By COLlive reporter
Having Shabbos in mind while booking a flight has saved a passenger’s life.
The story has been reported on the Dan’s Deals website, with an email exchange between a travel agent and a Jewish traveler.
Andy was set to travel from Sydney, Australia, on March 1st, to Hong Kong, and then to Kuala Lumpur. From Kuala Lumpur, he was to fly to Beijing, and he requested to be on a flight on Saturday, the 8th of March.
The travel agent, an Orthodox Jew, proposed a slightly altered itinerary, changing the Kuala Lumpur-Beijing flight from Saturday to Friday.
When the customer requested to change to Saturday, the travel agent responded that he would not be able to book travel for him over the Sabbath, but that he was free to book that flight by himself, saying “You know I don’t like flying Jews on Shabbat.”
After deciding to book the flight himself, Andy later emailed the travel agent that he has changed his mind, and asked if he has a recommendation on where to eat in Beijing over Shabbat, according to the website.
The travel agent recommended a place to get a nice kosher meal and booked him the originally proposed itinerary, flying from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing on Friday early morning instead of Saturday.
After Shabbos, when Malaysia Air Flight 370 took off from Kuala Lumpur at 12:43 am and has yet to be located, the travel agent received an email from Andy.
“This is a true miracle for the books,” he wrote. “You are a true lifesaver.”
“Not I am the lifesaver,” responded the travel agent. “G-d and Shabbat were your lifesavers. You owe them something.”
View the full email exchange here.
if you keep Shabbos, Shabbos keeps us
to all you doubters…bet the family of andy is LAUGHING at you
and will thank G-d forever more, andy’s parents, wife,children
and eternally bless the good agent…..WISE UP.. WAKE UP
if we keep shabbos shabbos keeps us
Miracles happen every day, every moment. Have we already forgotten the miracles around 911 and those who couldn’t get to work that day for whatever reason? We just have to open our eyes and ears. Oh, and to #13, I think it should read “don’t mess with Hashem” but your meaning is correct. Lovely story.
this should be a lesson to everyone to be careful about when they are traveling! to #33 i definitely agree!
Please, Yiden take this as as a wake up call. He didn’t just chose a different date. He chose to observe the Shabbos.
my comment was for anyone out there who might take the the story the wrong way.
To the commentors, the disappearance is a great tragedy to many people. The author is just pointing out though one incident that happened that amazingly saved someone’s life.
We don’t know why things happen the way they do. Hopefully, the victims are in paradise. We can feel for the victims while also acknowledging how someone survived. He is Not saying anything bad about the victims on the Malaysian plane, just pointing out how choosing a different date saved someone.
just sat through a Torah class on our responsibility “to remember what Amalek did to us” ….says it twice in the Torah. #6 – look inside….amalek is doubt in the Creator of the Universe! Purim Sameach, everyone, Miriam Ader.
sorry, but no bored soul would make up a story about such a miracle so i think that if anyone is the bored soul…. im afraid it you.
I feel, nothing but my feeling, that this story is about Yehuda Silverstein, who is extremely humble, pious and professional travel agent. Even email style is very similar to his. Kol aKavod to the agent!
what your saying makes you look stupid dont you see everyone is writing to you it is true 100 percent true thus story
great story may Hashem always perform miracles for all the yiddin. Amen.
RIFUAH SHLAIMAH!!
Great story! ‘Yidden’ why not state your names? This will add credence to the whole affair and stop any bad feelings.
Any responses?
[email protected]
a kidus hashem chzak
Baruch HaShem for saving a yid and Shabbos so.publicly, the week going into Purim when the entire Jewish nation and Shabbos, our day of rest and spirituality, was saved by our return to Yiddishkite. I say our return to yiddishkite because Esther led us in a fast. May we remember the fast of Esther this Thursday and once again fast and remember all the yids who are not keeping Shabbos and pray for them and us to return for our own sake and the sake of the entire world. Messhiach now! Chi (life) ….
If you were in the business you may understand. It’s a much friendlier relationship between provider and receiver in these services, speaking firsthand. And yes, it’s very common I know several agents who do same for returning clients. If they already have a continuing relationship, and Jewishness inevitably comes up at some point between all the conversations – sometimes including personal tidbits of information, from either side – you’d know it’s very normal. Another note, while once booking a ticket for a customer which he needed to include a stopover in Bali, I had to ask (his last name was… Read more »
first of all travel agents are not an automated system like AA that you call once and all you know that the person who serviced your call her name is michelle. a travel agent is more like a personal travel secretary who most of the time know their clients.
secondly, regarding unprofessionalism, the travel agent had his own standards of how he does business. just like jews in generl would, hopefully, deny an offer for a job to be done on shabbos….
please share his name! we are truly impressed!
for some pious people, religion does come before money, it’s not unprofessional, it’s called pious,
Yes, it did happen! Maybe if you check the news you would know…
Why be a non believer? I happen to personally know the travel agent, my husband knows him, and heard the story first hand. It may surprise you to know that in order to protect a persons privacy, a company should never release their name! The traveler does not (yet?) know that his story has even made waves, let alone news waves. And if the travel agent released his name/company and other customers of his stumbled upon this story, even without a real name they could well be unimpressed and feel somewhat violated in terms of professionalism/confidentiality. They are dealing with… Read more »
…I find it hard to believe a travel agent would discuss religion with a client, and even refuse to book him the flight he asked for. Very unprofessional.
I won’t believe the story without further evidence, perhaps an explanation about how the agent knew the guy was Jewish to begin with, and the nature of their relationship such that the agen would be so unprofessional so as to refuse him service.
Amazibg story!
and unfortunately one negative comment (#6) brought forth more negative comments.. Let’s revel in this miracle and allow it to shine upon all our souls so that we can each have a part and thus be induced to increase in acts of kindness and goodness.
realy cool!go cbd!we must continue the rebbes shlichus!!!if only we could get the whole world to keep shabbos!!moshiach now!!!!!!!!!!!
looks like someones got a problem with shabbos.. piece of advice, dont mess with shabbos.
Vus vet zein ….
its amazing!!!!!!!!!!!
of course its true #6…….. get a life
u sound like a very negative person………………..
I guess in the true spirit of Purim we needed an amalek to cool the pot………
I trust dan more then an idiotic anonymous commenter (you)
and if he says the travel agent is his friend i believe him 1st
I personally verified this story and saw the emails with their gmail time stamps. Also I know the travel agent. I was the first to share this on FaceBook.
Of course you can believe what you’d like but it’s 100% true and I hope it helps bring many yidden to observe shabbos more!
This story doesn’t look authentic. No names or proof that this story actually happened. Some bored soul decided to make up a story and now its gone viral. To all my facebook friends, stop sharing this story that did not happen!
way to go brokers!!
he didnt worry about not making the sale, or losing money. he made sure to do what was right.
I’m truly moved by this story.
Thank you for sharing! This is truly incredible!
hashem is alive and forever amenr if one lets hashem give us the abilty to keep the Shabbat for it tis very difficult to keep the Shabbat then hashem will let the shababt keep us amen for the for the forthcoming week is blessed by the previous Shabbat amen
lets all make a place for hashem to rest in this world and hashem will surely send the third temple speedily and immediately amen