Teen posts photos of SIA stewardess who befriended him on flight 13 year ago, reunites with another

Chin Hui Shan
The Straits Times
May 4, 2023

Two Singapore Airlines (SIA) stewardesses made such an impression on Dominick Lee O’Donnell and his family during a 13-hour flight from London to Singapore 13 years ago that they became his childhood heroes.

Dominick, who had just turned four at the time, was moving from London to Singapore with his family when SIA cabin crew Alice and Sandy sang him a birthday song, wrote him a card and goofed about with him on the flight.

“The attention and care they had given me was very calming and took my mind off the whole overwhelming situation of migrating to a new country,” said Dominick, 17, who was travelling in business class with his parents.

Dominick, who lost touch with the two women after that flight, bumped into Sandy again in a chance encounter during a flight from Singapore to London in 2016, this time in economy class. Now, thanks to Tiktok, he has reconnected with Alice.

The two women wanted to be known only by their first names.

The teenager, who hopes to be a pilot, told The Straits Times that the two stewardesses had shown him “how to make meaningful connections” and left a deep impact on his family.

Dominick with Sandy (left) and Alice (right).

Alice told ST that she remembered that Dominick was the only child travelling in the cabin they were working in.

“I didn’t think I had gone out of the way to show more care or attention. We always pay more attention to families travelling with children as they will require more assistance,” said the former SIA stewardess, who is in her 40s.

Dominick’s parents often talked about their experience on that 2010 flight when he was growing up.

In 2016, when he met Sandy again, the SIA stewardess gave him a tour of the aircraft after learning that he wanted to be a pilot. Dominick obtained a recreational pilot certificate in Australia in 2022.

Sandy also whipped out photos that they took together on the 2010 flight.

“The photos show the deep impression our brief encounter left on all of us,” said Dominick, who is a student at Tampines Meridian Junior College.

The duo met again for lunch in November 2022 when they were both coincidentally in Perth at the same time. Sandy, who happened to have a flight to Perth, had seen on Instagram that Dominick was there too.

On Tuesday, Dominick took to TikTok in a bid to reconnect with Alice, sharing how he met the two women with a series of pictures.

“I heard that TikTok has magic and I thought that it was a cute story to share so I gave it a try. I doubted that it would get attention but I had hope it’d help me find Alice,” said Dominick.

The post made its rounds and eventually reached Alice, who left a comment.

Alice, who learnt about the “heart-warming” post through her sister, told ST: “I never thought I would make such an impact on another person’s life. I was just doing what I enjoyed.”

Dominick is planning to meet both Alice and Sandy with his parents soon.

“To me, they are like mentors and big sisters I’ve never had,” said Dominick. “I hope to become a pilot one day and invite them on board, and the story will complete a full circle.”