms we’re back on terra firma. Three minutes later, brakes are set, door is open and we get to be the first to say “WELCOME HOME”.   —Rescue Mission COMPLETE