Beloved teddy bear left in airport lounge rescued by airline
Staff at British Airways have rescued a child’s stuffed teddy bear that was left behind in an airport lounge, documenting the toy’s safe journey home.
The treasured teddy was found in the British Airways lounge at London’s Heathrow Airport by nine-year-old Alex, who accidentally left the toy behind before boarding a flight home to Dubai.
After staff found the stranded toy, a new flight and boarding pass was created for Postman Bear, while members of the BA team gave the teddy the”'VIP treatment” with a journey on an airport buggy to “catch up” with the Cabin Crew Operations team in the Crew Report Centre.
Postman Bear was then taken to meet the cabin crew on his new flight to Dubai and was pictured “patiently” waiting for his flight at the gate, drinking a cup of coffee and enjoying “some great views of the aircraft” while waiting to board.
The teddy’s journey home was lovingly captured by British Airways customer manager, Ed Tumath, who sent the snaps back to young Alex to assure him his beloved bear was being looked after.
After touching down in Dubai, the cabin crew took Postman Bear to reunite with Alex and the rest of his family for a “bear-y happy reunion”.
Stuart, Alex's parent, recalled the moment they knew the teddy was missing, while praising British Airways for their tireless journey to reunite Alex with his bear.
Stuart said, “My son had left his teddy bear - huge sentimental value as he has had the teddy since birth - in the British Airways lounge ahead of the flight. We noticed as the aircraft doors were closing so nothing could be done at that point.”
“This was very distressing to my son who uses the teddy as a calming item, especially when flying. This was incredibly stressful and we feared that his beloved teddy may be lost forever.”
“Whilst onboard the flight, I took to a series of Facebook groups to seek help in finding the teddy. A member of the group contacted Ed who came to the rescue. I managed to communicate with Ed on the flight and received a picture showing that the teddy had been found, which calmed my son.”
“Not only did Ed go out of his way to find the teddy but he communicated so well throughout. He genuinely cared about the situation and worked so hard to get the teddy back to us.”
“He arranged for the teddy to board a flight to Dubai a couple of days later and a crew member handed the teddy back to us. Not only did Ed excel in his caring manner and communication, he even provided a few pictures of the teddy's journey, which my son will treasure forever.”
“My son was so relieved - words could not express how grateful we are to Ed for his kind act and dedication to getting the teddy back to us. I have been flying with BA for many years - this is the best experience I have had by far and I am overwhelmed by Ed's efforts.”
“Sometimes amazing people do incredible things and show such kindness along the way... these things matter. This meant a huge amount to my family and I, and we will be forever grateful.”
Image credits: British Airways