A 6-year-old who realized after disembarking that she had lost a tooth aboard a plane, was desperate to get it back.
Seeing this, a passing captain, with his jacket, cap, and epaulets, stepped in to write a note to the Tooth Fairy explaining the situation.
Lena and Laura Larmon were at the tail end of a long travel period, with a return leg from Norway to Greenville-Spartanburg Int. Airport, South Carolina, interrupted in New York with a 36-hour delay. Finally stepping off the plane must have felt like bliss, until at the baggage claim, when 6-year-old Lena realized she had lost a tooth.
“We tried to walk back to the airplane, but security was closed. It was 2 a.m.,” mom Laura told Good Morning America, adding that Lena was “crying and very emotional,” when she realized that, without the tooth to place under her pillow, there would be no corresponding visit from the Tooth Fairy.
That’s when United Airlines Captain Josh Duchow, seeing Lena’s distress, stepped in to help. With his captain’s bearing, and official uniform, there would be no doubt that a quick written explanation from “Captain Josh” would be an acceptable receipt for the Tooth Fairy’s records.
“Dear Tooth Fairy, Lena had a tooth fall out on her flight to Greenville,” wrote Duchow, who piloted the flight. “Please take this note in place of her tooth.”
Mother Laura later shared the story on Instagram and Facebook as a break from “a world of bad airline stories.”
United Airlines released a statement on Duchow’s part, declaring: “we’re proud to see moments like this that underscore our commitment to going above and beyond for our customers and creating an airline where Good Leads the Way.”
