Saluting 28 years of Service

Yesterday I was able to witness something very cool. My flight from Chicago to St. Louis was to be the Captain/pilot's last flight before he retired officially at midnight (there's a rule that says pilots have to retire at 60). We didn't know it until we got on the plane that that's what all the photographs and excitement were about outside the gate. Captain Struyk told us a little bit about his family and how he came to be a pilot, and it was awesome because his wife was on board and his brother & sister had come down from Michigan to surprise him for the flight. The whole flight had an air of celebration and because it was such a short flight (45 minutes or so) it was very lighthearted. When we touched down (the softest landing I've ever experienced, and they joked it was probably the best of his career), we taxied into the gate area at Lambert airport and two firetrucks met us with an arch of spraying water that drenched the plane in salute (SO COOL!) No one rushed to get out of their seats as we waited in respect for him to turn off the seatbelt sign for the last time. I felt so blessed to be part of that experience and to share in his last flight and the beginning of a hopefully happy, healthy, and relaxing retirement for this American Airlines pilot who gave 28 years of his life to flying. :)