Pre-Pandemic Message In An Airliner-Sized Bottle Will Rock Your World
The note was left by a pilot who thought the pandemic pause would be a two-week breeze. In context, the note is deeply affecting.

When the COVID-19 pandemic first hit hard and airline travel numbers plummeted, Delta Airlines, like dozens of its competitors, decided to park many of its planes, a move many of its pilots figured would last around two weeks.
So when Delta first officer Chris Dennis parked a Delta ship at Southern California Logistics airport in Victorville, California, he left a note for the pilot who would surely come pick it up again in a few weeks.
So when, 435 days later, a different Delta first officer went to pick up the plane, he found the note left in the plane, which somehow became a time capsule. That pilot was so moved by the note, as are we, that he shared it with Delta, which posted it to its social media account, along with these words:
"Those 57 words, which captured so much of the uncertainty and emotion we all felt in March 2020, underscored the gravity of the trip, and how optimistic he now feels about the direction we're heading in. Ship 3009 is now prepared to take the skies once again."
And they signed off on the post with this: "While the world certainly has changed over the past year, one thing is for certain: we won't be taking that open runway for granted anytime soon."
Amen to all of that, and thanks to both first officers for helping us all get our heads and hearts around what has been a life-changing 15 months.


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