American Airlines Pilot Goes Viral with Emotional Message to Nervous Passengers Following DC Plane Crash: 'I Have No Higher Calling Than Carefully Transporting You'

A video of an American Airlines pilot reassuring passengers over flight intercom before takeoff has made rounds on social media in the wake of the recent deadly plane crash that occurred near Ronald Reagan National Airport last Wednesday.

The announcement was captured and posted by passenger and TikToker Leighton Mixon (@leighterhaters) on flight AA1044 from Jacksonville to Miami.

"[You] may be fearful about flying, and that's certainly understandable, but just please know that my first officer and our flight attendants and myself place your safety and the responsibility of carrying you to Miami, to your families, your vacations, your gates, at the highest level," says the pilot in the video, addressing anxious passengers.

"I have no higher calling than carefully, professionally transporting you today, so with that, relax and enjoy the beautiful evening that we get to fly in," he continued. "We'll begin shortly [and] welcome aboard."

"After [AA5342], this American Airlines captain just said the words that I (and everyone else) need to hear," said text placed over the footage.

Many were taken by the kindness of the gesture, including Mixon, who had been anxious to fly when initially boarding the plane.

"I just want to [say] how thankful I am for him and his words in such a time as this. After such a tragic event, [and] I am someone who doesn't have an anxious bone in my body, but I found myself facing so much anxiety and so much worry going into my trip (which was the following day)," Mixon told Fox News Digital.

Just last week, a Black Hawk military helicopter collided into an American Airlines commercial jetliner near Ronald Reagan National Airport in Washington DC, sending wreckage falling into the Potomac River. With a total death toll of 67 including all passengers on board both aircraft, the incident is considered to be one of the deadliest aviation accidents in U.S. history.

"This trip I'm currently on is supposed to be a fun trip. I'm on vacation.... The night before I'm supposed to leave is when the crash happened," Mixon told Newsweek. "My heart was heavy, and as someone who doesn't have a fear of flying at all, that could absolutely create a fear."

"But I went into flight anyway trying not to dwell on it, and that pilot said the exact words I needed to hear—it felt like he was speaking to just me," Mixon continued. "But after looking around, it was clear that everyone else needed to hear it too."