No fighting for overhead locker space, no awkward toilet waits – one man has revealed how he enjoyed the ultimate dream flight after becoming the only passenger on board.
Phil Stringer explained how his flight from Oklahoma City to Charlotte, North Carolina was delayed by 18 hours, but rather than give up on the journey he decided to endure the long wait.
His patience paid out dividends when he rocked up at the departure gate to find he was the only person there – but the flight still went ahead.
Originally scheduled for 6.20am on Sunday, it finally took off after midnight, and Stringer became king of the skies: with his pick of first class seats and the finest food and drink American Airlines has to offer.
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The TikToker filmed the empty jet accompanied by the caption: “When you buy every single ticket on the plane so you don’t have to deal with people.”
He then added: “Just kidding, it was delayed 18 hours and everyone else gave up,” before giving viewers a taste of his once-in-a-lifetime experience.
Addressing the camera directly, Stringer said incredulously: “I am the only person on this plane and they have an entire flight crew. They do not want to do this flight.”
Laughing, he then filmed a smiling baggage handler who acknowledged that he’d just loaded “all the bags” onto the aircraft.
“All” being “one”, that is.
Stringer then explained that the airline had been forced to “pull” staff from a nearby hotel to man the flight “for just one person”.
He then recorded the aircrew clearly enjoying the whole, bizarre situation: playing up to the camera and keeping things light-hearted as they went through the standard safety announcements.
Stringer’s video racked up more than 21.9 million views and 4.5 million likes in just one day, as fellow TikTokers shared their delight and envy at the unusual scenario.
“That plane flew just for you! Who else can say that?” one commented, adding: “Private Boeing.”
“Love how they all engaged in your experience!” wrote another.
@phil.stringer18-hour delay turned this flight into a private party! ✈️? Watch how the amazing crew and I made the most of it! #americanairlines #flightattendant #airplanetiktok #privateparty #FlightFun #delayedflight #fyp #viral
In an interview with Insider, Stringer said that he initially thought he’d missed boarding when he turned up at the empty departure area.
“I went to the gate and nobody was there. I was like, ‘Did you guys already board everyone?'” he explained.
But, he said, the flight attendant responded: “No, honey, you’re the only passenger.”
The lucky traveller told the news outlet that he had tried to change his flight multiple times, to no avail, so spent nearly a whole day waiting in the airport for his delayed departure.
Stringer said he felt terrible for getting the crew dragged out of bed to man his journey, insisting he apologised to them “like 400 times”.
“They were kind of teasing me, like, ‘Really, bro, you couldn’t have left a few hours later?'” he added.
Once the flight finally took off, the unintended VIP spent the whole flight chatting and joking with the friendly team, all while enjoying those tasty first class perks.
Reflecting on the adventure, Stringer said: “I believe that your attitude determines your destination.
“Yeah, it was a sucky day. No one wants to stay in the airport for 18 hours, but if you have a positive view, you can turn something into a lot of fun.”
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