Fallen Soldier Saluted By Passengers Aboard Delta Flight To LAX
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — There was a surprise honor for passengers on board a flight from Atlanta to Los Angeles on Thursday.
Delta flight 2255 to LAX had a silent hero on board — the body of a fallen U.S. Army soldier brought home to his family.
Travel journalist Johnny Jet was on board and captured the moment that the honor guard boarded the plane to meet the official escorts.
No one moved or made a sound, he said.
"When the pilot made the announcement, it just went silent. You could almost hear a pin drop," Jet recalled.
"He said, 'I just addressed the escort. It is a sworn oath to bring home to the family the fallen.' And then he paused and he said, 'Today you all did that. You're all escorts. Escorts of the heart. ' And then he thanked us for our time and then he walked off the plane."
At one point, water ran down the plane's window from a firefighter's water cannon salute.
Jet also captured the moment when the flag-draped coffin was taken off the plane and the soldier's loved ones approached to touch it.
"When I saw her put her hand out, I just walked away. It was an amazing moment," Jet said.
Those watching from the terminal window also took a moment to pay their respects.
The soldier's identity has not yet been released.
