Pilot reaches out of cockpit window to retrieve passenger’s lost phone

A passenger's lost phone was retrieved through some quick thinking and ingenuity. Photo / Twitter, SouthwestAir

Travellers can agree there are few worse feelings than realising you’ve left something behind at an airport.

But last week video emerged of airline ground performing a remarkably elaborate rescue of a passenger’s phone, reportedly forgotten in the departures area.

Southwest Airlines staff at Los Angeles’ Long Beach Airport said they found the device in the departure gate of a flight that had already boarded.

Footage of the phone retrieval attempt was tweeted by the airline on Monday.

Thanks to some quick thinking and ingenuity they got the device out onto the runway for the departing plane.

Leaning out of the cockpit window, the pilot of the aircraft was able to take it from the hands of a ramp worker.

No easy feat, considering the 3 metres from the landing gear to the viewing port.

After some effort the video shows the ground staff celebrating delivery of the device.

Posted on “World Kindness Day” the tweet received over 2500 likes on twitter. This led many in the comments to raise suspicion of the altruistic act. The airline did not respond to questions as to whether the incident actually happened on November 13, but said the footage was genuine.

One questioned how they could be so certain that the phone they posted into the cabin didn’t belong to another passenger - imagining the owner returning from the bathroom only to discover their device had disappeared “across the county”.

Others were just surprised that plane cockpit windows can be opened.

Chris Perry, a spokesperson for the US airline, said that the phone had been successfully reunited with its owner.

The plane had been notified after one of the ground agents said the device’s owner was already on the plane, read a statement to CNN.

“The captain immediately suggested that the ramp agents on the ground try to jump the phone up to him so he could return it to the customer,” Perry, said via email. “The rest was captured on video!”

Although the phone’s owner was not identified. They probably appreciate the lengths the airline went to to retrieve it.