AirAsia pilot helps passenger reach grandmother's funeral

An AirAsia flight from Kota Kinabalu to Kuala Lumpur unexpectedly facilitated a final farewell for a grieving family. Pilot Koh Yew Weng, 37, was unaware during flight AK5135 on Tuesday morning that a passenger's family had posted a social media plea for the flight to arrive without delay so a sister could attend her grandmother's funeral before burial.

The flight faced potential disruptions due to heavy rain and drone activity at Kota Kinabalu International Airport, which forced air traffic control to implement reverse runway operations. Despite these challenges, the crew managed an early pushback, allowing the flight to arrive in Kuala Lumpur on time.

Koh only discovered the story after landing back in Kota Kinabalu and seeing the social media posts. The passenger's family later confirmed that the sister arrived in time to see her grandmother one last time.