Florida Student Is Only Passenger On British Airways Flight, Still Didn't Get Seat Upgrade
KEY POINTS
- A 19-year-old was the only passenger on board a British Airways flight from London to Orlando, Florida
- He was given "unlimited" snacks and beverages and could choose any seat he wanted, except for first class
- The student said he is not sure why no other passengers were on board and the crew didn’t provide any information either
A 19-year-old college student found himself the only passenger on board a flight to the U.S. earlier this month.
Kai Forsyth, who had gone back home to the U.K. over his winter break, booked a British Airways flight from London to Orlando, Florida, as he was going back to school. But the cabin crew informed him upon entering the plane that he was the only passenger on the eight-hour trip, the New York Post reported.
Forsyth was even told by flight attendants that there were "more pilots than passengers" on board, the Derbyshire teen said in a video uploaded to TikTok on Jan. 9.
"I didn’t really know what was going on, but shortly after, the flight attendant comforted me and they gave me food, snacks, drinks, unlimited beverages - everything," Forsyth was quoted as saying by WKMG-TV.
During the solo passenger flight, Forsyth set up a bed and even became acquainted with a flight attendant, with whom he sat to watch "hours" of movies while eating "unlimited snacks," the student said in one video that has accumulated more than 530,000 views.
"British Airways, find this flight attendant. He needs a promotion," the student-athlete said.
Forsyth was also reportedly able to go to the plane's kitchen and was given the opportunity to pick any seat to take a nap in, except for first class.
"I think it's like against the rules to do that. Even though it was only me," he explained.
Despite this, Forsyth was still grateful for the experience.
"I’d just like to say a massive thanks to British Airways for providing me with this flight. That one flight attendant, you know who you are. You sought me out. So I had the best meals, all the desserts I needed," he said.
It was unclear how the flight took off with only Forsyth as the passenger. The student said the plane's crew did not provide him with any information.
However, Forsyth suggested that the solo flight was perhaps a result of COVID-19, flight precautions and people being scared.
A petition to end "ghost flights," or flights that proceed despite having no passengers in order to keep a route active, was recently submitted in the British parliament.
These flights "are a shocking waste of resources and a needless source of emissions," according to the petition, which has attracted more than 4,300 signatures.
The U.K. has reported 15,610,069 COVID-19 cases and 153,378 virus-related deaths, data provided by Johns Hopkins University showed.
The U.S., meanwhile, has had a total of 67,903,759 COVID-19 cases and 853,230 deaths thus far, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.