Delta Air Lines shares touching note left by pilot at start of pandemic

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(Photo Courtesy: Delta Air Lines)

VICTORVILLE, Calif. - That was a portion of a note written by a pilot who took a Delta Air Lines plane to the California desert at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

On June 10, officials with Delta posted a photo of the note to its Facebook page.

According to Delta's website, the note was left on a plane by First Officer Chris Dennis, who took the place to Victorville, Calif. from Minneapolis.

"Taking off from [Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport], he heard talks of a two-week lockdown. Feeling the weight of the moment, he penned a note for the pilot that would do the return to service flight and left it on the parked plane," read a portion of the Facebook post.

Delta officials say the note is dated March 23, 2020, and wished whoever is bringing the plane out of storage a safe flight. The note was tucked away in a folded-up tray table on in the cockpit of an Airbus A321 aircraft.

Officials say at first, First Officer Dennis thought the aircraft would remain in California for 14 days. The aircraft was parked in California for 435 days, and the note was discovered on June 1 by another First Officer who went to Victorville to bring the plane out of storage.

"While the world certainly has changed over the past year, one thing is for certain: we won't be taking that open runway for granted anytime soon," read a portion of Delta's post.