Wednesday, December 11, 2013

Don't Forget About Me!


You have probably flown on an airplane somewhere before.  And you may have heard the horror stories of people who miss connecting flights, have flights cancelled or get stuck overnight in an airport.  If you fly a lot, sometimes these things may happen to you.  Having flown many times over the years, my opinion is that these things happen all too frequently.  And yes I have been stuck in airports over night and have had flights cancelled.  

Meet Tom Wagner.  it seems that Mr. Wagner woke up recently to find him self in a deserted, locked airplane cabin.  Check out the news story.   What do you think of that?

Fortunately the story has a happy ending as Mr. Wagner was able to get help to unlock the plane a little later.  You have to wonder if airline workers  checked the plane before locking it up. Mr. Wagner was compensated with a free hotel room that night and a $250 airline voucher.  


Now for your questions.  Whose fault was it that he was left behind?  Do you think he was compensated fairly?   Will this change your desire to fly places?  Is the airline's apology enough?  

41 comments:

Anonymous said...

That is a scary thought being stuck on a plane by you with all the lights off. I think the guy got a pretty good deal with a free night in a hotel and $250. I would do the same thing for $250. I’m sure they didn’t mean to leave the guy up there I can’t believe none of the passengers didn’t wake him up I guess they weren’t thinking bout anyone else I guess. To be honest it was a careless mistake hopefully it won’t happen again.

Josh Paulos

Anonymous said...

In this situation it’s the airlines fault. They’re always supposed to check the plane and make sure that everyone is off the plane at all cost. I would’ve accepted the apology, and the free hotel room, but still would be upset in this situation. But hey like he said “you snooze you lose”.
Trayvon butler

Anonymous said...

Honestly I think I would have freaked out! I don’t know how he managed his cool, but I wouldn’t have been able to do that. I thought it was hilarious that he got trapped in the airplane, but it was kind of scary too. My personal opinion is that I sure as heck would never ride in an airplane because of this. I’m not trying to freeze to death and starve. The airplanes apology was not enough! They should have at least gave him a free flight to anywhere he wanted to go.
-Brittany Wade

Matthew Saunders said...

I have no idea how I would react if that was me. I believe it was the attendent’s fault for not checking properly and going over twice, because peple do sleep on airplane rides, so I highly doubt it was the passenger’s fault. I will still want to play a plane, but I would make sure I wouldn’t get left behind or forget something, just to be safe. Sometimes I think they did give him enough, but what if he did have a heart attack, that would not have been good. He was also in a plane in cold weather, he could have gotten hypothermia. This is why I cometimes perfer car rides, unless I have to go to another country.

Anonymous said...

This is insane I would have been so scared; I probably would’ve started crying. At least they compensated him, to some extent. I guess it would’ve been hard to him since he was in a window seat. I still think they were hardly doing their jobs if they missed him.
~Mataabea Lawrence

Anonymous said...

In my opinion they should check all the seats to make sure that everybody is of the plane. And sure it is scary because I remember when I fell asleep on it was dark. And I really don’t see how you cannot see a human being while do the routinely plane check. But must give to the airline they did give the guy $250 and nice and cozy hotel room. So yea I think they did make it all up after that.
Christopher White

kaylan said...

That is a scary thing to have gone through, I would have been terrified to wake up in a dark airplane with nobody on it. I think it was their fault he got left on the airplane. If they checked the airplane before locking it, then they would of saw the man up there. This story really doesn’t make sense to me honestly, because they said they checked the plane before locking it, but there was a man still up there. At least they did give him something in return for the incident

Anonymous said...

In my opinion it is the flight crews fault for not seeing him on the routine plane check. To be honest they need to do a better job so that this does not happen again. To be honest I don’t think he was compensated fairly he was locked in a plane all because the flight crew didn’t do there job. I don’t think that the airlines apology is enough if I was him I would want an apology from the whole flight crew. This incident will not change my mind about flying but I will definitely think twice before falling asleep.
Justin Hampton

Maddie Atkinson said...

If that had happened to me I would have probably been freaking out; I mean it does kind of sound like the beginning of a horror movie. Honestly, I feel very bad for Mr. Wagner, and, if it were me, I don’t think that is a good enough compensation. Why would someone leave a passenger on a plane? I just see why this happened. I also do not believe that the apology was enough either. These sorts of things should not happen, and the airline should find out who caused this to happen, and fix it.

Becca said...

I personally don’t think that they gave him enough. The cleanup crew was obviously not doing their jobs correctly. How do you miss somebody like that? He is a pretty big guy and I know that he had to be scared. I think it’s good that they apologized for it. Did they apologize because they were sincere or because they had too? This will not change my desire to fly, because I don’t sleep on airplanes anyway. Things like this shouldn’t happen; leaving someone on a locked airplane is ridiculous. Is society today in too much of a hurry to stop and check what’s going on around them?

Ashley Whitley said...

I saw this on the news yesterday and I was extremely shocked. I think it's mostly the airlines fault, and other passengers should have woken him up. The pilots and all the airline workers should search the entire plane to make sure everyone is off. I would have been very angry if I woke up on the plane alone. He could've gotten hurt or possible could have been on the plane for a while without food. If he didn't have a phone, he might of been there for a while. Riding in the car is much safer unless your going really far away from home.

Anonymous said...

I saw this on the news this morning. I couldn't believe what I heard. If I were in this situation i would freak out. I think the airport needs to check the plane for people.
If he would not of had a phone who knows what would happen.


Zayne Bankson

Cory Childress said...

How do you not see someone sleeping while you're doing a routine sweep of the plane? The employees that were on board of the plane probably got in trouble. He was lucky nothing happened to him.

Anonymous said...

Colin O’Melia December 11, 2013
I think that he was compensated fairly. But I’m a little curious why it is such a big deal, I mean sure he was locked in a plane but it’s not really that big of a deal, he got out, he didn’t die or get injured, there was no problem. I’m sure the only reason the airline paid him was so they kept a positive image and didn’t lose customers.

James Lawrence said...

I think this a very embarrassing mistake for the airline. In my opinion it was the airlines fault for not checking the plane to see if anyone was on it. If said they said they checked enough then they obviously didn’t. And I don’t think the compensation was enough.

Anonymous said...

I would have been really scared all by myself on a plane and it’s dark and cold. I think they compensated him enough. This wouldn't change my mind about flying but it would change my mind about sleeping on the plane and nobody wakes you up.
-ShaQuadia Brown

Anonymous said...

I cannot believe nobody woke him up. How could not only none of the passengers wake him but the routine sweep of the plane miss him. I do not think what the airline gave him was an adequate compensation.
Elizabeth Elsesser

Griffin said...

It seems like a scary situation to be left on a plane, but they gave him money and a free hotel room and I think that was enough. It is the airline workers' faults for not properly checking the plane after the flight. It's crazy that nobody else on the plane woke him up.

Demarcus Porter said...

I think is one of the embarrassing things that could happen to a airline. I feel bad for tom , because what happen if he had a stroke.I bet the employees got in trouble.

TyKera Holloman said...

I think it is very scary to be on a dark cold plane all alone. This is a scary situation I wouldn't want to be in. I think it's the airline's fault because everyone else got off the plane safely. No one woke him up to tell him to get off the plane. I know they saw him because don't they clean up the airplane before they can go to the next flight? That was a good deal that they gave the man. I would've wanted more depending how long i stayed on that plane.

Anonymous said...

Emily Edwards
I have heard many excuses of someone not showing up for an appointment or a special occasion, but I have never heard of this excuse before. I believe that it was kind a Tom Wagner’s fault for not waking up at the right time, but it was also the flight crew’s fault because they clearly did not check the plane hard enough. I think he was really “out cold” on this flight, but yet he is not a heavy sleeper. This would not change my desire to ride an air plane; however I have not ridden on a plane before. I wish that they would have done a better apologize; at least they apologized to him.

Rayquan Parker said...

I think that this is the most surprising thing ever. How can you leave a person on the plane when your job is to check and make sure everyone is off. I think that the man was right what if he was dead, heart attack or anything and no one would have known because they didn't check behind and see was anyone left or on the plane its just ridiculous.

Cassie said...

I think that it it wasn't right at all. Flight attendants should have been there to check the plane to make sure it was clear. The airlines should be embarrassed because of the situation to be honest. They should get in a lot of trouble. I would be scared if I woke up on a cold, empty plane.

Anonymous said...


Holly
I believe that the passengers should have told him to get off, they were un boarding. The attendents are supose to check to make sure everything is clear. I have never been on a plane but, I have been on a cruise ship. I would not mind if I got left on a cruise ship because that would just mean an extra week of vacation.

Anonymous said...

Taijii Skeeter

I honestly think that wasn't right. The person beside him should of at least told him they were getting off the plane. Besides the airplane employees are suppose to check to make sure everyone is off the plane before they even get off. I have been on the plane and I have slept before and my parents always woke me up just before the plane stop. I just would be terrified if I every did get looked in a plane, I wouldn't know what to do.

Anonymous said...

I think he was compensated enough for the inconvenience. I think it was the employees fault for not alerting him and getting him off of the plane when it was time. Waking up in an abandoned airplane would be creepy and it doesn't sway my opinion because I am observant and alert during important events.

Trey King

Trevor Cross said...

I think it isn't the airlines fault completely. It's sad to say that none of the other passengers woke the man up to get off the plane. But also, the flight attendants should have checked to make sure all the passengers had exited before closing down the plane.

Anonymous said...


I think that they could of got him off the plane. I don't know how the flight attendants would not know he was still on the plane. It would be scary to wake up on a cold and empty plane.

Holden Hyler

Brianna Mcnew said...

I feel like they should have woken him up and made sure he got off the plane. I don't understand how you can leave a man on a plane whether he was sleeping or not. They should make sure every person is safely off. This will not change my opinion of flying, but it would suck if I got stuck on a plane.

Tabatha Davis said...

I think the airline was at fault because the flight attendants did not check the airplane properly. It is a shame the no one else on the plane bothered to wake him up. I think he was compensated fairly. I think the apology was enough in this case because no one was hurt.

Anonymous said...

Zach Reese
I love good plane rides in the middle of winter to see family. This is not what I have in mind of a “good” plane ride. I would be scared and I’d probably hyperventilate and pass out and never want to sleep on a plane again. Tom is lucky that someone found him and he got off the plane.

izabelle Aiken said...

That was scary thought being stuck on a plane by yourself with lights off. They suppose to check the plane before they shout the lights off. They should at least give him a free plane ride.

Anonymous said...

I blame the airplane employees for this incident. Heck I blame the air Marshall as well. I'm pretty sure you check there suppose to check the plane before they get off. I mean people be in some deep sleeps, you cant help it sometimes. I would have raised cane if that was me.

Josh Edwards

Kelvin Jackson said...

I really don’t know what to say . if that was he I would freak out. But I still don’t get how they forgot about him. If it’s one thing I lean it’s to be mindful is you got to sleep on a plane.

Anonymous said...

I would be pretty confused for a few minutes if I woke up on a plane with nobody on it. Whoever was in charge of checking the plane for people was definitely doing a pretty slack job. It was a pretty harmless and funny story though.

-Landon

Albert Rawles said...

If I fell asleep on a plane I'll make sure I'll have something to wake me up. I have never flew in a plane and never will, because you never know what could go wrong with the plane. If anybody falls asleep on a plane the people who fly the planes should make sure everybody is off the plane safely.
-Albert Rawles

Anonymous said...

That was crazy! I think it was the flight attendants fault. They are responsible for their passengers. I do not think that the plane company's apology and compensation was not enough. They should of paid him a generous amount of money and the vultures. Just like he said he could of had a heart attack.
Imani Horsley

Anonymous said...

This is a crazy situation. I believe it is the pilot's job to make sure everyone is off the plane. If I was in this situation, after this trip, I would never ride a plane no more. But at the end of the day the pilot should had made sure everyone was off the plane before next take off.

Benniqua Allmond

Anonymous said...


I think it wasn't anyone’s fault, the fight lady should have woke him up and told him that the fight was over. As long as he was given his money back because he missed what he wanted to do. I think that the apology was just fine. I don’t mind falling asleep and being left on the plane not harmed.

-Samantha Albert

Anonymous said...

No I don't think this guy was treated fairly. He did get a thank you but something could have happened to him and they didn't thank him enough. Also it was partly his fault because he shouldn't have fallen asleep if he cant wake up when the flight is over.
Adrian Rhodes

Anonymous said...

I can only imagine how scary that was for him. I think that the man deal with it very good because most people would panic. I still don’t see how he didn’t wake up


Jesse Holloway