An unsuspecting grandmother got a heartwarming pre-flight surprise aboard her plane to go visit her grandson, who, little did she know, was already waiting in the cockpit to fly her there himself.
Airline captain Justin Shurtz, a St. George, Utah-based pilot, told ABC News' Salt Lake City affiliate KTVX that although he wasn't originally scheduled to fly that particular route, he wanted to do something special for his grandmother's first trip out to see him.
Shurtz found out his grandmother Carolyn's itinerary with American Airlines and took the wheel to help pull off a surprise aboard the final leg of her trip to Las Vegas via Chicago.
"Part of that, I had to contact the crew that was operating the flight, so I called the captain, and I said, 'Hey, I have a question, and I need some help.'" Shurtz told KTVX.
"She knew I was working. She was expecting me to pick her up in Las Vegas. She had no idea that I was going to show up on her flight," he added.
A video shot by Gina Abinet, obtained by ABC News, captured the moment Shurtz delivered the special message over the intercom.
"This is a very special flight for me," Shurtz said on the plane. "So, my grandparents raised me... they've done everything they could to help me get to where I am today."
"This amazing crew that I'm flying with here today was able to help me pull it off to where my grandmother got the opportunity to fly with me to Chicago today," he continued.
Shurtz said the moment she realized it was him was a moment he'll never forget.
"She jumps out into the aisle and sees me standing there and the look on her face -- at that point, that's when I got nervous," he said. "I was extremely excited because it sunk in that this is real. This is actually happening."
His grandmother Carolyn told the ABC News station, "I know how hard we struggled and how well they're doing -- so that was my biggest thing, just how proud he made me at that moment."
He reiterated that the unwavering support of his grandparents got him to where he is today.
"They supported me my entire life -- going through school, everything that we did in life, they were there backing us, pushing us to be the best of our potential, be who we could be," he said.
